Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what National Health Service datasets are available to compare the mental and physical health of people from Gypsy, Traveller and Roma communities with that of the rest of the population; and what those sources yield by way of trend information since 2011.

National Health Service datasets do not enable comparisons to be made between the mental and physical health of the Gypsy, Traveller and Roma communities with that of the rest of the population. These datasets – such as the Mental Health and Learning Disabilities dataset – use the nationally mandated ethnicity categories from the NHS data dictionary, based on the 2001 census groups. These groups did not include Gypsy, Traveller and Roma communities. The 2011 census included a new ethnic category group for Gypsy or Irish Traveller.

The National Inclusion Health Board’s report, Hidden Needs: identifying vulnerable groups in data collections: vulnerable migrants, gypsies and travellers, homeless people and sex workers published in March 2014 recommended the adoption of the 2011 census ethnic classification by the NHS data dictionary. The Department, the NHS, Public Health England, and the Health and Social Care Information Centre are considering how this recommendation could be implemented whilst ensuring data consistency.