Gypsy/Travellers action plan 2024-2026: Equality impact assessment
Equality impact assessment (EQIA) results document for Improving the Lives of Scotland’s Gypsy/Travellers 2: action plan 2024-2026.
Executive summary
Background
The Scottish Government has a longstanding commitment to ensuring we support Gypsy/Travellers, one of the most marginalised groups of people in Scotland, to lead happy, productive and fulfilled lives. Progress has been made through the first action plan ‘Improving the Lives of Scotland’s Gypsy/Travellers – 2019-2021’. However, we recognise that there is still work to do. We will build on the successes we have had to date and will make further progress in many areas through measurable actions in this refreshed plan.
The Gypsy/Travellers Action Plan 2024-2026 outlines five priority areas; these priority areas with their corresponding actions were identified and developed after an extensive listening exercise with communities across Scotland along with the expertise of organisations representing Gypsy/Travellers. These organisations are engaged in a Gypsy/Traveller Stakeholder Group, chaired by Scottish Government and COSLA officials, with a focus on the Gypsy/Travellers Action Plan 2024-2026 and the listening exercise to ensure the voices of Gypsy/Traveller communities are heard in meaningful two-way dialogues to help shape the final look of the Gypsy/Travellers Action Plan 2024-2026.
It will primarily affect Gypsy/Traveller communities across Scotland, which are relatively small in number compared to the whole population. It is also expected to affect local authorities and other national and local public bodies, such as schools and Health Boards.
The Scope of the EQIA
In line with the Equality Act 2010, we addressed inequality for people with protected characteristics listed in the act (age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation). Moreover, in line with section 149 of the Equality Act 2010, we had due regard to the need to 1) eliminate discrimination, harassment and victimisation and any other conduct that is prohibited by or under the act; 2) advance equality of opportunity between persons who share a relevant protected characteristic and those who do not; and 3) foster good relations between persons who share a relevant protected characteristic and those who do not.
In terms of data gathering, we established a Policy Delivery Group with Scottish Government colleagues in key policy areas to map out work to be done and matters to explore, as well as a Gypsy/Traveller Stakeholders Group to influence policy and consider areas of good practice for the listening exercise.
The Scottish Government and COSLA carried out the Gypsy/Travellers Action Plan 2024-2026 listening exercise with communities across Scotland which ran from July 2023 to November 2023 for the exploration phase, and then again from April to July 2024, a total of 9 months. The listening exercise was carried out in collaboration with MECOPP, STEP, Progress in Dialogue and Article 12 in Scotland. Each organisation covered specific parts of the communities, such as groups of men, groups of women, community members living on sites and in brick and mortar accommodation, disabled people, families, children and young people.
The Equality Analysis team collated and analysed available data and extracted key findings to populate this framing exercise regarding people potentially affected by the policy.