Manchester gives city’s Roma community a voice

University project is helping to overcome negative perceptions.

Manchester’s Roma– who have so far suffered a lack of spokesmanship – are now being given a voice.

Academics from The University of Manchester are leading a European Commission funded project in partnership with Manchester City Council to help the city’s Roma population to gain access to services, education and employment, and to combat the public’s negative perceptions of them.

The team worked alongside Manchester’s Roma to set up a community group aimed at providing advice and support and help them to take the lead on initiatives to give the community a public voice.

Project Coordinator Professor Yaron Matras said: “Unlike other immigrant and ethnic minority communities the Roma have so far lacked community representation. The main aim of our outreach work is to release Roma from being dependent on others and to encourage self-reliance.

“The presence of Roma migrants from Romania on the streets of major western European cities has triggered fierce public debates. We have worked to investigate the experiences, motivations, and ambitions of Roma migrants from Romania who have recently moved to Italy, France, Spain, and the UK, and the effect of migration on their own lives and on the lives of relations left behind in the home communities in Romania.”

The community group is being launched in partnership with Manchester City Council, the Big Life Group, and the University of Manchester’s Romani Project.

It will receive support from the European Roma and Travellers Forum, an organisation that represents the Roma at the Council of Europe.

MACC – Manchester’s local voluntary and community sector support organisation – and TS4SE Cooperative have also provided advice for the formation of the group.

Ramona Constantin, one of the group’s founders, said:

“We have many young people in our community who are talented and motivated. One of our goals is to help them identify opportunities to develop their skills. “

Afzal Khan MEP said:

“The Roma are Europe’s largest minority. They continue to suffer exclusion and discrimination. The community group is an excellent initiative. It will help make Manchester a model for the integration and participation of Roma in the European Union”.

Fay Selvan, Chief Executive of the Big Life Group, said:

“Our organisation has been supporting training and capacity building in the Roma community for several years now, and are looking forward to working together with Roma Voices of Manchester to continue this work.”

Dr Julian Skyrme, Director of Social Responsibility at The University of Manchester, said:

“The MigRom project is an excellent example of how our world-leading research is making a difference in our most local communities. Our expertise on languages and culture has been used to successfully engage local Roma communities, build their capacity and help to enhance cohesion and integration in specific parts of our city”

Notes for editors

Kath Paddison
Media Relations Officer
The University of Manchester
Tel: 0161 275 0790
Mob: 07990 550050
Email: kath.paddison@manchester.ac.uk