Case 2412076/2023 · Employment Tribunal

Miss H Bell v Carpenters Limited HELD AT: Liverpool — 2025

Case reference: 2412076/2023
Decision date: 20 March 2025
Jurisdiction: England & Wales
Judge: Employment Judge Johnson REPRESENTATION

Indexed: 23 May 2026

Parties

2 named

Claimant

Miss H Bell

Respondent

Carpenters Limited HELD AT: Liverpool

Key findings

Tribunal's reasoning

Miss Bell had been employed by Carpenters Limited since 22 August 2005 and returned from furlough on 23 July 2021 into her Legal Training Manager role. The tribunal accepted that her role changed in that she no longer managed a team in the same way as before, but found that this reflected changed business needs, the departure of a team member, and concerns about her management style. It also found that she continued in the role for a further two years, with unchanged pay, and effectively acquiesced in the change.

The tribunal accepted that Miss Bell raised repeated concerns about workload, administrative support, and resources between 2021 and 2023, including a detailed note in May 2022 and a proposal sent on 1 June 2023 seeking more support. It found that Carpenters did provide some support, including an administrative assistant and assistance from Jamie O'Rourke, and that the respondent's directions that pay concerns be raised with Mr Norbury as head of department rather than HR or the board were proper within the company's pay review process. It also found that Mr Norbury held only one face-to-face review meeting in the relevant period, with the rest remote, but that Miss Bell was largely content with that arrangement.

The resignation issue turned on the Teams meeting on 3 August 2023. The tribunal found that Mr Norbury was not questioning her performance as a disciplinary matter and was instead asking for further information, including a time-and-motion exercise, so that her resource proposal could be assessed. It held that this was a reasonable step, not an obstructive or undermining one, and that the conduct at that meeting did not amount singly or cumulatively to a fundamental breach. Miss Bell's later email on 3 August 2023 was an unequivocal resignation, but the tribunal held that the respondent's later acceptance of that resignation did not cause the resignation and could not found a constructive dismissal claim. The complaint was therefore not well founded and failed.

Claims and outcomes

1 finding recorded

Claim type	Issue or finding	Outcome	Protected characteristic	Award
Constructive dismissal	The claimant pursued constructive unfair dismissal at the final hearing. The tribunal found that she resigned on 3 August 2023, but the respondent's conduct did not amount to a fundamental breach of contract or a breach of the implied term of trust and confidence. The separate wrongful dismissal/breach of contract complaint was not pursued at the final hearing after notice pay had been paid.	Dismissed	—	—

Legal tests applied

8 references

Official outcome judgment PDF

Gov.uk primary record

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