A Christian school worker, who lost her job after sharing posts criticising plans to teach about LGBT relationships in primary schools, has won her appeal battle over her dismissal.
After sharing Facebook posts criticising plans to teach about LGBT relationships in primary schools, Kristie Higgs lost her role as a pastoral administrator and work experience manager at Farmor’s School in Fairford, Gloucestershire, in 2019, reports the Mirror.
The mother-of-two challenged a June 2023 Employment Appeal Tribunal judgment, which ruled in her favour but sent the case back to an employment tribunal for a fresh decision over whether her dismissal was lawful, which her lawyers told the Court of Appeal was “unnecessary”.
In a judgment on Wednesday – the latest stage of her years-long legal battle – three judges ruled in her favour, finding that the decision to remit the case back to an employment tribunal was “unlawfully discriminatory”.
Lord Justice Underhill, sitting with Lord Justice Bean and Lady Justice Falk, said: “In the present case the claimant, who was employed in a secondary school, had posted messages, mostly quoted from other sources, objecting to Government policy on sex education in primary schools because of its promotion of ‘gender fluidity’ and its equation of same-sex marriage with marriage between a man and a woman.
“It was not in dispute… that the claimant’s beliefs that gender is binary and that same-sex marriage cannot be equated with marriage between a man and a woman are protected by the Equality Act.
“The school sought to justify her dismissal on the basis that the posts in question were intemperately expressed and included insulting references to the promoters of gender fluidity and ‘the LGBT crowd’ which were liable to damage the school’s reputation in the community: the posts had been reported by one parent and might be seen by others.
“However, neither the language of the posts nor the risk of reputational damage were capable of justifying the claimant’s dismissal in circumstances where she had not said anything of the kind at work or displayed any discriminatory attitudes in her treatment of pupils.”
Mrs Higgs, who was posting on Facebook under her maiden name, shared two posts in October 2018 to around 100 of her friends. In one Facebook post, Mrs Higgs urged people to sign an online petition against making relationships education mandatory. In another, she shared an article about the rise of transgender ideology in children’s books in American schools.
In a statement following the Court of Appeal’s judgment, Mrs Higgs said: “In October 2018, I shared two private Facebook posts to raise awareness of the gender ideology that was going to be taught to young children in schools as part of statutory relationships and sex education.
“Because of those posts, I lost my job. Today, after nearly seven years, the Court of Appeal has finally put that right. Expressing biblical Christian teaching on gender and sexuality may appear to be offensive to those who hold the opposite views, but as today’s judgment signals, Christians have a right to express their beliefs publicly.
“This is not just about me. Too many Christians have suffered discipline or marginalisation at their work because of their Christian faith.” She continued: “I pray that today will prove to be a landmark day for Christian freedoms and free speech. Christians have the right to express their beliefs on social media and at other non-work-related settings without fear of being punished by their employer.”
Mrs Higgs continued: “Today’s judgment is as important for free speech as it is for freedom of religion. Employers will no longer be able to rely on their theoretical fears of reputational damage or subjective concerns about causing offence to discipline employees for exercising their fundamental freedom to express their deeply held beliefs.
“The Court of Appeal has now set a clear standard to protect people like me, and the countless other Christians in this nation, to express their beliefs without fear of losing their jobs.” Supporters of Mrs Higgs, who had gathered outside the Royal Courts of Justice, sang Amazing Grace and other hymns outside the building after she read her statement.
Andrea Williams, chief executive of the Christian Legal Centre, which supported Mrs Higgs’ Court of Appeal case, said the judgment was a “great victory”. She said: “Free speech and religious liberty are not yet extinguished from the English law. The outcome of Kristie’s case sets an important legal precedent for many years to come.
“The Court of Appeal has confirmed, loud and clear, that ideological censorship at workplace is illegal, and any employer who tramples upon their employees’ right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion breaks the law of the land.” She continued: “This is also a victory for the many others who went before Kristie, such as Victoria Wasteney and, the late Richard Page, who were also dismissed for their Christian beliefs in the years past, and sought justice in vain.”
She added: “This decision proves that our work at the Christian Legal Centre in all those cases over all those years has not been in vain. For all those who stood with us through much darker days of our 16-year-old battle for freedom, it is now time to rejoice and give thanks to God.”
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