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How a Health Impact Assessment Helped House Irish Travellers

An HIA that focused on Irish Traveller housing programs proves successful because it empowered the population.

An Irish Traveller site on Dale Farm in 2011. Photo by Susan Craig-Greene via flickr user The Advocacy Project, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

A young boy named Richard plays in Dale Farm in 2010, which according to The Guardian was once the site of the largest concentration of Irish Travellers until families were evicted in 2011. Photo by Susan Craig-Greene via flickr user The Advocacy Project, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Irish Travellers are an ethnic minority group in Ireland who have a distinct culture, lifestyle, and language. When Ireland was an agrarian rural economy, Travellers played an economic and cultural role in Irish communities, developing relationships with farmers and townspeople by horse trading and selling and repairing tin and metal. They moved from villages and towns in barrel-topped caravans, with some families traveling locally and others making the journey around the country and to the United Kingdom. Families travelled in groups and often returned to the same “halting site” or campsite year after year, with women and children relying on local farmhouses for food and clothing donations as they camped.

The lifestyle of Irish Travellers has changed along with the urbanization of Ireland, and the country has not yet figured out how to adequately provide for their housing, education, and health care in a culturally appropriate way. Travellers currently suffer from comparatively worse health than other populations in Ireland , and they rely more heavily on the government than most to meet their housing needs.

While managing an urban community development and housing revitalization program in Tralee, a town in southwestern Ireland, I had the opportunity to oversee the community, voluntary, and public-sector policies and programs aimed at increasing social and economic opportunity within the Traveller population there. We conducted a Health Impact Assessment (HIA) in a number of Traveller-specific housing projects. These HIAs succeeded where many other consultative structures and groups had failed because they empowered Travellers where there was previously only conflict, mistrust, and anger.

Travellers, like other nomadic minorities, have accommodation desires and demands that have never been incorporated successfully into broader social housing policy, even though the majority of Traveller families rely on local housing authorities to meet their housing needs. The Irish government has historically wanted to settle Irish Travellers into existing social housing options with the intention of solving the “itinerant problem” by assimilating them into the majority of Irish society.

Irish Traveller Demographics

Compared to the majority population, Irish Travellers have more children, larger extended families, and more complex social and economic arrangements based on family groupings. Many families “hit the road” during the summer months to attend horse fairs around the country and visit family, and travel is typically undertaken in small caravans; when they stop they squeeze onto the side of a road, in a public green, or in a privately owned field.

Only 12.8 percent of Travellers surveyed in 2008 owned the home where they resided, compared to 70.3 percent of a comparable cohort of the Irish population. Almost 95 percent of Travellers had a current medical card , which provides access to free health care for low-income adults and children, and only 4.8 percent of respondents reported employment or self-employment.

The majority of Irish communities and lawmakers believe that Travellers­—who represent less than 1 percent of the population in Ireland—should change their way of life. Certainly, nomadism has implications for any community’s ability to participate in and access standard economic, education, and health systems. Traveller advocates and representatives, however, lay responsibility for the continued poor outcomes on ethnic discrimination and government choices, such as promoting a one-size-fits-all social housing model. Poor quality and culturally inappropriate housing affects Travellers’ physical and mental health negatively.

In 2007, the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland jointly funded the first study of Traveller health based on previous recommendations from the Department of Health and Children. Its results showed stark difference between Traveller health and mortality in comparison to the Irish population as a whole, as well as to other segments of the population with similar economic status.

The Traveller population was estimated at around 36,224, with 42 percent of the study’s participants under the age of 15. Only 3 percent of Travellers were 65 years old, compared with 13 percent of their peers. The Traveller infant mortality rate was 14.1 in 2008 compared to 3.9 for Ireland. The life expectancy gap between Traveller women and settled women was 12 years in 2008; 15 years for Traveller men (up from 10 years in 1987). The suicide rate is six times higher than the rate of the general population. The study also found that Travellers experience high levels of isolation from the wider community, discrimination, and sense of powerlessness around their living conditions and future prospects.

The vast majority of Travellers live in standard-issue housing despite there being a legal requirement that the government provide Traveller-specific accommodation. This type of accommodation includes permanent halting sites with serviced bays for tenants to park their own mobile homes, or the ability to rent mobile homes or caravans on the site. These halting sites vary in size and the facilities vary greatly depending on the city or town. Often the service bays are merely dirt lots with rat infestation, lack of drainage or sewage facilities, and no hot water.

Halting sites are usually located on the outskirts of towns and cities, near highways or refuse areas, and behind tall walls. There is often no pedestrian access to facilities or services in the wider community. The local housing authorities also provide prefabricated buildings on halting sites, which are often combined with caravans when demand for sites surpasses supply. In 2015, a fire killed people who were living on a halting site in Carrickmines, a suburb of Dublin. The site was meant to be temporary, but families had been living there for eight years. The site had a combination of prefabricated units and caravans, there was no fire hydrant, and the overcrowding contributed to the rapid spread of the fire.

Unofficial halting sites are used both by the community and by the housing authorities to temporarily house Travellers who do not want to live in non-Traveller-specific housing options when official halting sites are not available. Unofficial sites have no infrastructure or facilities and are on roadsides, in parking lots, or unused strips of wasteland. Though they are supposed to be temporary measures, families often stay there for years.

Using a Health Impact Assessment to Improve Conditions

The failures of Ireland’s Traveller accommodation program made clear to me the link between empowerment in housing service provision and the ability to develop a sustainable community.

Using a Health Impact Assessment in the redesign of existing Traveller accommodation created an empowering interagency process and the potential for a better outcome.

When I led the urban revitalization program in Tralee between 2007 and 2013, one of the goals was to redesign a housing site that had turned into segregated Traveller housing with serious community safety concerns for the residents and the town. There was no common ground or mutual understanding between Travellers and the local authority. The county’s housing authority struggled to divide a limited pool of resources between Travellers’ unique accommodation needs and the housing needs of the larger community. Local social service providers generally viewed Travellers as a burden on resources, and Travellers viewed service providers and lawmakers with distrust and anger.

Local Traveller Consultative Committees are supposed to be the tools through which Travellers and local authorities plan, design, and monitor county-specific Traveller Accommodation programs, but the experience of the members in this county were not positive and the group achieved few results.

My observations were mirrored on a national level by The Irish Traveller Movement (ITM), which participates in the national consultative body on Traveller housing. The body points to the consistent failure of local authorities to meet targets for culturally appropriate accommodation options, such as halting sites, group housing schemes, and transient sites, and the continued poor conditions of existing Traveller-specific halting sites. Since 2013 the ITM has defined the Traveller accommodation issue as a crisis due to budgets cuts and a growing unmet need for housing; 3,600 Traveller families were defined as officially homeless in 2013 by the ITM .

There was one glimmer of hope—the use of a Health Impact Assessment, or HIA, in the redesign of a halting site in Killarney, another town in County Kerry. The Deerpark halting site was (and remains) located between two sections of a national road that runs from Cork to Killarney to Tralee. The site is entered and exited via a dirt road from the main road with no signs, markers, or pedestrian cross walks, and town facilities and commercial areas are only accessible by driving on the national road or crossing over it.

The site had old prefabricated chalets, poor sanitation, insufficient lighting, poor landscaping, and a history of difficult relations amongst resident families over the years. The existing chalets were cramped and there were no areas for children or the community. The management and maintenance of the site was a long-running source of complaint for residents. Like many other halting sites, the entrance contained a barrier to prevent Travellers with mobile homes from moving into the site without making arrangements for rental. These barriers also could prevent ambulances and fire engines from accessing the site without keys. Residents reported high levels of stress and depression around the lack of space, amenities, and stability in their own homes.

