The U.K. Court of Appeals ruled in favor of Kristie Higgs, a Christian who was fired from her role as a school counselor after she expressed her concern about primary schools teaching transgender ideology to students. Christian Legal Centre (CLC), which represented her, called the win “groundbreaking.”
In 2019, Farmor’s School in Fairford, Gloucestershire, fired Higgs from her role as pastoral assistant, a role similar to a school counselor in the U.S, which she had held for seven years. The dismissal occurred after Higgs discovered that the Church of England primary school her son attended would be using a compulsory sex education program that teaches gender ideology to students as young as 4.
On her private Facebook account, she referenced the increase of children’s books with transgender ideology in American schools, writing, “This is happening in our primary schools now.” Her second post contained a petition link labeled “Uphold the right of parents to have children educated in line with their religious beliefs. Stop supporting LGBT indoctrination.” Neither post referenced the school her son attended.
One of Higgs’ Facebook friends discovered her post and filed a complaint to Farmor’s School. The school reacted by suspending Higgs and interrogating her for six hours, comparing her to a “pro-Nazi right-wing extremist” while saying she had no “absolute right” to express her beliefs freely.
In 2019, the school fired her on the grounds of “gross misconduct,” stating that she had committed “illegal discrimination” and “serious inappropriate use of social media” and had used “online comments that could bring the school into disrepute and damage the reputation of the school.”
In 2020, the court ruled that the nation’s Equality Act established that her religion is a “protected characteristic,” but that the dismissal was lawful. However, in 2023 the Employment Appeal Tribunal annulled the ruling and called for a fresh tribunal to reconsider the case.
On Feb. 12, the U.K. Court of Appeal ruled that “Claimant’s dismissal constituted unlawful discrimination on the ground of religion or belief” and that “The dismissal of an employee merely because they have expressed a religious or other protected belief to which the employer, or a third party with whom it wishes to protect its reputation, objects will constitute unlawful direct discrimination within the meaning of the Equality Act.”
Higgs was jubilant after the Court of Appeal ruling.
“I give all the praise, all the glory and honor to Elohim, my God, for it is by His grace and mercy that I stand here today,” Higgs said. “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. Expressing Biblical truth is not discriminatory. It is an expression of love and of light. Today’s judgment is as important for free speech as it is for freedom of religion.”
After her speech, supporters, standing outside the Royal Court of Justice, sang Amazing Grace and other hymns.
Andrea Williams, chief executive of the Christian Legal Centre, believes the ruling will affect similar cases in the future.
“Free speech and religious liberty are not yet extinguished from the English law,” Williams said. “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.”
