Self-Directed Support and Gypsy/Travellers
This report provides a summary of the findings of a one-year research project exploring the potential of Self-Directed Support to
meet the care and support needs of Gypsy/Travellers in Scotland. The full report is available on MECOPP’s website: www.mecopp.org.uk
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1. The projectMECOPP (Minority Ethnic Carers of People Project) is Scotland’s leading Black and Minority Ethnic carers organisation providing a range of care and support services to carers from various minority ethnic communities. In 2011, MECOPP began working with Gypsy/Travellers in three localities of Scotland: Edinburgh and the Lothians, Perth and Kinross, and mid and north Argyll.
In 2013, Scottish Government funding was secured to explore the potential of Self-Directed
Support (SDS) – the new approach to providing social care services in Scotland in which
individuals direct the delivery of their support packages – in meeting the care and support
needs of Gypsy/Travellers. The two-year project was split into two phases: the first a research
phase; the second to implement the recommendations borne from the research.
Drawing on community-based approaches, the aims of the research were to establish:
• Current levels of awareness of SDS;
• ‘Appetite’ for take-up of SDS;
• Potential barriers which may prevent uptake; and
• Support mechanisms required to enable uptake.
Over forty Gypsy/Travellers, of various ages, participated in the research from the three
localities, including men and women. A combination of informal and semi-formal interviews
were carried out and surveys were also conducted with service providers, including all local
authority SDS leads and carer centres in the Carers Trust network.
“We were appalled to hear of discrimination against Gypsy/Travellers amongst support workers and lack of acceptance of the community as a distinct ethnic group.”
Scottish Parliament Equal Opportunities Committee, 2012
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2. What appetite is there for SDS?When the general principles of SDS were explained to community members, there was unanimous support. However, when asked whether they would consider accessing SDS, a number of reasons were provided as to why they did not feel able to.
2.1 ‘Not a Priority’Whilst acknowledging the potential
benefits of SDS, many participants
were dealing with issues around
accommodation and discrimination and
tackling these was by necessity a more
urgent priority.
2.2 ‘Nothing will happen’There was also a sense of fatalism among
many participants, with a feeling that
nothing would happen even if they did
try to access SDS. Much of this is related
to the accommodation problems that
participants faced, many of which have
been rumbling on for years.
2.3 Lack of positive storiesA lack of positive stories of Gypsy/
Travellers directing their own support
means many community members are
reluctant to pursue SDS themselves.
“Show me it working for someone else and I’ll think about it”
Gypsy/Traveller carer
“SDS just sounds like it will be too much hassle”
Gypsy/Traveller carer
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3. What are the barriers to SDS for Gypsy/Travellers?
Barriers for Gypsy/Travellers
accessing SDS
Lack of cultural competency among
service providers
Poor accommodation
Fear of social work involvement
Misinformation from service providers
No positive stories
Discriminatory attitudes among service providers
No trust in local Councils
Inaccessible information/system
3.1 Lack of cultural competencyOne of the biggest barriers preventing Gypsy/Travellers from accessing SDS concerns the attitudes of service providers. Stereotypical and discriminatory remarks were frequently repeated by service providers throughout the research.
3.2 Lack of accessible informationInformation materials are generally not accessible to the Gypsy/Traveller community, where literacy levels are often low, and what information is there does not seem to reach community members.
3.3 Lack of trust in councilsA lack of trust in local councils also prevents Gypsy/Travellers from accessing SDS. Again, much of this stems from
accommodation issues which community members feel their councils do nothing about.
3.4 AssessmentThat assessments are only able to be carried out by social workers or occupational therapists is a major barrier where there are poor relations with local councils and, for some Gypsy/Travellers, a real fear of social work involvement.
3.5 PortabilityThe portability of assessments was reported as a barrier by service providers, but not by community members. Portability was not reported as a major concern among research participants, who are often based in one area for all, or the majority, of the time (often because of ill-health or disability and lack of facilities on sites).
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4. How might Gypsy/Travellers use their SDS budgets?How Gypsy/Travellers would use an SDS budget very much depends on the individual and their own care and support needs. However, some common themes emerged through the research:
4.1 Employing family membersThe option to use direct payments to
employ family members was attractive
to many research participants. All
community members felt strongly that
personal care should be carried out by
family members. However, our research
uncovered patchy understanding of the
regulations surrounding the employment
of family members among service
providers.
