'Intent on revenge' | Teacher sacked by head over trade union involvement wins tribunal

An employment tribunal has awarded a senior teacher more than £370,000 after finding she was unfairly dismissed by a headteacher ‘intent on revenge’ for her trade union activities and subjected to a campaign of discrimination.

Carmen Wood-Hope, a teacher and trade union representative at The Friars Primary School in Salford, was subjected to a sustained campaign of mistreatment by Headteacher Michael Earnshaw, culminating in her dismissal in April 2021.

The Employment Tribunal, held in Manchester,found that Mr Earnshaw’s actions were driven by “personal animosity” and a desire to exact revenge following a series of disputes over union matters.

Ms Wood-Hope, who had been employed at the school since 2014, was known as an accomplished educator and had previously been awarded for her “highly competent” teaching. In 2017, she became the NEU representative for teaching staff, a role that placed her in direct opposition to Mr Earnshaw shortly after he took over as headteacher in 2018.