The Kerry Local Traveller Consultative Committee had agreed to renovate the halting site and committed to apply the Health Impact Assessment tool in designing the redevelopment. The Department of Health funded and hired an independent Health Impact Assessment practitioner to facilitate the process. The objectives were to ensure the positive health impacts of the site were enhanced and negative impacts reduced, promote Traveller participation in the redevelopment decision-making process, and develop a shared understanding of the links between the design of the site and the health of the residents.

The HIA is a methodology defined by the European Center for Health Policy as “a combination of procedures, methods, and tools by which a policy, program, or project may be judged as to its potential effects on the health of a population, and the distribution of those effects within the population.” The most important element of the HIA process in Killarney was that it was undertaken with the residents as equal partners. Kerry Travellers Community Development Project supported the residents.

The Health Impact Assessment group consisted of representatives from the housing authority, the health service, the police, the community development project, and residents. The site houses eight families, whose participation fluctuated, but all residents were able to participate in different ways. The assessment included structural factors at the site, as well as individual and family behavioral factors.

HIAs involve five stages: screening, scoping, appraisal, developing recommendations, and monitoring and evaluation. The group made 70 recommendations, classified under social determinants of health, and then formed an implementation group to prioritize them and assist the housing authority with their implementation. The Health Impact Assesesment resulted in the refurbishment and extension of eight chalets, a new community center and playground, and improved lighting and landscaping. Residents chose to rename the site St. Michael’s, which was celebrated with a community mass at a newly created grotto with a statute of the Virgin Mary. The Kerry County Council and the Kerry Travellers Development Project were positive about the process and outcomes. Most importantly the residents were empowered in decisions around their own homes.

The lessons learned in this process were applied to a much larger and more public Traveller group housing scheme built to replace standard social housing in Tralee. HIAs have also been used in Galway, Cork, and Dublin at specific halting sites and in Dongeal in the overall Traveller accommodation plan for the county.

Galway Traveller Movement produced a toolkit for others to use when assessing conditions on Traveller sites using the HIA process. The lessons learned about specific projects can be applied to the larger policy issue of Traveller and culturally appropriate housing.

The development of a shared understanding of the health impacts of programs, projects, and services can only be developed with the empowerment of residents. The empowerment of public housing residents requires the delegation of power from the housing authority. This is a challenge for housing authorities. They bear the responsibility for fiscal management, project management, and insurance and are accountable to constituents as a whole. It is critical for the residents to understand these constraints from the start of any planning process so they can make an informed decision about the costs benefits of participation.

The screening phase of the Health Impact Assessment can be applied to any project or policy to determine the terms of reference before communities and service providers begin a consultation process. As in other community participation processes, residents might require training, administrative support, expense reimbursement, and other community development supports to participate in an interagency decision-making process with paid professionals. The communication skills, mutual understanding, and trust developed through a process like the HIA should be applied to the implementation of the recommendations and the ongoing management of the housing service or site.

The reframing that emerged from these processes resulted in the formation of a Traveller-led housing association, called Cena , in 2015. The Irish Traveller Movement, with the support of the government, formed Cena—the word for home in Cant, a language spoken by Travellers—with the mission to “lead the way in innovation and best practice in the design, delivery, and management of culturally appropriate accommodation to Travellers, and build strategic relationships with other social housing provider to achieve its vision.”

Cena partnered with two local authorities to deliver eight units of culturally appropriate accommodation, which will hopefully be a model for the empowerment of this population in Ireland. The process has been slow and challenging, and indeed one local authority is at risk of losing the pilot funding because of the failure of local councilors to allocate an appropriate site. The second project has progressed through planning and construction stages.

Unfortunately, looking more broadly, only 7 of the 31 local government councils drew down any allocated funding by the Department of Housing for Traveller-specific accommodation in 2017 and over half of allocated budgets went unspent. This failure to act highlights the crisis in Traveller housing that will only be remedied when local communities and elected representatives commit to new ways of working with minority communities.

About the Author

Colleen Hennessy

Colleen Hennessy writes about social and cultural issues in the U.S. and Ireland for publications including The Irish Times , Rewire.news , Ms. Magazine .

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'Forgotten, we feel like garbage': Housing policies exclude Travellers, migrants and asylum seekers

IN A RECENT report, a number of Traveller children spoke to the Ombudsman for Children’s Office (OCO) about what conditions were like on the halting site where they lived:

“People ask why I’m dirty, but I’d be ashamed to say. I don’t want to say it was from walking out of the site,” said one girl, aged 14. 

“We don’t go to school in the mornings because it’s too cold to get out of bed,” said a boy, also aged 14.

“It’s hell,” said another girl, aged 16. 

The No End in Site report from the OCO was published in May and looked into living conditions at a local authority-run halting site. It found serious issues with living standards for the 38 families and 66 children living at the site, including extreme overcrowding, rodent infestation and unsanitary conditions.  

A HSE public health nurse told the OCO that children on the site presented with skin conditions and respiratory problems at a much higher rate than the general population.

“It’s like an abandoned place that people forgot about,” one of the children interviewed said. 

“It’s like we’re forgotten, we feel like garbage.” 

Housing for minority groups 

While the housing crisis affects large swathes of the Irish population, the problem is at its most acute among minority groups, such as Travellers, migrants and asylum seekers who have been granted status to remain in Ireland but are unable to move out of Direct Provision centres because of the lack of other places to live. 

The most recent Census figures from 2016 show that there are about 32,000 Travellers living in Ireland. A distinct ethnic group, Travellers are far more disadvantaged than the general population, and have a long and complex history with the state when it comes to accommodation and discrimination. 

Travellers face huge challenges when it comes to accessing adequate housing. Because of this, despite only accounting for about 1% of the population, in 2018 Travellers represented about 8% of the homeless population, rising to 10% in Dublin.  

Travellers are far less likely to own their own home than the general population, and are almost 10 times more likely to report discrimination in accessing housing. 

The most recent figures from the the Department of Housing show that 529 Traveller families were living in “unauthorised sites” (at the side of the road or in areas with no running water or proper electricity) in 2019 and 933 families were sharing accommodation with other families. 

“We’ve been saying this for many, many years,” said Bernard Joyce, director of the Irish Traveller Movement (ITM). 

“And so have many other bodies – it’s appalling to see a situation where many of our community are living in what can only be described as sub-standard, inhumane conditions.” 

Expert Review

The ITM and other Traveller advocacy groups and experts point to numerous problems in social housing and in the private rental sector that need to be addressed to ensure a better standard of living for Travellers. 

Under the 1998 Housing (Traveller Accommodation) Act, local authorities are obliged to assess and provide Traveller-specific accommodation where needed. However, in the two decades since it was enacted, many local authorities have failed to meet targets in this regard, and millions of euro worth of funding wasn’t drawn down.  

In 2019, the Traveller Accommodation Expert Review found that the system was failing in this regard and in many other areas. 

It found issues around planning and provision of housing, a lack of action by local authorities on Traveller accommodation, and failures to properly assess the need among Travellers for housing.  

The review also highlighted issues with rent subsidies paid by local authorities to private landlords in the form of the Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) and through long-term leasing schemes.   

“We wouldn’t see [HAP and the private rental sector] as a solution to addressing the needs of Travellers by any means,” said Joyce. 

The expert review stated that the 1998 Act needed an “overhaul” and put forward numerous recommendations that it said needed to be implemented.  

Among these was including an ‘ethnic identifier’ on the social housing needs assessment, to identify the demand among Travellers for accommodation, and changing the Part 8 planning mechanism for delivering social housing, which would prevent elected members from putting a stop to developments of Traveller-specific accommodation.  

Advocacy groups are calling for these recommendations to be implemented in full in order to begin to address the myriad of social, health and housing issues affecting the Traveller population. 

