The dismissal of a Christian teaching assistant for sharing her concerns about extreme sex ed materials in her son’s school was unlawful, the Court of Appeal has ruled.
Lord Justice Underhill said the decision to sack Mrs Kristie Higgs for expressing her views to friends on social media about the controversial ‘No Outsiders’ programme “constituted unlawful discrimination on the ground of religion and belief”.
In 2019, Farmor’s School in Fairford, Gloucestershire, argued that Mrs Higgs’ comments on her personal Facebook page could damage its reputation and dismissed her for gross misconduct.Disciplinary panel
Mrs Higgs’ first post focused on a Relationships and Sex Education petition, while the second was linked to an article on pro-LGBT children’s books.
An anonymous complaint to her secondary school employer prompted a disciplinary panel to consider the case.
Farmor’s decided that she should be dismissed – despite having an exemplary record – on grounds including “illegal discrimination”.
She was accused of “serious inappropriate use of social media”, and “online comments that could bring the school into disrepute and damage the reputation of the school”.
After a six-year battle, Mrs Higgs gave “praise, glory and honour” to God for the decision.