Six people from Leeds' gypsy and traveller community take their own life every year, says new charity report

The statistics are revealed in a new report released today (Thursday) which reveals a series of inequalities facing the traveller and gypsy groups in the city.

Leeds Gypsy and Traveller Exchange, known more commonly as Leeds GATE, is a charity that works with the community.

It commissioned the report after staff members at the charity, back in 2017, discovered that 60 per cent of the community members accessing advocacy support due to poor mental health had, at some point, made plans to end their own life.

The Don’t Be Beat report, which will officially be published on World Suicide Prevention Day, reveals how Leeds GATE learns of a new case of completed suicide every two months. In

other words, a minimum of six suicides take place every year in this community alone.

These figures are mirrored across the UK, with members of the Gypsy and Traveller community being, on average, between six and seven times more likely to end their own life

compared to the rest of the population.

Leeds GATE links some of the causes for the number of suicides to factors including negative experiences involving social exclusion, accommodation, financial security and employment - all leading to poor mental health.

A spokesperson for Leeds GATE said: “You cannot underestimate the impact of racism and discrimination on our members’ mental health. Someone may be coping okay, then a little

thing will happen which reminds them of the challenges and barriers they face just because they are a gypsy or a traveller and this will set them back in their recovery."

World Suicide Prevention Day: Here's who you can contact if you are struggling

In addition, once a community member falls down, an unequal access to healthcare services combined with low literacy levels means it is very difficult for gypsy and traveller people to pick themselves back up.

For example, a recent NHS survey found 39.3 per cent of gypsy and traveller people are unhappy with their access to a GP, compared with only 26.2 per cent in the non-traveller community.

However, the project has also been working on solutions too over the last few years.

This model delivered a mental health advocacy service, embedded peer support groups and provided ‘SafeTalk’ training to groups and organisations in contact with gypsy and traveller

people such as the community members themselves, Leeds GATE staff or clergy in both the Church of England and Catholic Church. This was done in order to encourage a space of

informal, relaxed conversation.

Leeds GATE staff also delivered Gypsy and Traveller awareness training to statutory healthcare professionals working in the field of mental health, to ensure these people are included instead of alienated.

It now hopes that in sharing this model, similar organisations can replicate the approach to create happier, healthier lives for their community members.

Chief Executive of Leeds GATE, Helen Jones, said: “Right now, there’s lots in the news about a pending mental health crisis in the UK due to COVID-19. But many Gypsy and Traveller people were already in this crisis before lockdown.

“Plus, when a suicide does take place, the shockwaves it sends around such a tight-knit community is unimaginable. Unfortunately, this knock-on effect often leads to another tragedy.

“Ultimately, there is no such thing as a ‘hard to reach’ community but there is such a thing as systems that have been set up to exclude certain types of people. We have shown that there

is a better way and we hope that, in publishing this report, we can help similar organisations to achieve the same result.”

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Thank you

Laura Collins