“Travellers are part of communities, they’re part of the schools, they are accessing local services, it’s just mind blowing… that people are just coming from these sites that don’t even have water, the ground is muck, they don’t have showers,” said Bernard Joyce. 

“I just think that it’s an absolutely appalling national disgrace. People just need to get to grips with what’s there. The solutions are all there, it’s now a matter of stepping up and implementing the expert recommendations.” 

The Joint Oireachtas Committee on Key Issues affecting the Traveller Community is currently holding meetings, with a final report due to be published by the end of July. 

A spokesperson for the Housing Department said that in response to the publication of the Expert Group report, a Programme Board had been established to oversee the implementation of its recommendations. The Board has met twice already with a third meeting scheduled this week. 

The spokesperson said that progress had been made on a number of the recommendations of the Expert Group, including adopting an “ethnic identifier” for families on the social housing support application form, and changes in 2020 to the method of allocating funding to local authorities. 

“Full use was made of the €14.5 million budget provided in 2020 for Traveller-specific accommodation,” the spokesperson said. 

Stuck in Direct Provision

Another group facing extreme difficulties when accessing housing are former asylum seekers who have been granted the right to live and work in Ireland, but cannot find anywhere to live. 

Ireland’s system of housing asylum seekers in Direct Provision centres for lengthy periods while they await a decision on their applications has been widely criticised over the past decade. The government recently published a White Paper outlining how it plans to put an end to the system. 

Recent figures from the Department of Children show that as of March over 1,000 adults and children who have been granted status are still living in DP centres across the country. These people are not listed as homeless by the Department of Housing, despite being unable to leave Direct Provision due to a lack of housing options. 

“It’s a very big concern,” said Lucky Khambule, co-founder of the Movement for Asylum Seekers Ireland (MASI). 

“There are lots of people who have to stay even more than a year, almost two years for others, with a big challenge of moving away from Direct Provision and getting their own houses.”

Originally from South Africa, Khambule came to Ireland as an Asylum Seeker in 2013, and lived in Direct Provision for three years before being granted status in October, 2016. However, he remained in the Direct Provision centre for another year without being able to source a place to live. 

“No one would accept me, rents were high. HAP was no, no, no. So it took me a year,” he said. 

“I was struggling to get a place and there was no one to help. The only thing they were doing for me was to push me to be out. They would come into my place where I was staying asking me, ‘when are you going out, when are you going out?’ 

“They would want me to prove I was looking for the house.” Khambule said that this is the experience for many others living in the system. People who may be older, have no connections in Ireland and language difficulties find it especially hard to source accommodation.

Problems with HAP

While the issues facing the different communities are distinct, Traveller, asylum seeker and migrant rights groups have problems with HAP as a means of social housing support. “One of the big problems is the non-acceptance of HAP by landlords,” said Khambule.

“Once they hear it’s HAP, most of the landlords are shying away.”

HAP frequently comes under criticism from housing and homeless charities, with a lack of available properties, rents above the limit of the payment, and discrimination by landlords against people of colour or Travellers seen as major barriers. 

A spokesperson for the Children’s Department said that the housing charities Depaul and the Peter McVerry Trust are funded to provide support services to Direct Provision residents who have been granted their status.  

“Using this service, to date, 2,405 residents have been assisted in finding accommodation in the community,” the spokesperson said. 

They said that multiple supports are provided, including face-to-face meetings with support workers, assistance in locating properties, assistance with moving and with arranging HAP applications. 

After over a year of searching on his own in Dublin, Lucky Khambule re-located from the capital and found a place in Wicklow, where he still lives. MASI is calling for more support for people leaving DP in finding better homes. 

He said that while housing charities are  “doing what they can do” it is not enough to properly help people. 

“People are left to do things on their own. Remember many people have been stuck in DP for many, many years,” said Khambule. 

“They’re not in the mainstream community. Socially. So to start to manoeuvre on their own it’s very, very hard.” 

This work is co-funded by Journal Media and a grant programme from the European Parliament. Any opinions or conclusions expressed in this work is the author’s own. The European Parliament has no involvement in nor responsibility for the editorial content published by the project. For more information, see  here .

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UN Special Rapporteur’s Assessment of Irish Traveller Housing Conditions

Press release 25 th November Galway Traveller Movement

UN Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues, Dr Fernand de Varennes, has described the living conditions of some Irish Travellers, not just as a human rights issue connected with housing and accommodation, but in some cases probably discriminatory treatment. He was speaking yesterday at the ‘Galway Traveller Accommodation Inquiry 2021’ webinar for the ‘Traveller Homes Now’ campaign

“What we have heard are really unacceptable conditions under which Travellers are allowed to live and which would normally not continue were they not a minority still the subject of prejudices and bias in Ireland. These are really unacceptable, brutally unfair and unjust continuing housing conditions for many Travellers in Ireland,”, Dr de Varennes told the attendees, “I’ve noted that the Traveller families of Galway City Council and Galway County Council are continuing to experience extremely poor, unsafe and unhealthy accommodation conditions. “

Earlier the webinar attendees heard reports about the sub-standard living conditions experienced by many Traveller communities in the Galway area. It was reported that while there had been some improvements, the majority continue to live in cold, damp, and overcrowded conditions, often with sub-standard sanitation and cooking facilities. This is having a detrimental effect on well-being and mental health of members of the Traveller community.

The ‘Traveller Homes Now’ campaign is calling for the responsibility for Traveller accommodation to be taken away from local authorities across the country, and to be overseen by an independent, authoritative, and adequately resourced national agency instead.

Traveller and Roma issues internationally have been of considerable importance at the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights for some time now when it was recognised that Roma and Travellers have faced for 4-5 centuries of widespread and enduring discrimination, rejection, social exclusion, and marginalisation in all areas of life. Dr de Varennes said that anti- Roma and anti-Traveller sentiments still exists and that he has been following the situation of Irish Travellers.

“What I’ve heard and read suggests to me that there are differences of treatment here, of individuals belonging to the minority, the Travellers, who are living in conditions that would not be acceptable to others. And these kinds of conditions should really ring alarm bells”, he said, “There are clearly situations of discriminatory treatment in how some of the policies are interpreted and implemented, which clearly involves violations of one of the most fundamental of human rights, the prohibition of discrimination. So, the treatment here would not exist if they occurred to others in the majority of the population. It is that reason therefore that the conditions of the Traveller minority are allowed to persist over many years- too many quite frankly.”

Dr de Varennes advised the ‘Traveller Homes Now’ campaign about how they could work with the UN system to further their campaign. “In the UN Human rights System, housing issues can be dealt with through the lens of the general prohibition of discrimination. I would suggest that would open the door to additional approaches but other mechanisms the ‘Traveller Homes Now’ campaign should consider includes raising matters of delays, unaddressed, unhealthy or unsafe housing conditions, using once again, mainly the prohibition of discrimination.”.

In addition to raising the issue himself as UN Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues, Dr de Varennes suggested that the issue could also be raised with the UN Special Rapporteur on Housing. He also suggested that there were four other UN committees which might be interested in the issue: The UN Human Rights Committee; The Committee on Racial Discrimination; The Committee on the Rights of the Child; The Committee on Education, Social and Cultural Rights.

In agreement with Dr de Varennes at the webinar about using a ‘rights based approach to Traveller housing was another speaker and former UN Special Rapporteur on Right to Housing, Leilani Farha, who is now Global Director of ‘The Shift’ a movement to secure the human right to housing. She said that Irish Travellers have a strong and well-documented case to be answered. Ms Farha offered the services of her organisation. ‘The Shift’ to help the campaign. “We would be happy to support you,” she said, “Pressure from the outside world could have a meaningful impact.”

