Conclusion

The inclusion of a Roma ethnicity category in Scotland’s Census 2022 has enabled analysis of population demographics and outcomes in disability, education, and economic activity for Scotland’s Roma population. This report provides analysis for the Roma population excluding those born in Italy, due to quality assurance issues where a higher proportion than expected reported identifying as Roma as well as having been born in Italy, which may indicate the Roma group having been ticked in error.

The analysis presented in this report aims to fill some of the current evidence gaps on experiences and outcomes associated with Scotland’s Roma population, and aligns with user needs to capture more information about the Roma population in Scotland in order to improve services, and support policy development and monitoring.

High level comparisons to all of Scotland, Gypsy/Travellers, and Showpeople highlighted some similarities and differences when compared to Roma people’s experiences.

Key similarities included:

• The Roma population made up 0.04% of the total Scottish population, after excluding those born in Italy. This is comparable to the Gypsy/Traveller population (0.06%) and the Showpeople population (0.03%).
• A similar proportion of Roma people and Gypsy/Travellers reported owning their own home (23.3% compared to 28.3%). This is a smaller proportion when compared to Showpeople (68.3%) and all of Scotland (66.9%).
• The most commonly reported highest level of qualification for Roma people was a degree level qualification or above (34.2%). This is comparable to all of Scotland (32.5%).
• About half of Roma people aged 16 and above reported working as employees either full-time or part-time (52.9%), which is similar to all of Scotland aged 16 and above (50.6%).

Key differences included:

• The Roma population had the lowest reporting of a limiting long-term health problem or disability (13.5%), when compared to all of Scotland (24.1%), Gypsy/Travellers (39.5%), and Showpeople (27.6%). It is uncertain why there is a lower proportion of Roma people reporting a disability than comparison groups, and more research is needed to understand this.
• The majority of Roma people reported living in flats, maisonettes or apartments (74.0%), while about a quarter (26.0%) lived in a whole house or bungalow. This is a contrasting trend to the type of accommodation lived in across all of Scotland. The majority of people in all of Scotland reported living in a whole house or bungalow (72.3%), while about a quarter lived in flats, maisonettes or apartments (27.7%).
• Roma people reported living in social rented households more often than all of Scotland and Showpeople (28.8% compared to 20.5% and 11.1%). However, they reported this less often than Gypsy/Travellers (28.8% compared to 50.8%).
• Roma people’s most commonly held level of qualification was a degree level qualifications or above (including foreign qualifications) (34.2%). This is different to Gypsy/Travellers and Showpeople most commonly reporting holding no qualifications (43.7% and 37.4%).

While this report analyses new statistics on the Roma population , there are limitations to our understanding in certain areas which may benefit from future research:

• This report was not able to link Census results to political, social and economic contexts that may produce the differences in outcomes. Building on the descriptive analysis produced in this report, use of additional evidence and new research, including qualitative and lived experience, would be beneficial to strengthen the understanding of the experiences of Roma people in more detail.
• This report did not include intersectional analysis due to small sample sizes. This remains an avenue for future research to explore.
• Aligning future research with the Census questions would enable more comprehensive comparisons and longitudinal data to track changes over time.