S Newton v Country Court Care Homes 2 Limited — 2021

The claimant brought a single claim for unfair dismissal arising from her summary dismissal on 19 March 2021. She had been employed as a care assistant at Marling Court Care Home since October 1998 and had transferred to the respondent under TUPE. The allegation investigated was that on 19 February 2021 she went into resident D’s room, pulled the call bell out of reach and threatened to hit the resident.

The tribunal found that the dismissing officer, Cadence Azad, genuinely believed the claimant was guilty of misconduct. That belief was based on resident D’s account, which was repeated to management during the investigation, the claimant’s own account, and the care notes made by the claimant on the night in question. The tribunal accepted that there were reasonable grounds for the belief and did not accept that the resident’s memory difficulties made it unreasonable to rely on her account in context.

The tribunal also found that the respondent carried out a reasonable investigation and acted in a procedurally fair manner. Donna Baker interviewed the claimant and relevant witnesses, including resident D, and the claimant was given a disciplinary hearing with a companion. The tribunal held that the process complied with the respondent’s disciplinary procedure and the ACAS Code. The erroneous payslip in April 2021 did not make the dismissal process unfair because the pay issue was corrected before payment was due, and the claimant later withdrew her appeal.

On sanction, the tribunal held that dismissal fell within the range of reasonable responses. It took account of the claimant’s long service and clean record, but also the nature of the finding, the respondent’s gross misconduct policy, and the fact that the role involved working with vulnerable adults. The unfair dismissal claim was therefore dismissed. No remedy was awarded.