Anne-Marie Stokes, Joint chairperson of the Galway Traveller Accommodation Inquiry   thanked Dr de Varennes for his contribution and suggestions. “He has been well briefed on the housing issue for the Traveller Community in Ireland and he has now given us a ‘road map’ about how we should proceed with the United Nations to ensure that housing and accommodation conditions improve for our community. We will be taking the issue up with them.”

Contact details Edel Hackett

Nora Corcoran – 089 – 2501089

Notes to the Editor: Photo and caption:

The ‘Traveller Homes Now Campaign’

• Raising awareness of the rights violations and inequalities the Traveller community experience in relation to accommodation.
• Demanding action on these inequalities through a set of demands developed collectively by the Traveller community in Galway city and county.
• Support Traveller leadership through community organising and activism in relation to Traveller accommodation issues.
• Develop demands and set indicators and targets through participatory processes with the Traveller community.
• Complete action research with and by the Traveller community to document right violations including homelessness, substandard accommodation and the denial of Traveller’s cultural right to culturally appropriate accommodation.
• Highlight Traveller accommodation issues including homelessness through narrative methods where the community are resilient active agents rather than victims.
• Alliance building with civil society groups locally, nationally and internationally.
• Use of creative campaigning methods including multimedia, film, photography and social media.

The Galway Traveller Movement

Galway Traveller Movement CLG was established in 1994. GTM is an independent Traveller organisation for Galway City and South East Galway made up of Travellers and non-Travellers. We have worked for more than two decades to challenge and respond to the structural inequalities that the Traveller community are subjected to.

GTM aims to address disadvantage, poverty and social exclusion experienced by the Traveller Community.  The Company works from a community development approach to promote equality, the prevention of discrimination and the protection of the human rights of members of the Traveller Community at a local (Galway city and South East Galway ), regional and national level.

Full equality, social justice and human rights realised for members of the Traveller community, and meaningful participation of Travellers in social, economic, political and cultural life.

To challenge discrimination and racism experienced by the Traveller community in Galway city and county; to challenge the status quo and to empower members of the Traveller community to take action to realise Traveller rights.

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accommodation

The Irish Traveller Movement and other national organisations continue to work with the Minister for Housing, Damien English and his department, who have provided funding to local authorities to ensure the prevention of COVID-19 infection for Travellers across Traveller-specific accommodation.

A government circular to all Local Authorities on March 18th on measures designed to reduce the spread of COVID-19 and lessen the risk of infection, particularly for those living on sites with limited facilities, outlined the extra measures needed, including:

• Extra toilets;
• Running water;
• Additional mobile accommodation / space where there is overcrowding;
• Extra refuse collection; 
• Access and egress on sites; and 
• Additional units (either mobiles on site or houses elsewhere that will allow for self-isolation/ quarantine).

If you are worried about your living conditions and the coronavirus there are three things you can do:

• Contact your Local Authority to inform them of your need, and remind them of the above message.
• Contact your local Traveller organisation, see here for the list of all our members.
• Contact The Irish Traveller Movement Accommodation Officer by email on [email protected] or call 01 679 6577 .
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Traveller Housing Strategy Needed

According to statistics compiled by the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government, the number of families in all Traveller accommodation increased by eight per cent between 2019 and 2021. Almost two-thirds of Traveller families were accommodated by Local Authorities or Approved Housing Bodies, 16.1 per cent were accommodated in the Private Rented Sector, 7.5 per cent from within their own resources, 7.1 per cent in shared accommodation, and 4.2 per cent on unauthorised halting sites. With the exception of Local Authority / AHB accommodation, and accommodation provided from within their own resources, the number of Traveller households accommodated decreased in each of the remaining accommodation types (Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, 2022). 

In July 2019, the results of the Traveller Accommodation Expert Review were published (Traveller Accommodation Expert Review Group, 2019). In this Report, the Expert Review Group identified as a “fundamental problem” the lack of a strong evidence base for policy making.  The direction of housing policy generally, whereby social housing is now provided by way of the private sector, also presents particular difficulties for Travellers as they face “strong barriers” in accessing private rented accommodation.  This Report concludes with a series of recommendations on all aspects of Traveller accommodation provision, from delivery suitable to the need; to planning; capacity and resources; and governance. In its Programme Board Update, published in January 2023, the Expert Group noted progress in relation to ethnic identifiers for Traveller households, increased engagement between the Central Statistics Office and Department staff working with Travellers to ensure that the Census more accurate captured the characteristics of the Traveller population, and changes to the Social Housing Needs Assessment process. Progress was also noted in communicating with Directors of Service in Local Authorities to use their emergency powers to bypass problems with decision-making by elected members regarding Traveller Accommodation and the inclusion of Traveller Accommodation in Local Development Plans, as well as a review of funding allocations from the Department in respect of Traveller Accommodation (Traveller Accommodation Expert Group, 2023). These are all very welcome, however there are a significant number of actions that have yet to be progressed, with some reviewed as “Future Work Programme” within the Expert Group’s review. Of particular concern in this regard is the failure to implement an ongoing programme of equality monitoring of arrangements for allocating social housing to assess their impact on Travellers and other vulnerable populations; ensuring that any new national level agency or authority would incorporate a role in monitoring statutory plans and referrals, as necessary, to the Office of the Planning Regulator; the lack of regulations or guidelines for Regional Assemblies and Local Authorities to ensure consistency and integration of the Traveller Accommodation Programme and the Housing Strategy section of Development Plan preparation and development management processes; and delays with the review and reform of reporting arrangements for spending by Local Authorities of allocations for Traveller Accommodation.

The reported conditions experienced by Traveller families, that of increased overcrowding, discrimination within the private rented sector, greater risk of homelessness, and associated health difficulties warrants that this issue be treated as an emergency and that local authorities be compelled to utilise the increased funding available to ensure that Traveller families and their children are supported to live with dignity.

In July 2021, the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (IHREC) published accounts of the first Council-by-Council equality review on Traveller Accommodation in the history of the State (Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, 2021). This review found that, between 2008 and 2018, of €168.8 million allocated to local authorities for Traveller-specific accommodation, just two thirds (€110.6 million) was drawn down. In 2020, the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage ceased the practice of allocating specific budgets to individual Local Authorities and implemented a new allocation process following a review of arrangements for the disbursement of funding provision and related supports for Traveller specific accommodation. Since then, Local Authorities can apply for and draw down funds throughout the year (Burke, 2022). While the table of drawdowns provided in response to a Parliamentary Question raised by Deputy Róisín Shortall TD in September 2022 has the names of the Local Authorities concerned redacted, it would appear that while the full central allocation was drawn down in both 2020 and 2021, there funding was not drawn down by every Local Authority.

The primary issue relating to the lack of suitable Traveller accommodation is not that funding is not being made available, as is the case in other areas of housing policy, but (apart from 2020) that this funding is not being utilised by the Local Authorities tasked with providing this accommodation. Stakeholder reviews have been undertaken to identify the type of accommodation most suitable and preferable for Travellers, however it is the ‘implementation gap’ identified in a 2018 Oireachtas Spotlight report (Visser, 2018) that is creating the barrier. This would involve expediting the many areas outlined by the Expert Group in its recent Progress Report and could extend to the development of a specific Traveller Accommodation Strategy, such as that published in Northern Ireland (Housing Executive, 2021).

As with other areas of housing policy, realistic targets should be developed for local authorities to provide Traveller families with safe, suitable accommodation.  Discrimination and bias among elected representatives must be challenged and sanctions imposed on Local Authorities who do not access funding to meet developed targets.

Housing & Membership of the Traveller Community

• Discrimination

What's covered?

What's not covered, case studies, housing & membership of the traveller community discrimination.

