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Division(s): N/A

ITEM EX20

EXECUTIVE – 15 MARCH 2005

TRAVELLER POLICY

Report by Director for Community Safety & Chief Fire Officer

Introduction

  1. On 5 October 2004, on receiving a report on Traveller strategy, the Executive instructed the Director for Community Safety to convene a Member/Officer Working Group to review current policies relating to traveller services, consulting appropriate bodies and report back to the Executive. This report provides details of progress to date.

    2. Permanent Sites

  2. The Council assumed direct management of its six permanent sites in September 2004 in response to concerns about the quality of management of the private contractor that had had responsibility for some years. A considerable amount of work had to be undertaken immediately to rectify the neglect that was evident when the sites came under Council management. The additional work is being quantified and the Solicitor to the Council instructed to pursue this issue.

  3. Negotiations with site residents’ representatives over a new license agreement are now completed. This agreement, which seeks to address all issues raised in recent government guidance and as a consequence of recent legal judgements, is now seen as a model of good practice. The Working Party invited both Gypsy representatives and the residents’ legal adviser to one of its meetings to finalise these agreements.

  4. All policies have been reviewed and in some instances written for the first time. A Race Equality Impact Assessment has been undertaken. Further work will continue in this area.

  5. A substantial bid has been submitted to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister for refurbishments to all six sites. If successful, the ODPM will fund 75% of the works and the remainder will be met from the projected revenue from the sites. Taken together with the on-going programme of maintenance and site cleaning, these refurbishments will constitute a significant improvement, both to the quality of life of the residents and to the appearance of the sites to neighbours and the public.

    6. Gypsy and Traveller Service

  6. Considerable concern was expressed by site residents and their representatives about the potential role of Thames Valley Police through their partnership in the Traveller Management Unit in site management. While the TMU was developed to respond to unauthorised encampments at the time that the sites were under the management of Westgate Managed Services, the Working Group recognized that it would be prudent to clarify the separation of functions.

  7. As a consequence, the Gypsy and Traveller Service has been created. This clearly separates site management staff from those in the Traveller Management Unit and ensures that there is transparency around the distinction between these two functions.

  8. A draft Business Plan has been approved by the Working Party and is attached as Annex 1.

    9. Transit Sites

  9. At an earlier meeting, the Executive endorsed the principle of a regional or sub-regional approach to the provision of transit sites. While some discussions have taken place across Thames Valley, no progress has been made to date. It remains essential, therefore, that no such development should be taken forward unilaterally within Oxfordshire as there would be a risk of increasing the influx of unauthorised temporary encampments, rather than providing an authorised base for them.

    10. RECOMMENDATIONS

  10. The Executive is RECOMMENDED to:

          1. endorse the re-alignment of functions of the Gypsy and Traveller Service; and

          2. reassert its support for a regional or sub-regional approach to the provision of transit sites.

JOHN PARRY
Director for Community Safety & Chief Fire Officer

Background Papers: Nil

Contact Officer: Mike Simm, Head of Community Safety, Tel: 01865 202218

March 2005

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