Pontins holiday parks discriminated against Travellers by drawing up a list of “undesirable” Irish surnames, the equalities watchdog has said.
The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) said the company had been using the blacklist of mainly Irish surnames as part of a policy of refusing bookings by Gypsies and Travellers.
Pontins was also criticised for requiring guests to appear on the electoral register, a practice found to be discriminatory against both groups.
The commission said staff were instructed to decline or cancel bookings made under Irish names, and that call centre staff were told to listen for Irish accents to identify Travellers and decline their bookings.
The company is reviewing the commission's findings, emphasising that these reflect "historic cases". It also reaffirmed its commitment to fully comply with the Equality Act.
The commission expressed "deep concern" over the practices.
The charity Friends, Families and Travellers described the findings as "deeply saddening", but said they did not come as a surprise.
Chris McDonagh, a campaigns officer at the charity, claimed that Pontins is not the only provider with discriminatory policies.
A whistleblower exposed the discriminatory practices by sharing the list of "undesirable guests" with the EHRC in 2020.In 2021, the watchdog formed a legally binding agreement with Pontins to halt the discriminatory practices and avoid future discrimination.
But the agreement was terminated the following year, leading to a formal investigation after Pontins was accused of failing to adhere to its terms.
Pontins has now received an unlawful act notice and is legally required to create an action plan detailing how it plans to comply with the EHRC's recommendations.
The watchdog said Pontins must apologise to and engage with the Gypsy and Traveller community, “acknowledging their corporate responsibility and committing to a zero-tolerance approach to discrimination”; monitor booking cancellations and failures in order to identify future or remaining issues; and review and update their policies and procedures to ensure they are not discriminatory.
The EHRC said it must also remove terms that stipulate electoral roll checks, and develop and deliver training, including equality training around the legal duty to not discriminate.
The action plan is enforceable in court under section 22 of the Equality Act 2006, with criminal sanctions for failure to comply, the watchdog said.
Baroness Kishwer Falkner, chairwoman of the EHRC, said: “Our investigation into Pontins uncovered flagrant breaches of the Equality Act 2010.
“Their business practices demonstrated shocking overt race discrimination towards Irish Travellers and there was a culture of denial.
“We remain deeply concerned about these discriminatory practices. They were instigated and supported by senior managers and their leadership failed to take any action or accept corporate responsibility.
“Such unlawful and discriminatory behaviour is completely unacceptable, and it must never be tolerated.”
Mr McDonagh said: “It is deeply saddening that Irish Traveller people have become so used to hate and prejudice that the Pontins ‘blacklist’ did not come as a surprise.
“Whilst we are certain that Pontins are not the only ones operating such discriminatory policies, we welcome the EHRC’s investigation and commend the whistleblower’s principled stance.
“Everyone deserves to live free from hate and prejudice.”
A spokesperson for Pontins said: “We are in the process of reviewing the unlawful act notice and investigation report from the Equality and Human Rights Commission.
“The specific incidents reported by the EHRC are historic issues, pre-dating 2018.
“The call centre where the incidents took place has now closed and the majority of the staff involved have now left Pontins.
“We apologise to all who may have been affected. Pontins is committed to ensuring ongoing compliance with the Equality Act 2010.”