Discrimination on the ‘Traveller community ground’ occurs where one person is treated less favourably than another because one is a member of the Traveller community and the other is not.

‘Member of the Traveller community’ means a member of a community of people who are commonly called Travellers and who are identified (both by themselves and others) as people with a shared history, culture and traditions including historically, a nomadic way of life on the island of Ireland.

The general rule is that there can be no discrimination on the Traveller community ground in relation to:

• disposing of any estate;
• terminating a tenancy;
• providing accommodation or, any accommodation related services or amenities; or
• ceasing to provide accommodation.

The premises or, accommodation must be available to the public generally or a section of the public.

What should I look out for in housing discrimination?

Discrimination may take the form of landlords or letting agents –

• refusing to let you look at the property;
• refusing to rent the property to you;
• refusing to accept rent supplement or housing assistance payments;
• refusing to complete the necessary forms to enable you to receive rent supplement or housing assistance payments;
• including discriminatory terms or conditions in leases or other tenancy agreements, whether written down or spoken;
• refusing to renew your lease or other tenancy agreement;
• end your lease or other tenancy agreement;
• withdrawing services related to property, or making it very hard for you to get these services.

What can I do about discriminatory housing advertising?

It is prohibited to publish, display or cause to be published or displayed an advertisement which indicates an intention to discriminate or might reasonably be understood to indicate such an intention.

The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission has the power to refer a complaint of discriminatory advertising to the Workplace Relations Commission (the ‘WRC’) for adjudication.

The WRC is the quasi-judicial body established to investigate, mediate, hear and decide claims of discrimination.

If you see a discriminatory advertisement you can let us know by filling out this form.

What if I can’t afford my rent?

It is not discriminatory for a landlord or other person to refuse to let you rent a property if you cannot afford the market rent.

If you think the landlord is being unfair in setting or reviewing rent, or you have a dispute with your landlord, you can contact the Residential Tenancies Board .

The Equal Status Acts 2000–2018:

• promote equality;
• prohibit certain kinds of discrimination (with some exemptions) across a number of specified grounds (Age, Civil Status, Disability, Family Status, Gender, Housing Assistance Payment, Membership of the Traveller Community, Race, Religion, Sexual Orientation);
• prohibit sexual harassment and harassment across a number of specified grounds;
• prohibit victimisation;
• require reasonable accommodation of people with disabilities;
• allow a broad range of positive action measures.

The Equal Status Acts also implement the following two EU Directives – the Race Directive and the Gender Goods and Services Directive.

How do I know if I’m being unfavourably treated?

Different types of discrimination are prohibited under the Equal Status Acts, these include:

Direct discrimination

This is defined as the treatment of a person in a less favourable way than another person who is in a comparable situation, because they differ on any of the nine grounds described above. This is a difference which:

• existed but no longer exists;
• may exist in the future; or
• is imputed to the person concerned (this occurs where a person is labelled as differing under the specified grounds even though this is not the case).

Discrimination by association

This occurs when a person who associates with another person is treated less favourably because that other person differs under any of the specified grounds.

Indirect discrimination

This happens where an apparently neutral provision, criterion or practice which appears unproblematic at first sight, puts a person who differs under any of the specified grounds at a particular disadvantage, compared with another person. This provision, criterion or practice will not amount to discrimination where it is demonstrated that:

• the provision, criterion or practice is objectively justified by a legitimate aim; and
• the means of achieving that aim are appropriate; and
• the means of achieving that aim are necessary.

Procuring discrimination

It is an offence under the Equal Status Acts to procure or attempt to procure another person to engage in discrimination, harassment or sexual harassment.

What responsibilities do service providers have?

Positive action

The Equal Status Acts allow for taking of positive measures (or preferential treatment) which are legitimately intended to:

• promote equality of opportunity for disadvantaged persons;
• cater for the special needs of persons, or a category of persons who because of their circumstances, may require facilities, arrangements, services or assistance.

In addition, the Equal Status Acts allow for the imposition of a reasonable preferential fee, charge or rate in respect of anything offered or provided in respect of families, married couples, older or younger persons, or persons with a disability.

Vicarious liability

Employers are liable for discriminatory acts of an employee in the course of his or her employment.

It is not a defence if the act was done without the employer’s knowledge or approval unless they can prove that they took reasonably practicable steps to prevent the conduct.

It is a defence if an employer can show that reasonable practicable steps were taken to prevent the employee from doing the act, or acts of that description.

Anything done by a person as agent for another person, with the authority (whether express or implied) of that other person shall be treated as if it was done by that other person.

What can I do if I’m being harassed or sexually harassed?

Harassment and sexual harassment

Sexual harassment and harassment in the provision of goods and services is prohibited. A person (‘the harasser’) shall not harass or sexually harass another person (‘the victim’) who seeks to use goods or services provided by the harasser.

What is harassment and sexual harassment?

Harassment is any form of unwanted conduct related to any of the specified grounds. Sexual harassment is any form of unwanted verbal, nonverbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature.

In both cases, it is conduct which has the purpose or effect of violating a person’s dignity and creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for the person.

In both cases, the unwanted conduct may include acts, requests, spoken words, gestures or the production, display or circulation of written words, emails and social media, text messages, pictures, or other material.

A person’s rejection of, or submission to, sexual or other harassment may not be used by any other person as a basis for a decision affecting that person.

Who is a responsible person?

A person who is responsible for the operation of any place where goods, facilities or services are offered to the public is defined as a ‘responsible person’.

The ‘responsible person’ must ensure that any person who has a right to be there, is not sexually harassed or harassed. It shall be a defence for the responsible person to prove that he or she took steps as are ‘reasonably practicable’ to prevent the sexual harassment or harassment for occurring.

What if I am retaliated against for making a complaint?

Victimisation

It is victimisation if a person is threatened or treated badly because they make a complaint about discrimination in relation to the provision of goods and services. Victimisation is against the law.

For example, it is victimisation if you are threatened or treated badly because:

• you make a complaint of discrimination against a service provider;
• you have been involved in a discrimination case at the Workplace Relations Commission;
• you helped someone else to make a claim;
• you were involved as a witness in a discrimination case at the Workplace Relations Commission;
• you have taken a discrimination claim to court;
• you have told a service provider that you intend to do any of the things mentioned in this list.

There are several significant exemptions in the Equal Status Acts that apply to the provision housing and accommodation.

These exemptions should be read restrictively and should not be allowed to limit unduly the general prohibition on discrimination.

Exemptions for housing authorities - including on membership of the Traveller community ground

Housing authorities and the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, in the provision of housing accommodation, can treat people differently based on family size, family status, civil status, disability, age, or membership of the Traveller community.

The Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth can additionally treat people differently (in the provision of housing accommodation) on the basis of nationality and gender.

Exemptions for particular categories of persons

It is not discrimination under the Equal Status Acts to reserve any premises or accommodation for the use of persons in a particular category of persons, including for:

• religious purposes;
• nursing homes;
• retirement homes;
• homes for persons with a disability; or
• hostels for homeless persons/or for a similar purpose.

Exemptions on all grounds

Law regulating the provision of accommodation

It is not unlawful to treat persons differently in connection with the provision of accommodation or amenities related to accommodation where the treatment is required by law regulating the provision of accommodation.

A person’s home

The Equal Status Acts do not apply to situations where a person is renting a room in their home (other than a separate and self contained part) in circumstances where the provision of the accommodation affects the person’s private or family life or that of any other person residing in the home.

Wills/gifts

The Equal Status Acts do not apply to the disposal of property by will or by gift.

Other general exemptions

Action required by or under law

A general exemption provides that nothing in the Equal Status Acts shall prohibit the taking of any action that is required under:

• statutory provision or court order;
• any act done or measure adopted by the EU; or
• any international treaty which imposes an obligation on the State.

