Mr G Westwell v East of England Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust — 2026

The claimant applied for a 999 call handler role and received a conditional offer subject to checks including positive references and a sufficient DBS. The respondent accepted that the claimant was disabled within the meaning of the Equality Act 2010. The offer was withdrawn after the respondent considered his conviction, negative references, his explanations, medical material, occupational health evidence, and matters arising during the application process.

The tribunal found that the reasonable adjustments and indirect discrimination claims, both based on the respondent's practice of not further investigating unsatisfactory references, did not succeed. It found that the claimant had not shown the asserted disadvantage from the practice; in any event, the respondent's conduct was justified by its duty of care to vulnerable 999 callers and staff, and the decision to withdraw the offer was proportionate.

For the discrimination arising from disability claim, the tribunal did not accept that the claimant had an inability to articulate himself under pressure or that this arose from disability. If that conclusion was wrong, it found the treatment justified because the respondent had a legitimate aim of employing people able to fulfil the requirements of a pressure-based public service role.