! EXAMINING “NEETs”" ROVER WAY AND SHIRENEWTON SITES, CARDIFF, SOUTH WALES ! ! ! Jyoti Preet-Ryatt The Romani Cultural and Arts Company Temple Court 13a Cathedral Road !Cardiff CF11 9HA ! The Romani Cultural and Arts Company is a not-for-profit company limited by guarantee (No. 0700566) and a registered charity (No.1138150) ! !!#1 !Acknowledgements ! I would like to thank the residents at the Roverway and Shirenewton Sites in Cardiff for coming forward and engaging in this study. Their engagement was the focal point of this research and their willingness to participate and to share !their experiences and concerns has made this research possible. I would also like to express my gratitude to Jane Jenkins, Head Teacher of Moreland School; Beverley Stephens, Head Pembrokeshire Gypsy Traveller Education Service and Theresa Davies, Kara Richards, Lowri Reed and John Davies of the Welsh Government for taking the time to contribute toward this !research and for their willingness to help advance this research. A special thanks to Cherell Boswell, Kirby Jones, Daniel Baker and James, all members of the Gypsy and Traveller community who agreed to share their !valuable experiences and successes and contribute to this research. Many thanks also to Dr Jean Jenkins of Cardiff Business School for her invaluable guidance and support, Ashley Price for assisting with interviews and Isaac Blake, Director of the Romani Cultural and Arts Company and his team of transcribers in making this research possible. Finally, thanks to Communities First (Star Cluster) and the East Cardiff, Llanedeyrn and Pentwyn Communities !First (ECLP) for funding this research. ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Jyoti Preet-Ryatt, MSc. Tel: 029 20 786439 [email protected] ! (RCAC 2014) !!#2 CONTENTS ! 1. Executive Summary and Introduction 4 2. Research Methods 8 3. Views of Gypsy and Traveller Children, Young People and Adults 14 Shirenewton Children and Young People 14 Shirenewton Adults/Parents 18 Roverway Children and Young People 21 ! Roverway Adults/Parents 26 4. Views of the Professionals 32 Jane Jenkins 32 John Davies 48 Theresa Davies 62 Kara Richards 69 Lowri Reed 78 ! Beverley Stephens 92 5. !Success Stories 104 Cherrel Jones 105 Kirby Jones 106 Daniel Baker 107 ! James 115 6. !Summary of Findings 118 Assumptions 122 Key Considerations 123 Conclusion 131 ! 7. Bibliography 132 ! ! ! ! ! !!#3 Executive Summary ! In February 2014 the Communities First (Star Cluster) and the East Cardiff, Llanederyn and Pentwyn Communities First (ECLP) commissioned the Romani Cultural and Arts Company to examine the phenomenon of the high rate of NEETs within the Gypsy and Traveller Communities at the Shirenewton and Roverway Sites in Cardiff respectively (“the Sites”). The aim of this short term research was to gather information and gain a snapshot of real life experiences of young people on the Sites to help to explore and identify additional resources that may be necessary and to inform the local authority and educational institutions of any need to change practice and find new ways of supporting a vulnerable group of people. ! Structure of the Report ! Section one of this report sets out the aims and objectives of the research; section two outlines the research design and methods used; section three sets out key responses based on interviews with Gypsy and Traveller children and young people and parents living on Shirenewton and Roverway Sites; section four summarises interviews conducted with Welsh Government Officers whose work directly impacts upon Gypsy and Traveller children and young people, the head teacher of a primary school, the head of a Traveller Education Service in West Wales; section five contains brief studies setting out the experiences and achievements of young Gypsy and Traveller individuals who have secured diverse and varying degrees of higher educational achievements and enjoy success in their chosen vocations, section six sets out the findings based on contributions of research participants, summarises conclusions from these findings and highlights issues or practices that could benefit from a closer examination, further consideration or action based on these findings. ! 1. Introduction ! 1.1 Young people who are not in education, employment or training are often referred to as “NEET”. The Welsh Government’s strategy on NEET is encompassed in its Skills and Employment Strategy, “Skills that Work for Wales” (2008) which outlined categories of young people not in education, employment or training. These range from “core” NEETs which include young people with social and behavioural problems or other more complex needs, including those who come from families “...where working is not an accepted !!