The U.K. Supreme Court declined to hear the appeal of Farmor’s School, a secondary school that fired a Christian school counselor after she expressed her views on teaching gender ideology to children.
Kristie Higgs was a pastoral assistant, a position comparable to a school counselor in the U.S., at Farmor’s School in Fairford, Gloucestershire, for seven years before her termination. She was vindicated on Feb. 12, when the U.K. Court of Appeals ruled that her 2019 dismal was “unlawful discrimination on the ground of religion or belief” and violated the Equality Act, a U.K. law protecting individuals from discrimination in the workplace. Christian Legal Centre (CLC), which represented Higgs in the case, called the win “groundbreaking.”
Reacting to the Supreme Court’s refusal to hear the case, Higgs expressed her relief.
“I am relieved and grateful to the Supreme Court for this common-sense decision,” Higgs said in a CLC press release. “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. Expressing biblical truth is not discriminatory. It is an expression of love and of light.”
Higgs had expressed her views on gender ideology after discovering that the Church of England primary school her son attended planned to use a compulsory sex education program to teach pro-LGBTQ content to her son. On her private Facebook account, Higgs raised awareness of the increase of gender ideology permeating children’s books in American schools. She also posted a petition link that stated “Uphold the right of parents to have children educated in line with their religious beliefs. Stop supporting LGBT indoctrination.”
Although her son attended a school different than the institution Higgs worked for, a Facebook friend complained to Farmor’s School about her post. The school interrogated Higgs for six hours, during which she was compared to a “pro-Nazi right-wing extremist.” After a period of suspension, she was fired for “gross misconduct.” Higgs then filed suit against the school.
An Employment Tribunal ruled in 2020 that her Christian faith was a protected characteristic. However, the tribunal ruled that her firing did not violate law. The ruling was overturned in 2023 by the Employment Appeal Tribunal. The case went to the U.K. Court of Appeal, which ruled in Higgs’ favor.
Andrea Williams, chief executive of the Christian Legal Centre, welcomed the decisive closure to the case brought by the Supreme Court’s decision on Monday.
“The Court of Appeal ruling, now unequivocally upheld, powerfully demonstrated that the foundational Christian principles of free speech and religious liberty are not yet extinguished from English law,” Williams said. “The resolution of Kristie’s case establishes a critical legal precedent that will resonate for many years to come, protecting the right to express Christian beliefs without fear of reprisal. The Court of Appeal confirmed, loud and clear, that ideological censorship in the workplace, particularly against sincerely held Christian convictions, is illegal.”
Higgs also recognized the authority the decision sets for future cases.
“Today’s judgment is as important for free speech as it is for freedom of religion,” Higgs said. “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.”
