How universities can better support Gypsy, Roma and Traveller students

It is a truism that writing about music is like dancing about architecture. It might be said that writing about widening access in higher education has a similar feel to it – it should be about lived experience and practice, not words in policy documents. Many of us have these experiences ourselves, as staff, and we should talk about them more openly with our students. 

What can universities do to improve their practices and support students from Gypsy, Roma and Traveller (GRT) backgrounds? To answer this question, we need some context, and to step back to earlier educational experiences. It is not an easy journey.

A House of Commons Library research briefing from earlier this year confirmed that the educational outcomes for pupils from such minority ethic communities at primary and secondary schools in the UK is shockingly poor.

For example, 60 per cent of all pupils in England currently reach the expected standard in English reading, writing and mathematics. For pupils of Gypsy/Roma heritage, as well as Irish Traveller backgrounds, that figure sits between 18 and 21 per cent.

At secondary school, 65 per cent of state-funded pupils attain GCSEs in English and mathematics at a standard pass of Grade 4 or above. For Irish Travellers, that figure sits at 31 per cent, and for Gypsy/Roma pupils it is just 16 per cent. There are also issues of gender, as much as ethnicity, with girls doing better than boys. These figures come from a small sample size, because early exit from secondary school for pupils from such backgrounds remains common.

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There are many reasons behind these attendance and attainment statistics, including school admissions policies, barriers to attendance, segregation and exclusion practices, and experiences of racism, bullying, and discrimination from non-GRT peers, as well as from some teachers.

Despite this bleak picture at primary and secondary school, more GRT pupils than ever before are now entering university. The latest available data from the Department for Education indicates that 9 to 12 per cent of young people from those communities progressed to university. These are not high numbers when you consider that across all ethnic groups the figure is close to 47 per cent, but higher education is increasingly a space where such students can flourish. 

So, what can universities do to better support GRT students and their families? At a basic social policy level, institutions need to look closely at issues of access, take-up and delivery. 

Reach out

In relation to access, universities need to review how they promote entry to their undergraduate and postgraduate degree programmes. This should include proactive outreach work, including visiting Traveller campsites and housing estates where such communities reside. Likewise, institutions should re-examine conditions for access, such as attainment levels, fee status and support with applications. A one-size-fits-all approach will not work. 

Take-up, in this context, refers to how GRT students engage at university, once the barriers to access have been overcome. Think about areas such as the acceptance of an unconditional offer, regular attendance at lectures and seminars, attrition rates and the reasons why some students disengage. Students often have competing demands to their immediate and extended families, their communities and to part-time or self-employment. Acknowledging and discussing these choices is a step forward.  

Delivery refers here to how institutions and staff work with GRT students, as much as what universities offer in terms of the curriculum and how that curriculum is taught. Flexibility in key services is critical, something that universities often struggle with.

Look at examples of best practice

More specifically, universities need to invest in the time, resources and policy/practice nuance that is required to serve such students. There are national resources and institutional good practice examples to draw on here. Look at the innovative work on inclusion that is happening at Buckinghamshire New University, who started the Higher Education Pledge; at Kings College, via their ‘K+’ widening access and inclusion project; and at Glasgow University, via their Science Travels project. 

Some GRT students, and indeed staff, feel a sense of being located in two different worlds while at university, according to research. Adopting methods and strategies to cope can be mentally and physically challenging. 

Consider student finances

Further, the social, cultural and financial capital required to enter and stay at university is increasingly demanding, especially during a cost-of-living crisis. This is true for most students who also carry caring responsibilities for family and trying to make time for self-care. Young Irish Traveller men, for example, are principally seen as “earners”, so a course that doesn’t allow for this in terms of flexible attendance and delivery/assessment mechanisms will fail them. 

Support structures and mechanisms must be made clear to students. They should know how to find help both inside and outside university for successfully merging the worlds of studying, caring and working.

In my experience, a university education can enhance GRT identities, not weaken them. Social mobility does not mean turning your back on where you come from and who you are. Universities will find, as I have, that such students tend to have tenacity, resolve and capacity for new knowledge that speaks to their character and their family’s pride in their achievements.

Colin Clark is a professor at the University of the West of Scotland.

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