Gypsies/Travellers Accommodation
As part of their traditional lifestyle, Gypsies and Travellers may have particular accommodation needs, and local authorities are required to consider these when they prepare their local housing strategies.
Accommodation
There are currently 32 official council/registered social landlord (RSL) sites for Gypsies/Travellers in Scotland. Twenty-nine of these are open all year round and three are available during the summer only.
In July 1998, the Scottish Government introduced a series of twice-yearly (January and July) counts of the Gypsy/Traveller population in Scotland to understand more fully the characteristics of this population and to assist and inform the development of public policies and services for Gypsies/Travellers, both nationally and locally.
The January 2008 count recorded a total of 455 Gypsy/Traveller households in Scotland, living on Council/RSL sites, private sites and unauthorised encampments. This is estimated to represent a population of around 1,547 people.
Gypsies/Travellers Site Grant
The Scottish Government directly supports local authorities to develop Gypsy/Traveller sites. £2 million is available to fund site development grants over 2008-09 and 2009-10. In August 2008, local authorities were invited to bid for grant for new residential or transit sites or for improvements to existing Gypsy/Traveller sites.
As part of the bidding process, grant applications were required to demonstrate that a project will meet one or more of the following criteria:
- to provide good quality, sustainable facilities on any new residential/transit sites;
- to extend significantly the useful life of the site;
- to bring unused or underused sites back into full use; or
- to improve the quality of life of residents by modernising or improving sub-standard facilities.
Local authorities were also required to consult with the resident Gypsy/Traveller community before submitting applications. The closing date for applications was 30 October 2008, and applications have been assessed by the Scottish Government.
Further information on the site grant is available by email.