| Description | Charles Parker interviews Mr Chappell, a public heath inspector at Hemel Hempstead, about his experiences with the travelling community, and 'Gypsy' Williams, a traveller from Hemel Hempstead.
Track 1: Mr Chappell talks about the lifestyles of people he calls 'showmen', and the tidyness of the caravans they live in. He talks about his general reluctance to interfere in peoples' lives unless they are a danger to children, but his concern about the lack of hygiene amongst the traveller community. He refers to an article he has written which suggests that the problem is a national one 2.44 mins
Track 2: he discusses the supportive reactions of his colleagues to the article he has written about the travelling community. He thinks that they all agree that there needs to a be national solution. Charles Parker asks what he thinks about schemes set up in Hampshire to educate people about hygiene. He thinks that social workers who work with travellers need to be very dedicated, and that public health concerns are primarily a matter of the number of families who are using areas of waste ground, and points out that there is a serious shortage of housing in the area 2.47 mins
Track 3: he discusses the night soil collection problem that persists in rural areas, and the survival of the old privy midden where waste needs to be collected. He admits that this problem needs to be resolved, and that pressure to deal with travellers largely comes from town dwellers who perhaps do not realise the reality of sanitation in rural areas 2.18 mins
Track 4: 'Gypsy' Williams talks about distinctions between tribes of 'genuine gypsies', people who marry outside their tribe who are known as 'diddicoys' and 'travellers' who are itinerant fairground people 1.02 mins
Track 5: he continues to explain his view of the distinctions between travellers from different areas and his missionary work in the Watford area
Track 6: he talks about the Smith and Lees families being the oldest tribes, that 'genuine gypsies' have rules about the burial of rubbish before they moved on, and the digging of latrines, but that other groups of travellers do not seem to care. He thinks there should be separate camp sites for 'genuine gypsies' and other travellers 1.14 mins
Track 7: he talks about the modernisation of trailer caravans used by travellers and his belief that the traditional 'gypsy' customs will die out as more people move into houses because they want their children to attend school 1.31 mins
Track 8: he talks about the 'gypsy' teenagers who are losing their identity and his determination to carry on with his mission work regardless of whether people move into houses. He talks about his own move to a house so that his daughter can have the facilities that he did not grow up with, and the fact that his daughter does not really know 'gypsy life' and cannot speak the 'gypsy' language. He and his wife needed to settle in order to give their children an education 1.47 mins
Track 9: he talks about the implications of the Caravan Act and the difficulties that travellers have in settling. They need a licence to stay, and the owner of the land needs a licence allowing people to camp there. He describes some of the efforts made by 'gypsies' to build shacks and shelters or to keep moving on every few days 1.50 mins
Total: 17.31 mins
Dubber's reference number: PLA EH44540357774 |