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Engaging Traveller parents to raise achievement of their children- 26 March 2015
- Research and analysis
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Raising aspirations and retaining Roma pupils at Key Stage 2
- 26 March 2015
- Research and analysis
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Raising aspirations and retaining Roma pupils at Key Stage 4
- 26 March 2015
- Research and analysis
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Supporting Traveller pupils in primary to secondary transition
- 26 March 2015
- Research and analysis
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Traveller children uptake in the Early Years Foundation Stage
- 26 March 2015
- Research and analysis
Further and Higher Education
Call to Gypsy, Roma and Traveller Staff and Students in Further, Higher Education
SEMINAR 10.45am-4.00 pm on 21 APRIL 2015 at
WADHAM COLLEGE,
OXFORD
OBJECTIVE: to see if there is scope for an organisation/network which could offer solidarity, mentoring and support to Gypsy, Roma and Traveller individuals who often find themselves isolated, and subject to ignorant prejudice, in any role in FHE as elsewhere in society. Come and hear from other people who’ve been there themselves. Share your experiences, and work out what the next steps should be.
PROVISIONAL PROGRAMME
10.15 Doors Open: Coffee
10.45 Welcome Speeches
11.00 Keynote speech:
Professor Colin Clark (University of the West of Scotland, UCU)
11.15 Workshop on Gypsies Roma and Travellers in Further Education:
Panel Chair: Dr. Brian Belton (YMCA George Williams College, UCU)
Rosie Toohey, (FE Student, NUS )
Fran Murray (Manchester College, UNISON)
Sam Wilson (Traveller Education Adviser, Hampshire Ethnic Minority & Traveller Achievement Service)
Isaac Blake (The Romani Cultural and Arts Company)
12.00 Workshop on Gypsies, Roma and Travellers in Higher Education:
Panel Chair: Dr Lisa Galloway (Blackpool and the Fylde College, UCU Professor Colin Clark (University of the West of Scotland, UCU)
Michael Barber (Wadham College, Oxford, NUS & UCU)
Petr Torak, (Open University, NUS and GRTPA)
Dr. Madeline Midgeley (Southampton University, UNISON)
Damien LeBas (Editor, Travellers’ Times)
12.45 Lunch (provided)
2.00 The Gypsy, Roma and Traveller Police Association as an example of ethnic organisation; and why current students should consider a career in the police force
Jim Davies (Chair, GRTPA and UCU) : Questions.
2.30 – 3.00 Break-out groups on what happens next
3.00 – 3.45 Plenary on what happens next including call for volunteers to take the network forward + new approaches to the Unions.
ROMED Intercultural Mediation Training in the UK
For some time a number of local authorities and other public bodies have recognised the value of employing people from Gypsy and Traveller backgrounds. The idea is to break down barriers and improve trust between official institutions and the people that they are here to serve. There are teachers and teaching assistants, home school liaison officers, youth workers, police officers, health workers, adult basic skills workers and social workers, often working with the whole population, and with a specific remit to promote the inclusion of their own communities. More recently schools, police forces, fire services and councils have recruited Roma from Eastern Europe to carry out similar roles. With the reduction in local authority budgets, voluntary sector organisations have increasingly developed an advocacy and liaison role. Some of these organisations are community led and their staff are often called upon to intervene in order to improve relations with service providers.
The Council of Europe, with funding from the European Union, has developed a training programme that has been designed for community members whose work, either paid or voluntary, involves them in some way in intercultural mediation. This programme is called ROMED. By participating in seven days of training with Council of Europe trainers and completing a six month work based assignment participants can gain the ROMED certificate.
The ROMED training is highly participative with much group work, role play and discussion as well as some theory. Topics covered include stereotyping, prejudice, discrimination, dealing with critical incidents, human rights, conflict management, assessment, planning, evaluations and the European Code of Ethics for Roma mediators. The intention of the training is to equip the trainees to act impartially to help develop the confidence of public institutions and community members in liaising directly with one another. This in turn will help to improve fair access to services and participation by everyone on a more equal footing.
The UK government agreed to join the ROMED training programme in 2012. The course has run twice now with ACERT (the Advisory Council for the Education of Romany and other Travellers) acting as the UK National Focal Point, responsible for organising the training courses , recruiting and supporting the trainees and reporting back to the Council of Europe. So far 35 UK based trainees have been awarded the ROMED certificate. This group includes people from a wide range of Traveller, Gypsy and Roma backgrounds who are living and working in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. A number of the participants from the first course supported those in the second cohort, two of them acting as co-trainers.
ACERT will circulate enquiries from organisations and local authorities seeking to use the services of a ROMED trained mediator. We would also be willing to support local authorities seeking to organise intercultural mediator training for people from their local communities.
For further information contact