184 pages
244 x 170mm
ISBN-10: 1 85856 390 9
ISBN-13: 978 1 85856 390 9
September 2007

Foreword by Patrick Delaney and Lord Avebury.

"Every police officer from every police force in the country from the chief constable down should be required to read this book." - Travellers Times


For the first time we are taking a skills based approach to driving racism out of the police service rather than a training approach which could never work. The Last Bastion is a definitive text to help move the agenda forward to focus on skills, ensuring we have public confidence from all communities in justice. Dick Winterton, Chief Executive, Skills for Justice.

This book deals with prejudice, specifically the neglected area of prejudice towards Romany Gypsies and Irish Travellers. It describes a problem solving approach at both practitioner and strategic levels that indicates ways of overcoming prejudice in many of its forms and of achieving greater social justice.

John Coxhead has drawn on his extensive research with practitioners, strategic workers and the communities to highlight the issues. He provides an analytical but practical approach - a toolkit for those working in public services to improve service delivery.

As the definitive text for understanding the approaches and strategies by which prejudice towards a certain community can be effectively tackled, the book will be indispensable to practitioners in public services, particularly criminal justice and policing. It will also interest sociologists and the communities themselves.

Dr John Coxhead has worked ten years as a police Gypsy and Traveller Liaison Officer.