Mrs Caroline Houston v The Board of Management of Glasgow Clyde College — 2023

This was a preliminary disability-status hearing in Mrs Caroline Houston's case against the Board of Management of Glasgow Clyde College. The tribunal heard only from the claimant and found her to be a credible and reliable witness. It accepted that she had been employed as a lecturer since 2006 and that, from October 2022, she experienced shingles affecting her left eye and head, followed by endocarditis after a cannula site became infected.

The tribunal held that the claimant was disabled within s6 Equality Act 2010 in respect of shingles. Although the extreme symptoms had eased by the alleged discrimination period, it found continuing pain, itchiness, facial nerves, blurred vision on strain, and effects on mood and physical activity. It concluded that these effects were substantial and long-term, applying the statutory definition, the schedule 1 provisions, and the approach in Goodwin, J v DLA Piper, McNicol, Walker, SCA Packaging and McDougall.

The tribunal also held that the claimant was disabled in respect of endocarditis. It accepted her evidence that the endocarditis caused damage to her heart valves, resulting in shortness of breath, tiredness and reduced mobility, and found that these effects were substantial and likely to last longer than 12 months. The tribunal noted that the medical records covered the period from 5 October 2022 to 20 September 2023, showed the symptoms continuing, and did not indicate any likely improvement.

At the end of the hearing the tribunal granted the claimant's application to amend her Equality Act specification. It also recorded case-management observations for finalising the list of issues and listing the final hearing. No substantive liability decision or remedy award was made in this judgment.