In a statement following the Court of Appeal’s judgment, Mrs Higgs said: “In October 2018, I shared two private Facebook posts to raise awareness of the gender ideology that was going to be taught to young children in schools as part of statutory relationships and sex education.
“The Court of Appeal has confirmed, loud and clear, that ideological censorship at workplace is illegal, and any employer who tramples upon their employees’ right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion breaks the law of the land.” She continued: “This is also a victory for the many others who went before Kristie, such as Victoria Wasteney and, the late Richard Page, who were also dismissed for their Christian beliefs in the years past, and sought justice in vain.”.
Lord Justice Underhill, sitting with Lord Justice Bean and Lady Justice Falk, said: “In the present case the claimant, who was employed in a secondary school, had posted messages, mostly quoted from other sources, objecting to Government policy on sex education in primary schools because of its promotion of ‘gender fluidity’ and its equation of same-sex marriage with marriage between a man and a woman.
“The Court of Appeal has now set a clear standard to protect people like me, and the countless other Christians in this nation, to express their beliefs without fear of losing their jobs.” Supporters of Mrs Higgs, who had gathered outside the Royal Courts of Justice, sang Amazing Grace and other hymns outside the building after she read her statement.
The mother-of-two challenged a June 2023 Employment Appeal Tribunal judgment, which ruled in her favour but sent the case back to an employment tribunal for a fresh decision over whether her dismissal was lawful, which her lawyers told the Court of Appeal was “unnecessary”.
