Gypsy Roma and Traveller (GRT) History Month

As we continue to grow as an inclusive organisation, Metanoia Institute recognises Gypsy Roma and Traveller (GRT) history month in June.

Since 2008 GRT history month in the UK has sought to bring into focus issues to end discrimination and racist practices against the Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities and support their right to a nomadic way of life. This year’s theme is What Makes a Home?, and provides an interesting and informative perspective on concepts of home.  It is well worth a read and reflection!

Further details of this campaign can be found here:

https://www.gypsy-traveller.org/heritage/gypsy-roma-and-traveller-history-month-2022/

To celebrate GRT history month, and to educate ourselves further, this year we were pleased to host Tyler Hatwell, a therapist who works as an advocate for travelling communities.  Tyler delivered a highly informative CPD session for our students:

Travellers and Therapy : ensuring a parity of service

This valuable CPD event was complimentary to our members and took place on Thursday 9^th June.

To watch a recording of this event, click here: https://moodle.metanoia.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=470

This session covered an explanation of who we mean when we speak about ‘travellers’ within a UK context, what historical and current barriers look like, and how this impacted communities at large as well as on the individual. The CPD event focused on mental health and, more broadly, access and intersectionality.  The session will considered how this ‘looks’ within the room.

Some of the focus in the session turned towards advice and guidance (and where to find further information), but the essential purpose is more to provide students with insight and understanding of communities who are frequently forgotten by the mainstream.

Tyler Hatwell is a therapist working in London and online, in private practice and for a homelessness charity. Beyond this work, Tyler has worked as an advocate for Travelling communities in the UK for a number of years, with a particular focus on education, mental health and LGBT+ issues

Earlier this year we launched a number of student collectives to help give marginalised voices within Metanoia a platform and a space to create a community.  If you are a member and interested in creating a GRT collective at Metanoia or wish to find out more about these collectives in general please click here and scroll to the student collectives section.

We thank Tyler for supporting us in learning about the additional barriers the GRT community face and how as an organisation and sector we can improve and become an establishment which contributes to therapy and mental health services become accessible for all.