Only actions that are mandatory are covered. Where the measure leaves some discretion the anti-discrimination provisions do apply.

Risk of criminal or disorderly conduct

A provider of goods or services, or a person providing accommodation or related services, can refuse a service or accommodation to a person if a reasonable individual, having the knowledge and experience of the provider, would form the belief that the provision of service or accommodation to the customer would produce a substantial risk of criminal or disorderly conduct or behaviour, or damage to property in or around the area where the service or accommodation is provided.

Certain nationals of other countries 

Public authorities can treat certain nationals of other countries differently, on the basis of their nationality, who are outside the State or unlawfully present in it (for the purposes of the Immigration Act 2004) or in accordance with any provision or condition made by or under any enactment, and arising from his or her entry to or residence in the State.

Clinical judgment

Treating a person differently does not constitute discrimination where a person is treated differently solely in the exercise of a clinical judgement in connection with a diagnosis of illness or her/his medical treatment.

Capacity to enter into a contract

Treating a person differently does not constitute discrimination if a person is incapable of entering into an enforceable contract or, is incapable of giving informed consent and for that reason the treatment is reasonable.

Social housing and Membership of the Traveller Community

Renting and membership of the traveller community, search database for more case studies, what's next, make a complaint to the workplace relations commission.

The Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) is the body that hears discrimination complaints under Ireland’s equality laws. The WRC deals with both employment and service/goods related claims. There is no fee to bring a case to the WRC and complaints can be made online.

Learn more about the WRC process

We, the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, have a statutory role to fight discrimination and provide information on equality and human rights in Ireland. Please note however that we are not a court and we do not decide on discrimination claims.

Learn more about how to contact us

• Contact another organisation

You may find that another organisation could better help you with your issue.

Employment rights / Equal treatment in services

Workplace relations commission.

Phone: 059 9178990 | Lo-call: 1890 80 80 90 * (09.30 - 17.00, Monday to Friday)

Web: https://www.workplacerelations.ie/en/contact_us/contact-details/

Social welfare information

Department of employment affairs and social protection.

Email: [email protected]

Phone: 071 919 3302

Web: https://services.mywelfare.ie/en/

Social welfare appeals

Social welfare appeals office.

Email: [email protected]

Phone: 1890 74 74 34 01

Web: www.socialwelfareappeals.ie/

Unfair treatment by a public body

Office of the ombudsman.

Email: [email protected]

Phone: 1890 223 030

Web: https://www.ombudsman.ie

Rights and welfare of children

Ombudsman for children’s office.

Email: [email protected]

Phone: LoCall 1890 654654 or (01) 865 6800

Web: www.oco.ie

Private landlord and tenant dispute

Residential tenancies board.

Email: [email protected]

Phone: 01 702 8100 / 0818 30 30 37

Web: https://www.rtb.ie

Legal advice for Travellers

Traveller legal service - flac.

Web: https://www.flac.ie/

Traveller and Roma rights

Pavee point traveller and roma centre.

Email: [email protected]

Phone: 01-8780255

Web: https://www.paveepoint.ie/

Traveller Community rights

Irish traveller movement (itm).

Email: [email protected]

Phone: 01 6796577

Web: www.itmtrav.ie

Support for housing rights

Phone: 1800 454 454

Web: https://www.threshold.ie/

Homelessness

Dublin region homeless executive, homelessness and social housing, mercy law resource centre.

Email: [email protected]

Phone: +353 (0)1 453 7459

Dublin Simon Community

Email: [email protected]

Phone: 01 671 5551

Web: https://www.dubsimon.ie/

Email: [email protected]

Phone: (01) 453 7111

Web: https://ie.depaulcharity.org/

Anti-racism

Inar (the irish network against racism).

Email: [email protected]

Phone: 01 889 7110

Web: https://inar.ie/

Community law and mediation

Community law & mediation.

Phone: (01) 847 7804

Web: https://communitylawandmediation.ie/

Legal advice

Free legal advice centres.

Phone: Lo-Call: 1890 350 250

The Legal Aid Board

Citizen's information centres, citizen's information.

Phone: 0761 07 4000

Web: https://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/

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Membership of the Traveller Community

In this section.

• Different kinds of discrimination in the workplace
• What categories of people are covered by the Employment Equality Acts
• General exemptions to the law on discrimination in the workplace
• Exemptions which apply to one, or more, of the nine grounds
• Exemptions which apply to particular kinds of employment
• Before you make a complaint under the Employment Equality Acts
• What happens when you make a complaint under the Employment Equality Acts
• What happens if you succeed or, fail in the Workplace Relations Commission?
• Different kinds of discrimination in relation to services
• What categories of people are covered by the law on discrimination in relation to services?
• General exemptions to the law on discrimination in relation to services
• Specific exemptions which apply to goods and services
• What happens when you make a complaint to the Workplace Relations Commission under the Equal Status Acts
• What happens if you succeed or fail in the Workplace Relations Commission
• Human Rights Law in Ireland

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Latest News

Where are travellers meant to live.

Posted on August 10, 2023 by Martina Madden - Housing Crisis , News

Irish Travellers’ traditional lifestyle was characterised by nomadism until legislation introduced in the 1960s criminalised camping on private land, which made moving around difficult, if not impossible. Today, many Travellers continue to live in trailers while others live in houses. Housing policy and accommodation ‘solutions’ for Travellers are often developed without consultation with representatives of the group and the effect of this has implications which are far-reaching.

Travellers are overrepresented in homelessness emergency accommodation and also comprise part of the ‘hidden homeless’ in Ireland; people who are living in precarious or overcrowded housing. Traveller families with children are often left lingering in emergency family hubs for far longer than families from the settled community before being offered homes. When they are offered homes, these are often inadequate or ill-suited to their needs. Travellers who try to get tenancies in private rented accommodation face discrimination and have applications rejected .

Whether county councils are even committed to housing Travellers at all is questionable. In 2022, just one third of the available government funding for this purpose was used, and seven local authorities – including ones in areas where Travellers were living in informal settlements on the roadside – did not draw down any funding at all . This year, the situation still looks bleak. Dublin City Council has not even begun construction on any new Traveller-specific houses or halting bays since 2019 and in Cork and Kerry local authorities have been accused of “knowingly neglecting” the accommodation requirements of Travellers.

The effects of failing to adequately accommodate Travellers are serious, and can even be fatal. Adequate housing – including serviced halting bays for trailers –  are vital for health and wellbeing. Living in poor conditions, such as informal or under-resourced halting sites which do not have proper sanitation and clean water is a threat to physical health, as is living in a trailer without proper heating and ventilation. Travellers in these conditions, and in overcrowded and insecure accommodation (including homelessness hubs) are also vulnerable to the mental health difficulties and strain on relationships that these stressful environments exacerbate.

In 2015 a fire in a ‘temporary’ halting site in Carrickmines, Dublin caused the deaths of ten people, including five children. Safety standards were not adhered to because of an exemption applying to sites which are not considered permanent, the inquest into the deaths was told. The families had been living there since 2008 .

Even when in ‘official’ halting sites, the locations of these, on the edge of an urban environment is not conducive to societal participation. The physical segregation of this group limits easy access to schools, hospitals, shops or other necessities.

The difficulties in obtaining accommodation through either private rental sector or from the State, and the lack of provision of secure, adequately resourced halting sites, leave Travellers in a position which affects their ability to fully participate in society. It also has an immense negative impact on their health and wellbeing and also their access to education and employment. Failing to provide Travellers with adequate safe accommodation is another barrier to enabling many of them to escape poverty and have healthy, flourishing lives. The results of this can be seen in the sobering statistics about Travellers and suicide .

