London Gypsies and Travellers

What London Gypsies and Travellers does

London Gypsies and Travellers (LGT) is a registered charity in England (Charity No. 1072111, Company No. 03585698), founded circa 1980 and rebranded from the London Gypsy and Traveller Unit to its current name in April 2017. Headquartered at Mildmay Community Centre in North London, the organisation delivers community services for Gypsy, Roma and Traveller (GRT) families across 31 London boroughs - in 2024 it supported 641 families, worked with 50+ partner organisations, and engaged 34 young people via the Bright Futures programme. Its core services are the Accommodation and Advocacy Service (advice for families in houses, official sites and unauthorised encampments), the Phoenix Arise domestic abuse project, the Bright Futures mentoring programme for 15-25 year-olds not in education, employment or training, and paid Training and Consultancy for local authorities, schools and healthcare providers. Alongside service delivery, LGT pursues policy and litigation work and runs anti-discrimination campaigns such as #WeAreAllSoManyThings, #EndRacistInjunctions, We Still Count and We Are Londoners Too; it secured a landmark Court of Appeal ruling in 2019 against Bromley Council's wide injunctions against Gypsy/Traveller encampments.

The organisation's technology footprint is modest but distinctive: it maintains two interactive online mapping platforms - the History and Heritage Maps and a Community Map - co-produced with Mapping for Change and funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, which document historic and contemporary GRT sites, routes and lived experiences across London. There is no disclosed AI/ML stack, API product, or proprietary model; the platforms function as cultural heritage and service-directory resources rather than AI-driven products.

LGT is funded almost entirely by grants and donations - current funders include BBC Children in Need, the Henry Smith Charity, the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust, the Lloyds Bank Foundation, the Oak Foundation, the Trust for London, the National Lottery Community Fund, the Irish Government Emigrant Support Programme, the London Borough of Hackney, the London Community Foundation, and Moving for Change - supplemented by individual donations (with Gift Aid) and a fee-based Training and Consultancy stream. Leadership comprises Chief Executive Debby Kennett, Chair of Trustees Helena Kiely-Savin, Vice Chair Marion Mahoney, and a small staff team of 1-10 employees, with strong GRT community representation across staff and Board.

Name

London Gypsies and Travellers

Legal name

London Gypsies and Travellers

Website

https://londongypsiesandtravellers.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1980

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

London Gypsies and Travellers is a registered London charity delivering accommodation advice, advocacy, youth mentoring (Bright Futures), and domestic abuse support to Gypsy, Roma and Traveller families, alongside paid training and consultancy for local authorities.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Advocacy Services

NAICS

Other Individual and Family Services (624190), Child and Youth Services (62411)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Community Centers & Neighborhood Support Services (BPAGAEAL)

akta.pro secondary industry

Refugee & Immigrant Support Services (BPAGAEAI)

Keywords

• Community advocacy services
• Youth mentoring programmes
• Cultural competence training
• Accommodation advice support
• Heritage mapping projects

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Grant Funding: Relies entirely on grant funding from charitable trusts, foundations, and government bodies including BBC Children in Need, Henry Smith Charity, Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust, Lloyds Bank Foundation, London Borough of Hackney, London Community Foundation, Oak Foundation, Trust for London, National Lottery Community Fund, and Irish Government Emigrant Support Programme.
2. Individual Donations: Accepts donations from individuals through online platforms, bank transfers, and cheques. Encourages Gift Aid declarations for personal donations.
3. Consultancy and Training Services: Provides CPD training and bespoke consultancy services to organizations including local authorities, schools, and service providers. Revenue generated through professional development training sessions.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

London Gypsies and Travellers provides direct community services to Gypsy, Roma and Traveller (GRT) families in London, including accommodation and housing advice, advocacy, the Bright Futures youth mentoring programme, and the Phoenix Arise domestic abuse support project. It also runs CPD training and consultancy services for local authorities, schools, and service providers, and maintains interactive online heritage and community mapping platforms.

Product overview

London Gypsies and Travellers operates as a single-charity organization offering multiple interconnected services and advocacy programmes. Core services include the Bright Futures mentoring programme for young people, Accommodation and Advocacy services, the Phoenix Arise domestic abuse project, and Training and Consultancy for organizations. The organization also maintains digital resources including History and Heritage Maps and Community Maps developed in partnership with Mapping for Change. Multiple advocacy campaigns (WeAreAllSoManyThings, Nowhere Left to Turn, We Still Count, EndRacistInjunctions) address policy issues and discrimination.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Bright Futures Programme
• Accommodation and Advocacy Service
• Phoenix Arise Project
• Training and Consultancy Services
• History and Heritage Maps
• Community Map

Quantifiable outcome

• 641 families supported with accommodation and housing issues
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Mantle ConsultancyminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Independent consultancy specializing in organizational guidance partnered with LGT to conduct formal evaluation of the Bright Futures mentoring programme beginning in 2025.
• DeMontfort UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 December 2018Research partnership with Professor Jo Richardson at DeMontfort University for the negotiated stopping research project, receiving up to £30,000 from the Mayor of London.
• Mapping for ChangecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 April 2017Partnership to develop interactive online heritage maps documenting Gypsy and Traveller history in London. Mapping for Change provided technical expertise for creating the LGT History and Heritage Maps and Community Map platforms. Project funded by National Lottery Heritage Fund.
• PeabodyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Peabody, London's oldest housing association, to bring the Traveller histories exhibition to Thamesmead. Exhibition showcased at Thamesmead Information Hub.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Centre for Youth Impact: Charity focused on improving youth-sector impact measurement and practice. Relevant peer for the Bright Futures programme's mentoring/employability model and evaluation methodology (LGT partnered with Mantle Consultancy in 2025 to formally evaluate Bright Futures).
• Hope for the Young: UK charity supporting young refugees and asylum-seekers into education and employment. Comparable on the youth-mentoring/employability model targeting marginalised young people — useful peer for Bright Futures programme design.

Broad incumbents

• Refugee Council: Large UK charity supporting refugees and asylum seekers with advice, advocacy and integration services. Comparable on community-anchored service model, advocacy-heavy funding approach, and migrant-population mission — relevant for benchmarking grant diversification.
• Crisis UK: National homelessness charity providing housing, education, and advocacy. Comparable on the accommodation/advice service line and advocacy-driven funding model, but much larger and broader in scope — relevant as a benchmark for scaling pathways.
• Shelter: UK housing-advice and homelessness charity. Overlaps with LGT's Accommodation and Advocacy Service but operates nationally at significantly larger scale; useful for housing-policy positioning comparisons.

Direct peers

• The Traveller Movement: UK charity advocating for inclusion and equality for Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities through policy, training and community development. Strong overlap in training/consultancy revenue model and policy-campaign focus.
• Friends, Families and Travellers: UK charity working with Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities on health, housing, education and policy advocacy. Most direct comparable: similar mission, similar service mix (advice, advocacy, training), and operates nationally — providing a benchmark for scale and funding approach.
• Roma Support Group: London-based charity supporting the Roma community with advocacy, advice, education and youth services. Comparable on geography (London), demographic served (GRT communities), and service mix (advice, youth, advocacy).

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/londongypsytrav
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCxXeAKnj4HHbU3T5hKJ5Z1g
• Facebookfacebook.com/LonGypsyTraveller
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/london-gypsies-and-travellers

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles15 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about London Gypsies and Travellers