Improving the lives of gypsies and travellers Friday, January 23, 2009 - 17:50

Only one in 25 gypsy and traveller children achieves five top GCSE grades.

To help them and their families a book, Working with Gypsy/Traveller families, is being published by NIACE at a conference in Sheffield on, Friday 23 January 2009.

The book - part of NIACE's Lifelines series - provides an insight into Derbyshire County Council's success in working with Gypsy and Traveller families to improve their literacy skills. It also shares successful family learning models and projects that benefit the whole family.

These families remain some of the most disadvantaged in our society and this book will inspire others to see a way that they too can work with the Gypsy and Traveller communities in their area.In the book I give an insight into the Gypsy and Traveller cultures, including their history, and describe the development of a family learning model that engages with, and benefits, all family members

Emma Hrubiak, author of Working with Gypsy/Traveller families

Carol Taylor, Director of Literacy, Language, Numeracy at NIACE, said

"Travellers are amongst the most marginalized groups in society. Their culture, history and lifestyle means they often don't have the skills of literacy, language and numeracy of non-Travelling families, although they have a range of other skills and experiences which can be built on."

She continued, "All parents want to help their children and to give their children the best chances in life, and Family Learning is a proven successful way of working. This book describes how Traveller families in one local authority engaged in family learning activities which improved the skills of the adults, developed the language and literacy skills of the children, and enabled the parents to understand better how they could support their children."

Sarah Spendlove is the Head Teacher at Temple Normanton Nursery school and has experienced success using the book's model. She said:

"The children are more interested in reading and writing and are progressing more quickly than before.  Parents are becoming more involved in the school and are more receptive to the children learning to read.  They are taking their children's learning much more seriously."

Jan Thompson, a teacher from the Traveller Education Service, said:

"I am delighted to say that on one of the sites where we used this model, every 3 and 4 year old is currently attending nursery.  It has helped me engage with the families and built good relationships."

The mothers of Gypsy and Traveller children based in Derbyshire said:

I've enjoyed seeing what the children do with the teacher who comes on site.  It's helped me to do more at home with all my children.

They are asking to read stories and make stories up at bedtime and that's never happened before.

I've really enjoyed having time on my own too, learning something for myself.

Diane Brook is from a gypsy background and has faced much prejudice from others, but by going back to learning 20 years after leaving school she has managed to transform her life for the better. In September 2007, NIACE Press Officer Ed Melia interviewed Diane as part of a series of podcasts for the Sign Up Now campaign. The podcast is available below.