C J Smith

C J Smith, a Gypsy and Traveller Awareness Trainer, describes his role as a partner in research.

Working Co-productively with Peter Unwin and The University of Worcester has meant that we have all needed to reflect on our attitudes and behaviours; this includes Gypsies and Non-Gypsies and Travellers. To avoid tokenism, we have ensured everyone involved can have a positive experience when co-producing projects such as the Gypsy and Traveller Awareness Training for Social Workers.

Co-production is not always easy, and it needs to be supported by organisations and (in this case) the Gypsies and Travellers involved. When this happens it is a much better way of working. Our ethos is that decisions made alongside people; bringing their lives, experiences and skills to the table as valued equals, are always better decisions.

Co-production makes services a better fit for the people that use them, and more accessible for seldom heard from and marginalised ethnicities like Gypsies and Travellers. It can make an otherwise institutional situation feel more human. We all understand that managing change, and challenging change, can be stressful for everyone involved, but the reciprocal relationships between Gypsies and Travellers and the various organisations we work with, has broadened the social reach of the awareness training that has been developed.

The University of Worcester has enabled people of different ethnicities to work together to achieve common goals, and to draw on resources contained within the group of participants. This has contributed to Gypsies and Travellers having new-found confidence to challenge those in positions of authority. We are also creating networks that are helping to build capacity in Gypsy communities in a more meaningful way. I have personally found the experience to be life enhancing, and it has given me confidence to present Gypsy and Traveller awareness training to far larger audiences, especially to students involved in the health care system.