I was one of a family of eight and I have a 10-year-old son. The earliest memories I have of where we lived was living in a trailer (caravan) on the roadside.
My family travelled around the country a lot. We stayed in many different camps, in Kildare, Laois, Longford, Cork, Dublin and Meath. Co Meath was where we camped during the winter months; some members of our extended family camped in Navan all year round. There were no services whatsoever at many of these locations.
The first experience of living in a house was when I was 11 years old. It was a group housing scheme of 12 houses, built for families who were camped on the unofficial site in Navan.
My family continued to travel during the summer months. My father missed the road and the way of life and after eight years my family started to travel again. After some time my family returned to Meath, where I continue to live today.
I can describe my childhood moving from camp to camp as exciting. There was always somewhere new to explore - I loved it.
I feel now, however, that conditions have changed, particularly in the past 10 to 15 years, with the increased difficulty of finding appropriate stopping places. The situation for Travellers has become more difficult.
What I see as a deliberate campaign designed to curtail the nomadic element of Traveller identity is highlighted in a number of ways.
Boulders are placed at traditional camps that Travellers would have stayed in. Families who are nomadic are being evicted and having to constantly move from one place to another. In recent years, families camped on the roadside have faced dangers such as vigilante attacks.
While there are permanent halt-sites and group housing schemes, there are not enough on a national basis to meet the accommodation needs of Traveller families who live without basic services such as water, sanitation and refuse collection that most people take for granted.
The nomadic part of Traveller culture has not been facilitated. There are no transient halt-sites. Also, for the most part, there is no consultation regarding Traveller-specific accommodation with the families who will be living in it.
This is the main reason why much of this type of accommodation has failed.