4.2 Break away togetherCarers and people being cared-for often
expressed their wish to have breaks away
together. For example, several carers
suggested that being supported to take
a holiday at a caravan site would help to
provide a form of respite that is culturally
appropriate. For Gypsy/Travellers living
in houses, many of whom feel isolated
from their communities, this could be
particularly beneficial.
4.3 Health care (of carers)Almost all of the carers who participated
in the research reported having health
problems of their own. Suggestions
for support they would like included
accessing health services, such as
counselling, complementary therapies,
and chiropody.
“A lot of carer support is about separating the carer from the person they care for, but I don’t think that should be the case – you should be able to do something together”
Gypsy/Traveller carer
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5. What would help to enable take-up of SDS?
5.1 Increased cultural competencyThe negative assumptions and remarks
often made by service providers,
combined with a lack of knowledge
about Gypsy/Traveller culture, acted as
major barriers. Gypsy/Traveller training,
led by community members, would
undoubtedly help to improve the cultural
competency of service providers. In
addition, MECOPP produced a satirical
cartoon book, Two Sides of the Same
Story, which highlights and challenges
some of the commonly-held attitudes
that can prevent Gypsy/Travellers from
accessing SDS.
5.2 Targeted outreachThe research indicates that there is little
outreach, or involvement in events, to try
to build trust with the community and
there is a sense that Gypsy/Travellers are
someone else’s responsibility.
5.3 Peer supportPeer support could be a key way of
‘spreading the word’ about SDS and
helping people to negotiate their way
through the SDS pathway.
5.4 Supported informationRegardless of literacy level, community
members spoke of their preference
for receiving information through
conversations with people, again
suggesting a role for peer support in
promoting SDS.
Enabling Gypsy/Travellers
to access SDS
Increased cultural competency among
service providers
One-off payments option
Flexible approach to assessments
Workforce training, including greater understanding of
employment of family members
Positive stories
Targeted outreach
Peer support groups/trusted individuals
Supported information
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5.5 Workforce trainingMisinformation from social workers
about SDS has already deterred some
community members from pursuing it.
Training of all frontline staff, including
clear guidance about the employment of
family members, would go some way in
addressing this.
5.6 Flexible approach to assessmentsMore community members may be
persuaded to have an assessment if it
could be carried out by a trusted health
worker or an independent support
provider.
5.7 Generating positive case studiesGenerating positive stories, perhaps
through one-off pilot projects, and sharing
these with community members, would
go a long way in encouraging others
to access services. MECOPP is currently
working on a pilot project in collaboration
with Diversity Matters to help generate
positive ‘stories’ – these will be captured
on film and shared among both
community members and service providers
to encourage greater uptake of SDS.
5.8 One-off payments for carersOne-off payments for carers could work
well for Gypsy/Travellers who do not
want to approach their local councils for
support, but who could greatly benefit
from some funding to help them in their
caring role.
“I now realise I’ve been ignoring an entire community”
Service-provider
6. If SDS is the answer, what is the question?
“I am a full-time carer … I thought being a carer was about caring for someone. I didn’t realise it was also about taking on the role of fighting the council.”
Gypsy/Traveller carer
We are grateful to the Scottish Government for funding the project. For a full copy of the report and a copy of Two Sides of the Same Story contact MECOPP.
MECOPP (Minority Ethnic Carers of People Project) 0131 467 2994 www.mecopp.org.uk [email protected]
SDS certainly presents an opportunity for
Gypsy/Travellers to access support that is
culturally, and personally, appropriate for
them. However, that there is greater choice
and control over how social care is delivered
does not remove the barriers that continue
to prevent Gypsy/Travellers from accessing
services.
If the question is, ‘what will help to
encourage Gypsy/Travellers to access social
care services?’, then SDS certainly forms part
of the answer. For Gypsy/Travellers to feel
confident in accessing services, attitudes
among service providers need to change,
and there needs to be meaningful outreach
and engagement with Gypsy/Travellers from
local health and social care services.
7. RecommendationsIn order to overcome the barriers faced
by Gypsy/Travellers in accessing SDS, the
following recommendations are made:
• Gypsy/Traveller training sessions for service
providers, led by community members;
• A flexible approach to the assessment
process;
• Targeted outreach to Gypsy/Traveller
community with accessible materials;
• Provision of health and wellbeing events
for Gypsy/Travellers;
• Dissemination of positive SDS experiences;
• Development of peer support groups.