News & events

All councils that have taken out “wide injunctions” preventing Gypsies and Travellers from camping on open land may have to withdraw them if a new High Court hearing – due in the New Year – goes against them. This new hearing, centering around Enfield Council, follows a landmark legal ruling in early 2020 saying that …

In the wake of the successful Court of Appeal challenge to London councils’ “wide injunctions” preventing camping on open land, London Gypsies and Travellers’ work continues to bring individual councils round to a more humane approach. Ilinca Diaconescu, LGT’s Policy and Campaigns Coordinator, provides an update on important developments in Enfield. At a High Court …

Organisations for Gypsies and Travellers, including LGT, are demanding an apology from Home Secretary Priti Patel after she branded Travellers as criminal and violent in a recent Zoom meeting with Jewish community leaders. During the meeting, Ms Patel said she was determined to stamp out the “criminality that takes place and that has happened through …

London Gypsies and Travellers has relaunched its Bright Futures programme, which supports children and parents as they make the transition from primary school to secondary school or from school to college. Bright Futures now has its own logo, and LGT is promoting the programme widely. As part of the service, LGT’s youth development worker can …

Gypsy, Roma and Traveller History Month celebrations took a new format this year, with London Gypsies and Travellers, the Greater London Authority and other organisations staging a spectacular online event showcasing the community’s contribution and culture, but suited to COVID times. Debbie Weekes-Bernard, London’s Deputy Mayor for Social Integration, attended the event and spoke about …

In a short film made by LGT, Gypsies and Travellers are sharing their responses to Channel 4 Dispatches programme The Truth about Traveller Crime. Since the programme was aired on 16th April, LGT has been gathering reactions from Gypsies and Travellers in London and beyond to feed into its formal complaints to Channel 4 and …

London Gypsies and Travellers is urging members of the community and the public to complain to Channel 4 television and Ofcom, following a Dispatches programme which claimed to reveal the links between Traveller sites and high crime levels. The programme, billed as an investigation and called “The Truth About Traveller Crime”, showcased public accounts of …

London Gypsies and Travellers is raising urgent concerns about the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on Gypsies and Travellers in London. With pitches on permanent sites and temporary stopping places thin on the ground, many families are struggling with overcrowding on available sites, leaving them unable to self-isolate if they are vulnerable or symptomatic. LGT …

LGT response plan to the Covid-19 (Coronavirus) outbreak In response to the current Covid-19 outbreak, our office is currently closed until further notice. We are committed to supporting the Gypsy and Traveller community at this difficult time. We will continue working remotely but have made changes to the delivery of our services as outlined below. …

The 2019 London Gypsies and Travellers’ Annual Report is now available for download. The report details LGT’s work influencing policy, protecting the Gypsy and Traveller way of life, mapping the community’s history, supporting families and offering young people opportunities. In her introduction, LGT Chair Claire Cooper points to the divisions currently apparent in society. “It’s …