Mr M Kershaw v First Choice Homes Oldham Limited — 2026

Employment Judge Thompson held that Mr M Kershaw's complaint of unfair dismissal under section 94 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 was well-founded. The complaint of breach of contract in relation to notice pay was also well-founded. The written judgment records the determinations and remedy; the reasons were given orally.

For unfair dismissal, the Tribunal awarded £18,500 as a basic award and £500 for loss of statutory rights. Losses totalling £43,215.22 comprised past and future loss of earnings and pension losses. The Tribunal reduced that amount by 25% for contributory fault, from £43,215.22 to £32,411.42, made no Polkey reduction, and applied a 10% uplift under section 207A of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 because First Choice Homes Oldham Limited unreasonably failed to comply with the ACAS Code of Practice on Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures 2015. This produced a compensatory award of £35,652.56. The notice-pay award was £5,223.51.

The Tribunal stated that the award was £59,925.97 before grossing up and £75,019.20 after grossing up, but limited compensation to a final total of £66,540.51. The Employment Protection (Recoupment of Benefit) Regulations 1996 applied: £22,954.80 was the prescribed element attributable to benefits received from October 2024 to November 2025, leaving £43,585.71 payable pending recoupment.