Demanding that local authorities and the Government use their funding to provide Traveller-specific accommodation is a good start but to make it effective we as citizens also need to be accountable.  A survey by the Claire Byrne show last year revealed that just 37% of respondents said they would be happy to live within a mile of a Traveller halting site . Racism and prejudice are at the root of decisions to keep Travellers at the margins of our towns, cities and society. It would – rightly – be unacceptable to allow this to happen to another ethnic group so why do we tolerate it for Travellers?

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Census 2022 Profile 5 - Diversity, Migration, Ethnicity, Irish Travellers & Religion

• Irish Travellers

Census 2022 Results

This publication is part of a  series of results  from Census 2022. More thematic publications will be published throughout 2023 as outlined in the Census 2022  Publication Schedule .

The number of Irish Travellers living in the State and counted in Census 2022 was 32,949, an increase of 6% from 30,987 in the 2016 census. Irish Travellers make up less than 1% of the population so, for comparison purposes, it can be helpful to use rates per 1,000 of the population. This shows that in Census 2022, six out of 1,000 people in the State were Irish Travellers. The proportion of Irish Travellers in the population varied from county to county.

In Galway City, 21 out of every 1,000 people were Irish Travellers, in Longford, the rate was 20 per 1,000 of the population and in Offaly, it was 14 per 1,000.

Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown had the lowest number of Irish Travellers per 1,000 of the population with just under two Irish Travellers for every 1,000 people.

In Kildare and Dublin City, there were just under four Irish Travellers for every 1,000 people.

The Irish Traveller population increased in most counties, the largest rise being recorded in Offaly, up 30% to 1,174.

The Traveller population also increased by more than 200 in Cork (up 11% to 2,376), Fingal (up 17% to 1,545) and Tipperary (up 17% to 1,434).

There were drops in the number of Irish Travellers in some counties; the largest were recorded in Longford (down 13% to 913) and South Dublin (down 12% to 1,943).

Note: The analysis of Irish travellers is based on the usually resident population. The corresponding de facto figures in 2022 and 2016 were 33,033 and 31,075, respectively.

The figure for Irish Travellers has a pyramid shape as opposed to the hourglass shape of the figure for the total population. This reflects higher fertility rates and lower average life expectancy among the Irish Traveller population than in the overall population.

Children under the age of 15 made up 36% of Irish Travellers compared with 20% of the total population. At a national level, 15% of the total population was aged 65 years and over while for Irish Travellers, the equivalent figure was just 5%.

Marital Status of Irish Travellers

Overall, 45% of Irish Travellers aged 15 years and over were single, up from 40% in 2016. The proportion of married Travellers dropped from 49% in 2016 to 44% in 2022.

Irish Traveller men were more likely to be either single (47%) or married (46%) than Irish Traveller women (42% single and 42% married).

Around 10% of Irish Traveller women were separated or divorced compared with 5% of Irish Traveller men.

Irish Traveller women were also more likely to be widowed (5%) than Irish Traveller men (2%).

Over 85% of Irish Travellers aged 15 to 24 years were single while 13% were married.

The proportion that were married increased to 49% for 25 to 34 year olds.

Among Irish Travellers aged 55 to 64 years, 14% were separated or divorced compared with 8% of Travellers aged 65 and over.

Overall, 25% of Irish Travellers aged 65 and over were widowed; the figure for Traveller women aged 65 and over was 35% and 15% for Traveller men.

Long-Lasting Conditions and Difficulties

There were 8,577 Irish Travellers who reported experiencing at least one long-lasting condition or difficulty to any extent, accounting for 26% of the Traveller population. In comparison, 22% of the total population living in the State reported experiencing at least one long-lasting condition or difficulty to any extent.

Breaking this down further, 15% of Irish Travellers (4,952 people) reported experiencing at least one long-lasting condition or difficulty to a great extent or a lot compared with 8% of all people living in Ireland.

Another 11% of Irish Travellers (3,625 people) reported experiencing at least one long-lasting condition or difficulty to some extent or a little while the comparable figure for the total population was 14%.

The overall proportion of Irish Travellers experiencing a long-lasting condition or difficulty to any extent was slightly higher for men (27%) than women (25%). Looking at the total population, women (22%) were more likely to experience a long-lasting condition or difficulty to any extent than men (21%).

Of all children under the age of 15 living in the State, 4% reported experiencing at least one long-lasting condition or difficulty to a great extent compared with 7% of Traveller children.

The proportion of 15 to 29 year old Irish Travellers experiencing at least one long-lasting condition or difficulty to a great extent (13%) was more than twice that of all people in the same age cohort (6%).

Between the ages of 30 and 59, the proportion of the population experiencing at least one long-lasting condition or difficulty to a great extent was over three times higher for Irish Travellers (21%) than the total population (6%).

Among the older age cohorts, the differences were less pronounced, and Irish Travellers over the age of 80 were slightly less likely to experience a long-lasting condition or difficulty to any extent than would be expected in the overall population.

General Health

The question on general health shows that 22,050 Irish Travellers reported their general health as being good or very good (67%) while a further 3,899 Irish Travellers reported fair health status (12%).

There were 1,350 Irish Travellers reporting their health as bad or very bad, 4% of the Traveller population. This is twice as high as the proportion of the total population who reported their health as bad or very bad (2%).

The level of non-response in this question was quite high for Irish Travellers, at 17%, compared with 7% for the total population.

In the overall population, the proportion of people with good or very good health decreased slowly with age, up until the age of 70 when the decrease rate started to accelerate.

In the Irish Traveller population, the proportion of people with good or very good health decreased steadily with age up until the age of 70 at which point, the rate of decrease slowed down.

There were 5,427 Irish Travellers who were daily smokers in Census 2022, or 16% of the Traveller population compared with 9% of the total population.

Just under half of Irish Travellers had never smoked compared with 60% of the total population.

Some 9% of Travellers had given up smoking, compared with 19% for the total population.

Looking at smoking by age shows that one in three Irish Travellers between the ages of 25 and 54 were daily smokers.

Irish Traveller Households

There were 29,900 Irish Travellers living in private households in Census 2022. The majority were living in permanent housing, while 2,286 people were living in temporary housing units such as caravans and mobile homes.

The proportion of Irish Travellers living in private households who were living in caravans, mobile homes or other temporary accommodation was 8% in 2022, down from 12% in 2016.

In Fingal, 18% of Travellers were living in temporary accommodation, the highest proportion in the country in Census 2022.

In Dublin City, Kilkenny and Tipperary, 14% of Irish Travellers were living in temporary housing.

Household Size

There were 9,448 private households containing Irish Travellers. These households had an average size of 4 persons per household compared to an average size of 2.7 for the total population.

Irish Traveller households were largest in Leitrim, Roscommon and Kildare with an average size of 4.6 persons, followed by Clare with 4.5 persons per household.

The counties where the average size of Irish Traveller households was smallest were Dublin City with 3.5 persons per household and Louth, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown and Donegal (all with 3.6 persons per household).

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Pros and Cons of Moving to Moscow

This guide was written prior to Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine and is therefore not reflective of the current situation. Travel to Russia is currently not advisable due to the area's volatile political situation.

Rich in history and culture, Moscow is an exciting destination for expats. Nevertheless, they may experience frustrations arising from bureaucracy, a difficult language adjustment and extreme weather conditions. Nonetheless, the city offers an attractive lifestyle with its active social life and vibrant arts and culture scene. 

Accommodation in Moscow

Densely populated Moscow offers a variety of options for accommodation, though lots of competition and high prices make finding the perfect home a bit tricky.

