In person For the v Respondent — 2023

The claimant was employed as a Senior Social Media Specialist from 1 August 2022 to 6 January 2023. She alleged race, sex and disability discrimination arising from comments and feedback in September, October and November 2022, together with the termination of employment on 6 January 2023. The tribunal held that the complaints relating to acts before 21 December 2022 were out of time. It found no reasonable prospect of establishing that those incidents formed part of a course of conduct extending over time, and it refused to extend time on a just and equitable basis.

In reaching that conclusion, the tribunal accepted that the claimant had resigned on 30 November 2022 because of the alleged discrimination, had contacted ACAS on 20 March 2023, and had provided only scant and unclear evidence about why the claim was not presented within the primary time limit. It accepted that she had some health and personal circumstances, but found no cogent evidence that those matters prevented her from bringing a timely claim. The discrimination complaints based on the earlier acts were therefore struck out under Rule 37(1)(a).

On disability, the tribunal did not accept that the claimant was disabled at the relevant time by reason of anxiety/panic disorder, ADHD, dyslexia or clinical depression. It gave limited weight to the therapist evidence, and considered the medical evidence insufficient to show a long-term impairment in those respects. However, it accepted the Halycon assessment as supporting weaknesses in working memory, processing of phonological information and reading comprehension, and found that those weaknesses had a substantial and long-term adverse effect on normal day-to-day activities. The claimant was therefore found to be disabled within section 6 Equality Act 2010 on that basis.

The tribunal noted that the respondent accepted that the claimant's mother was a disabled person, so issue (4) did not require determination. The decision did not finally determine the merits of the remaining disability complaint concerning the 6 January 2023 termination or the breach of contract claim.