Roma community welcomes 'significant' £1.1m funding

Petr Torak said the funding would be "significant" in reducing inequalities within the Roma people in the UK

The Roma community has welcomed a new £1.1m research project which aims to have a "significant" impact on improving health outcomes and reducing inequalities within the community across the UK.

The three-year government-funded project involves researchers from Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) working in partnership with migrant traveller groups in the UK and public authorities in Luton, Peterborough and Glasgow.

Organisers of the project said life expectancy for Roma people was about 10 years less than the national average, and there was a higher prevalence of long-term chronic conditions and increased social exclusion.

Petr Torak, who runs the Compas Charity which works with marginalised and migrant communities in Peterborough, said the funding would help in the integration and wellbeing of Roma people.

ARU said the research, which is being led by Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, would use innovative visual and creative methods to help identify barriers faced by the community.

It would then co-design "integrated hubs" to better connect Roma people with culturally appropriate community resources.

'Marginalised at school'

Mr Torak came to the UK from the Czech Republic over 25 years ago to find what he hoped was a place of safety and opportunity to live a normal life.

"I was regularly chased by neo-Nazis, beaten up on the street, marginalised at school and the likelihood of me succeeding in life was very small," he said.

"The history of Roma people from central and eastern Europe is full of oppression and hatred.

"As a result, many Roma people coming into the UK still suffer from poor outcomes when it comes to education, employment and integration."

Margaret Greenfields, professor of social policy at ARU, said: "We will be working with a range of partners to identify how we can ensure Roma people obtain the best and most culturally-competent health care and access to services they need to support ageing well."