#4 norm” to “floating” or “at risk” NEETs – young people who have most of the problems of the core group and have periods of being NEET but are more willing to accept support to “transition” or “gap year” NEETs which includes young people who are not in education, employment or training for short periods only and do not require Government intervention. The NEETs strategy also identified other groups of underperformers in schools that were at higher risk of becoming NEET down the line, namely “Gypsy Traveller young people”, “certain ethnic minority groups” and “white males in some areas”. 1.2 “Evaluation of Education Provision for Children and Young People Educated Outside the School Setting”, a report of Edinburgh University following research commissioned by the Welsh Government to examine the process of exclusion from school in Wales and the delivery, planning and commissioning of education provision for children and young people educated outside the school setting (EOTAS; education otherwise than at school) identifies inter alia, “...Patterns of exclusion and disproportionality” and notes that the sanction of exclusion is applied disproportionately to children and young people who have a range of characteristics, of which being of “...of Gypsy, Roma or Traveller heritage” is specifically mentioned and adds that “...Such disproportionality is linked to inequitable educational outcomes (Riddell and McCluskey, 2012; Parsons, 2009)”. 1.3 ‘Travelling to a Better Future’ - Gypsy and Traveller Framework for Action and Delivery Plan - highlights the Welsh Government’s commitment to Gypsies and Travellers and its continued commitment to equality issues, community cohesion and human rights in Wales. In terms of education, the Welsh Government has stated that it is committed to promoting an inclusive approach to education and learning that is responsive to individual educational needs and which supports all children and young people to reach their full potential. The Framework recognises that a mobile lifestyle can mean that many Gypsy and Traveller children have interrupted learning and poor attendance, without the opportunity to settle down at school. It notes that “...children often feel different and misunderstood in a school setting and very few attend secondary school” and accepts that Gypsy and Traveller children have the poorest attainment rates when compared with other learners. 1.3.1 The Framework highlights particular barriers that prevent these children from accessing education as follows: i. Gypsies’ and Travellers’ different attitudes to school education, especially towards secondary school; ii. the travelling patterns of Gypsies and Travellers; iii. inappropriate methods of communicating with the Gypsy and Traveller community leading to ineffective engagement and mutual mistrust between the community and local authorities; and !!#5 iv. negative experiences of secondary education of some Gypsy and Traveller parents (Report by National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) ‘Research into the Education of Gypsy Traveller Children in Wales’ 2006) 1.3.2 The Framework also makes reference to Circular 003/2008 which addresses another important barrier to school attendance, namely that Gypsy and Traveller pupils are often the subject of name–calling, bullying and racism and notes that research suggests that of all the minority ethnic groups, Gypsy and Traveller children are the most likely to suffer racial abuse. 1.3.3 Noting that “low educational attainment within the Gypsy and Traveller young of Roverway and Shirenewton has led to a cycle of low income and poverty for families”, the purpose of this research was to gather information and present an honest snapshot of real life for young people on the Sites to help explore and identify additional resources that may be necessary and to enable the local authority and educational institutions to consider the need to change practice and find new ways of supporting these vulnerable people. 1.4 The specific objectives of the research were to: i. Consider the reasons or the circumstances that prompt Gypsy and Traveller children and young people to discontinue with their education both at secondary school or further education level; their interest in educational attainment and their hopes and aspirations in this respect. ii. Consider the provision made by schools to help, support or motivate Gypsy and Traveller children to remain in school; consider the reasons identified by schools behind the high rate of such children dropping out of school; identify the issues if any, faced by schools in encouraging Gypsy and Traveller children and young people to remain in school and secure attainment and identify any areas in which they need help or additional resources. iii. Consider the provision made by the Local Education