Dale Farm Case

Forced eviction of Gypsy and Traveller community in the UK

The Case

Work on the Dale Farm case began in spring 2009 after the completion of a fact-finding mission by the UN HABITAT Advisory Group on Forced Eviction. The case involves the planned eviction of a Gypsy and Traveller community in Essex, United Kingdom, planned by Basildon Borough Council (BBC). The community bought the land in the green belt area and was not granted planning permission to stay. Enforcement notices were issued and the community could not overturn the judicial decision which authorised enforcement. Nationally the case is led by the Dale Farm Housing Association and internationally by the Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions. The aim is to stop the planned eviction and/or find an acceptable and adequate alternative for resettlement with full respect of the community's human rights.

Progress

The Dale Farm team has carried out a variety of activities to assist the solicitor of the case, Mr. Keith Lomax of Davies Gore Lomax Solicitors, and the community in their endeavours to halt the planned eviction. On the legal side, the team prepared and submitted petitions to Basildon Borough Council, the UK Information Commissioner Office, the Essex Police Authority, Council of Europe, UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, the UN Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing. On 11 March a representative of the Council of Europe visited Dale Farm get information on the eviction process directly from the community. The visit took place in the scope of a monitoring mission to the UK of the Advisory Committee on the implementation of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities. The team has produced an inventory of all material properties to serve as evidence in case the eviction result in the destruction of private property. The Clinic also assists the Dale Farm Housing Association with editing and designing the Dale Farm e-bulletin, which serves as a vehicle for circulating information on the planned eviction.

Forced Eviction at Hovefields

The Hovefields site, located near Dale Farm, is also an unauthorised development where some members of the extended families of those at Dale Farm reside. Two forced eviction operations were carried out by the bailiff company Constant and Co. (Bedford) Ltd. against 13 families, on 29 June and 7 September. Alternative accommodation was not offered to all persons forcibly evicted, and where it was offered, the tender of the Basildon Council was considered inadequate by the Travellers. The offers consisted of brick and mortar accommodation, usually in the form of unsuitable council apartments. Temporary accommodation was also not offered. As a result, four families were rendered homeless. They were forced to resort to trespassing on private and public land located in the surrounding area, from which they were systematically directed to leave by the police.

Dale Farm to be Forcibly Evicted

On Monday 14 March local authority Basildon Borough Council (BBC) voted 28 to 10 to forcibly evict 86 families from Dale Farm. The 28-day eviction notices have been served, and the eviction will take place from the 19 October 2011 onwards. BBC has withdrawn from negotiations with interested parties and omitted to assist the community in identifying suitable alternative land, which it is required to do, as a number of international human rights bodies and mechanisms, such as the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, the UN Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing and an Advisory Committee of the Council of Europe, have emphasized to the UK government. The Dale Farm Housing Association, with the support of the Gypsy Council, has applied for planning permission for the use of Pound Lane site – located in Basildon – for accommodation. Most of the Dale Farm residents are vulnerable and poor and they may be unable to afford to meet the costs of identifying sites and applying for planning permission, as they are very expensive.

The financial implications of the forced eviction operation, estimated at £18 million, will have a devastating effect on the provision of services to the whole population of Basildon. Most importantly, such costs do not include the provision of adequate alternative accommodation for the families affected by the eviction. As for the Council costs, the taxpayer is being asked to pay in order to deliberately make people homeless. As the primary authority in the UK responsible for tackling homelessness, Basildon Council is expected to comply with its duties to homeless residents as well as with other relevant obligations under national and international human rights law.

Read more about recent developments in this case and learn how to take action by writing to BBC here.

Partner Organisations

Supervisors

Dr. Bob Watt
Prof. John Packer

Coordinators

Leticia Marques Osorio

Sarah Booth

Student Team

Rachel Chhoa-Howard, Tamar Dekanosidze, Benoit W.G. Dhondt, Ines Groesel, Alejandra Morena, Ryosuke Muramatsu, Letizia Polizzi, Abigail Sloan