Mrs K English v Lancashire County Council — 2023

At a public preliminary hearing, the Tribunal considered the claimant's employment status and related time limit issues. It found that she was not employed under a global or umbrella contract: there was no obligation on the respondent to offer a minimum amount of work and no obligation on the claimant to accept work offered, and other factors such as holiday arrangements, team meeting attendance, payment only for hours worked, and freedom to work elsewhere were inconsistent with an umbrella contract of employment.

The Tribunal found that, at least while doing Bikeability work, the claimant was employed under a series of individual contracts of employment. Continuity of service was preserved between those contracts from 2009 until July 2021 by temporary cessations of work, including the period affected by Covid-19. Once the respondent decided not to continue Bikeability work internally after July 2021, continuity was no longer preserved, and the claimant's employment ended on 16 July 2021.

The unfair dismissal and breach of contract complaints were presented outside the applicable time limits, and the Tribunal found it had no jurisdiction to consider them. A different time limit applied to the statutory redundancy payment complaint; although no relevant step was taken within the initial six-month period, steps were taken within the following six months and the Tribunal found it just and equitable that the claimant should not be deprived of any statutory redundancy payment entitlement if she otherwise met the requirements. The holiday pay complaint was withdrawn.