Marsh, Hazel, Hulmes, Allison, Peacock, Jane and Morgan, Julia ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6218-7593 (2026) Chapter 14. Decolonising the university curriculum and valuing community cultural wealth. In: Morgan, Julia ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6218-7593, Marsh, Hazel and Clark, Colin, (eds.) Gypsies, Roma and Travellers in Higher Education: Contemporary Critical Perspectives. Routledge, London. ISBN 978-1032823690 (In Press)

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Abstract

Gypsies, Roma and Travellers are amongst Britain’s ‘longest-established’ minority groups (Taylor and Hinks, 2021, p. 1). Yet their experiences, heritage and contributions to society are excluded from mainstream histories and curricula (Cressy, 2016), while they are portrayed in popular media and news coverage as ‘romantic outsiders’ or as ‘out of control, uncivilised, amoral and above all in need of control and containment’ (Holdsworth, 2020, p. 126). The inclusion of Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities in initiatives aimed at decolonising the university curriculum is, we argue, a necessary step towards counteracting and disrupting such entrenched societal stereotypes. In this chapter, we briefly survey decolonisation in the context of higher education curricula and relate the concept of coloniality to Gypsies, Roma and Travellers. We highlight the importance of challenging ‘stock stories’ and deficit representations of Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities and of recognising and promoting community cultural wealth within higher education curricula. Finally, we present and discuss a case study of curriculum decolonisation via the development and introduction of a six-week module for social work students in a university in Wales.

Item Type:	Book Section
Uncontrolled Keywords:	decolonising the curriculum, Gypsies, Roma and Travellers, Higher Education, cultural wealth, United Kingdom
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > H Social Sciences (General) H Social Sciences > HT Communities. Classes. Races L Education > L Education (General) L Education > LB Theory and practice of education > LB2300 Higher Education
Faculty / School / Research Centre / Research Group:	Faculty of Education, Health & Human Sciences Faculty of Education, Health & Human Sciences > Institute for Lifecourse Development Faculty of Education, Health & Human Sciences > Institute for Lifecourse Development > Centre for Inequalities Faculty of Education, Health & Human Sciences > School of Human Sciences (HUM)
Last Modified:	03 Jun 2026 11:05
URI:	https://gala.gre.ac.uk/id/eprint/53674

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