A Christian school worker who claimed she had been dismissed because of her religious beliefs after raising concerns over teaching young children about LGBTQ+ relationships has lost her case.
An employment tribunal ruled that Kristie Higgs had not lost her post because of her beliefs but because her secondary school in Gloucestershire genuinely thought she had committed gross misconduct.
Higgs, 44, was dismissed as a pastoral administrator and work experience manager by Farmor’s school in Fairford last year after sharing and commenting on social media posts about relationship education.
One of the posts, which were shared via her private account under her maiden name, raised concerns about plans to teach the No Outsiders programme at her son’s Church of England primary school. A second encouraged people to sign a petition on plans to make relationship education compulsory for young children. She was sacked after someone anonymously told the school about the posts.
Bristol employment tribunal rejected Higgs’s claims for discrimination and harassment. The tribunal ruled her dismissal “was the result of a genuine belief on the part of the school that she had committed gross misconduct”.
It added: “Although not stated as clearly or simply as this, the act of which we concluded Mrs Higgs was accused and eventually found guilty was posting items on Facebook that might reasonably lead people who read her posts to conclude that she was homophobic and transphobic. That behaviour, the school felt, had the potential for a negative impact in relation to various groups of people, namely pupils, parents, staff and the wider community.”
The tribunal agreed with the school’s position that it was concerned that readers of her Facebook posts would see them as homophobic and transphobic rather than as an expression of her Christian beliefs.
Higgs said she planned to appeal. She said: “I strongly maintain that I lost my job because of my Christian beliefs, beliefs which our society does not appear to tolerate or even understand any more. Sometimes I still have to pinch myself to believe that I lost the job I loved because of my Christian beliefs. It’s hard to believe that the school would take one anonymous complaint and escalate it to all this.
“Where was the school’s tolerance and kindness to me? Where was the school’s attempt to understand my point of view?”
In her statement to the tribunal, Higgs said: “I believe that God created mankind as ‘male and female’ and what he has created is good. He does not make mistakes. I therefore do not believe in the modern ideas of gender fluidity and transgenderism. I did not think much about this issue until it was brought up in my younger son’s primary school.
“I am aware that same-sex marriages are now recognised under UK law, but I believe that is contrary to God’s law, which only recognises marriages between one man and one woman.”
Andrea Williams, the chief executive of the Christian Legal Centre, which backed Higgs’s case, said: “This judgment should concern all of us who care about the freedom to be a Christian believer in the UK. It is clear no actual harm has come to the school’s reputation as a result of her posts but she has been sacked as if it had.”
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