+ PRO: Range of options

There are many different types of accommodation available in Moscow. Expats are just as likely to find themselves in a pre-revolutionary apartment with high ceilings, thick walls and interesting architecture as in a modern apartment block with good facilities and high-tech features. There are also several international compounds with other expats. These gated communities usually offer their own sports facilities and social activities. 

- CON: High demand and expensive 

With so many people living in Moscow, housing is in great demand and can therefore be expensive. Apartments are also often small, and expats may be disappointed with what their money can buy. Realistically, size, quality and location are the most important factors influencing the cost of accommodation in Moscow. Expats with a limited budget may need to compromise on one or more of these factors to find a home that best suits them.

Lifestyle in Moscow

Moscow is a huge city, offering a wide range of activities and events . The expat community is close-knit, giving new arrivals the opportunity to make friends.

+ PRO: Great social scene 

There is so much to do in Moscow, with activities catering for every interest. Most groups and organisations are well-organised and welcoming to newcomers. The expat community is busy throughout the year with balls and charity events.

Nightlife within the city is excellent, with a variety of bars, clubs and restaurants to choose from. The quality of museums, art galleries, theatres and concerts is also outstanding.

- CON: Eating out can be expensive

Restaurants in Moscow can be extremely expensive. Expats may find their social life is limited if living on a budget. Luckily, knowing the right places will help make going out more affordable.

Education and schools in Moscow

+ pro: international schools are available .

There are several international schools in Moscow offering excellent quality education and facilities. There are also good private Russian schools, although only a small percentage of expat children attend these.

- CON: Demand is high and space is limited

The demand for schools outweighs the supply. Therefore, schools in Moscow can be expensive with long waiting lists. Schools are usually located outside of central Moscow. So, unless expats live close to the school, children will have to travel some distance by school bus or car each day.

Climate in Moscow

+ pro: many winter and summer outdoor activities.

The climate in Moscow is quite extreme. Winter weather can be beautiful in Moscow, with blue skies and sunshine on the white snow. Cross-country skiing is popular with expats and ice-skating is possible all over the city as many playgrounds are made into ice-rinks. Summer is a great time to explore Moscow, as the city is generally quieter. There are lakeside and river beaches in Moscow, where expats and locals alike can take advantage of the good weather.

- CON: Long winters 

The extreme winter weather can make living in Moscow challenging for most of the year. Expats should make sure to have enough thick and warm winter clothing to get them through. 

Safety in Moscow

- con: bribery and corruption.

Bribery and corruption are still issues in Moscow, and expats are sometimes affected by this. It's also not uncommon to find incidents of racism.

Healthcare in Moscow

+ pro: medical facilities are of a high standard .

There are many private medical centres in Moscow with well-trained doctors who can, in most cases, speak English. Dental treatment is also of a high standard in the city.

- CON: Healthcare is expensive

Getting medical treatment can sometimes be expensive, although most expats have insurance to cover these costs. Dental treatment is also pricey, although competitive with other European prices. 

Public transport in Moscow

+ pro: comprehensive public transport system.

Moscow has an impressive public transport system . The metro is not only clean, safe, efficient and fast; it is also a tourist attraction. Daily tours explore the metro system, with guides showing tourists through some of the city's most beautiful stations. These stations often resemble palaces, with sculptures, mosaics and even chandeliers. There is also an extensive bus, trolleybus and tram route throughout Moscow. Many of Moscow’s buses now even have Wi-Fi access.

- CON: Crowded public transport during rush hour 

Rush hour on the metro can be unpleasantly crowded. Many of the metro stations and trains also haven’t changed all their signs to show both the Cyrillic alphabet and the Latin alphabet. Being able to read place names in Russian is therefore helpful to avoid getting lost in the rush hour chaos.

- CON: Heavy traffic

Bad traffic can put people off travelling in and around Moscow. Luckily, the metro system is good and expats living near transport stops shouldn't have any issues getting around. The traffic could be a problem for those who choose to drive in Moscow, however. 

Further reading

►For a breakdown of what you can expect to pay for basic goods and services in Moscow, see  Cost of Living in Russia .

Expat Interviews " What I like the most about Moscow is the city itself. It is always clean, vibrant, and full of entertainment and friendly pedestrians. It means that you can walk as far as you want to and feel safe about doing so." Read about Eva's experience living in Moscow as an expat .  "What I like about Moscow is that it’s very dynamic and animated; there is always something to do at any time of the day and of the night!"  Read about Laurent's experience and his likes and dislikes of living in Moscow.

Are you an expat living in Moscow?

Expat Arrivals is looking for locals to contribute to this guide, and answer forum questions from others planning their move to Moscow. Please contact us if you'd like to contribute.

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Irish in Russia: ‘It’s business as usual in Moscow’

Irish people living in russia describe mood of ‘calm’ there amid invasion of ukraine.

Irish citizen Hugh McEnaney, who currently lives in Moscow. Photograph: Hugh McEnaney

Sitting in the back of a taxi driving through Moscow city centre, Co Armagh-born Hugh McEnaney described the mood of the Russian capital as calm.

Although the streets were quiet on Tuesday afternoon, there was a heavy police presence in central Moscow, in anticipation of protests that evening over Russia's decision to invade Ukraine.

Mr McEnaney (51), who grew up in Dublin and moved to Moscow in 2007, says he does not have "the budget to uproot" and leave Russia, in the wake of financial sanctions from the European Union and the US amid the invasion.

Speaking about the conflict, Mr McEnaney said he tried to remain “apolitical” about most matters. “If I was in Ukraine and my home was being bombed it would be a different story,” he told The Irish Times.

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There was an air of “panic” among some European expats living in Russia, with many seeking to make urgent arrangements to leave the country, he said.

Mr McEnaney had met his wife, a Russian woman, while travelling in southeast Asia, and later moved with her to Moscow where they now live.

The older generation of Russians appeared to have "a lot of time and respect" for Russian president Vladimir Putin, and were more inclined to believe the country needed "a strong leader", he said.

Despite the invasion, which has seen fierce fighting in several Ukrainian cities, for the ordinary person it was “business as usual in Moscow” this week, Mr McEnaney said.

The biggest impact of the conflict on day-to-day life was the fact the rouble had “tanked” following severe financial sanctions, he said.

Among Russians he spoke to, there was no groundswell of support to bring Kyiv under the control of the Kremlin. "I haven't heard anybody saying Ukraine was part of the Soviet Union, and we want it back," he said.

He added that he had heard some commentary from locals expressing fears Ukraine was becoming a "cog" in an eastern expansion of Nato.

In the tense weeks leading up to the violence, when Russia was amassing troops along the Ukrainian border, there was little discussion or debate of any possible invasion among people in Moscow, he said.

Robert Kelly (54), originally from Blanchardstown, west Dublin, has lived in Russia for 30 years and said he was "shocked" by the decision to attack Ukraine.

While out walking his dog in Moscow on Tuesday, he described the public mood as “relatively calm”. This may change in the coming weeks when the impact of sanctions on the Russian economy begin to be felt by ordinary people, he said.

Mr Kelly, who works in food imports, said it was effectively "impossible" for him to fly out of the country now, even if he wanted to, as much of Europe had closed its airspace to Russia.

Ambassador’s warning

Brian McElduff, Irish Ambassador to Russia, has recommended that Irish citizens living in or visiting Russia who wished to leave should do so “as quickly as possible”.

In a recent email to Irish residents in Russia, seen by The Irish Times, Mr McElduff said the Department of Foreign Affairs was recommending against travel to Russia, given the “rapidly deteriorating flight and transport options”, as well as “banking difficulties due to sanctions”.

Mr McElduff said he understood many of the Irish community there were “settled” with family in the country, and may have “the resources and contacts to assist them in this difficult period”.

The Ambassador said the “decision on whether to depart is for each individual to make, bearing in mind their own circumstances”.

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