Travellers
The Supporting People policy objective is to improve the living conditions for travellers in Northern Ireland. Here you will find information on the department's responsibilities, policies and actions in relation to travellers in Northern Ireland including accommodation and the co-operation policy.
Travellers' accommodation
The Northern Ireland Housing Executive (NIHE) has the strategic role in the provision of accommodation for Travellers. The Department has oversight responsibility for the NIHE’s strategic role in relation to Travellers’ accommodation.
The NIHE are required to carry out accommodation needs assessments to establish current and projected accommodation requirements of Travellers. The next assessment will be completed during 2019 which will inform the future accommodation requirements for Irish Travellers’ in Northern Ireland for 2019 - 2024.
Design guide for Travellers’ sites in Northern Ireland
The Department for Communities has responsibility for publishing and maintaining a Design Guide for Travellers’ sites in NI. The Design Guide for Travellers Sites in NI is technical guidance that seeks to outline the key issues, including the relevant planning context, that must be considered and identify the main design and management elements necessary to create high quality and sustainable Traveller sites which meet residents’ traditional and cultural needs.
Co-operation policy
It is important to stress that the policy that allows Travellers to camp on a temporary basis is not a substitute for permanent or transit site provision. The policy is still seen, therefore, as a humane requirement and necessary addition to adequate permanent provision.
Once the policy is in place Travellers should be allowed to remain on the land subject to the following conditions:
- occupation does not constitute a measurable public health hazard or cause pollution to water supplies. District councils should liaise with the landowner, support groups and Traveller families to ensure services (for example refuse collection) are in place to eliminate any public health hazard
- occupation does not create a traffic hazard
- occupation does not create a right to long-term use of the site. The situation should be reviewed at regular intervals not exceeding three months
- there is no current or immediate use for the land
- the Travellers behave in a reasonable and orderly manner
It is recognised that in exceptional cases there could be circumstances attached to a particular occupancy, which would require a different approach.