"Darlington Nurses" vs County Durham and Darlington NHS Trust Tribunal Thread 6

[ThreeWordHarpy]

Thread 1, 7-Oct to 23-Oct; pre-hearing discussion, KD (day 1 of evidence) and BH (day 2).
Thread 2, 23-Oct to 28-Oct; BH (day 2), CH, JP, MG (day 3&4), TH, SS, ST, LL (day 4), JS, AT (day 5)
Thread 3, 28-Oct to 29-Oct; AT (day 5&6), TA (day 6&7)
Thread 4, 29-Oct to 31-Oct; TA, AM (day 7) JB (day 8)
Thread 5, 31-Oct to 04-Nov; JB (day 8), SW, CG, JR (day 9)

Five nurses working at Darlington Memorial Hospital have filed a legal case suing their employer, an NHS trust, for sexual harassment and sex discrimination. The nurses object to sharing the women’s changing facilities with a male colleague, Rose, who identifies as female. The hearing started on October 20th, with evidence starting on October 22nd and is scheduled to last 3 weeks. To view the hearing online requests for access had to be made by October 17th. The hearing is being live tweeted by Tribunal Tweets who have background to this case on their substack. An alternative to X is to use Nitter: nitter.net/tribunaltweets or nitter.poast.org/tribunaltweets

The Judge made clear at the start of the public hearing on Day 1 that only TT or press have permission to tweet. If online observers see/hear something in the court that isn’t reported by TT, we don’t mention it until the next time there’s a break. This is a very cautious approach to avoid any accusations of “live reporting” on MN. Commentary on the content of TT tweets is fine as soon as they’re posted on X.

Key people:
C/Ns - Claimants, the Darlington nurses
R/T/Trust - Respondent, County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust
J/EJ – Judge/Employment Judge Seamus Sweeney
NF - Niazi Fetto KC, barrister for claimants
SC - Simon Cheetham, KC, barrister for respondents
RH - Rose Henderson, trans identifying nurse
CG – Clare Gregory, NHS ward manager
SW - Sue Williams, NHS Trust HR
KD – Karen Danson, first claimant to give evidence.
BH – Bethany Hutchison, claimant
AH – Alistair Hutchison, husband of Bethany
CH – Carly Hoy, claimant
JP – Jane Peveller, claimant
MG – Mary Anne (aka Annice) Grundy, claimant
TH – Tracy Hooper, claimant
SS – Siobhan Sinclair, witness for the claimants, retired from Trust
ST – Sharron Trevarrow, witness for the claimants, retired from Trust, former housekeeper and wellbeing officer
LL – Lisa Lockey, claimant
JP – Professor Jo Phoenix, expert witness
JS – Jane Shields, witness for the claimants
AT - Andrew Thacker, NHS trust Head of HR
TA – Tracy Atkinson, NHS trust HR.
AM – Andrew Moore, NHS Head of Workforce Experience
JB – Jillian Bailey, NHS Workforce Experience Manager
AT – Anna Telfer, NHS Deputy Director of Nursing
SW – Sandra Watson, Matron for General and Elective Surgery
JR – Jodie Robinson, manager of Rose

My inner snarky pedant would have replied "Yes they have holes - it's how I get my legs and arse into them"

Lying about everything except the holey boxers, don't forget!

@ickky Totally agree how noticeable it is but also wanted to say that the phrasing "large of nork" had me howling

TT

NF: Ward meeting DSU Feb2024. p294.
NF: Ms Gregory asks about you changing, multiple answers, many saying you look at everyone
RH: Already said. I stare at my locker or use a cubicle.

NF [ref p287]
NF: Ms Corrie says she had top off and you were looking. You know her?
RH: No
NF: You again say this is false?
RH: Yes

The mask is slipping now. His replies are a bit arsey

Is all the testimony that NF is reading out from Darlington investigations in '24? So many complaints...and they did NOTHING?

Arguably this is how the Trust have let Rose down. They've left him wide open to these accusations. He's fortunate that women are so rarely believed 😠

Even when a man doesn't consciously think he's giving a woman 'the once over', she may recieve his look in that way - for the reason that his 'otherness' and her inherent sense of the dignity and privacy of her sex don't align - in the spaces in which women and girls are in a state of undress. This is one of the reasons that we have such spaces.

A male narcissist is only thinking about his own needs and responses and is completely oblivious as to what a woman may be thinking and feeling.

From TT, Rose now seems to have settled into "I don't know who these women are but they're all lying" as a default response.

Horrifying isn't it.

TT

NF: [ref p26, another WS]
NF: pls read para98-99. Ms Hutchison WS
NF: Do you know Vivienne Robinson?
RH: No. And the allegation is false.
NF: Do you remember any convo with [missed]
RH: No

I would love Netto to ask

Why do you always get changed facing your locker or in a cubicle.

Women use the room freely.

Why are you making a show of being covered and hiding yourself if you are a woman?

And if you’re not a woman why are you in the changing room.

Upton made much of his he always faced his locker as well.

I think both men are lying.

TT

NF [ref p30] Ms Danson WS
NF: Account of encounter 2023.
NF: Says, alone in CR with you
RH: Don't recall ever being alone with her in CR
NF: She says, scrub top and boxers - consistent with your routine?
RH: Yes

NF: She says you asked 3 times, are you not getting changed yet. You have no recolletion?
RH: No. No recollection of her at all.
NF: She descibes her reaction - crying and shaking
RH: I have read that yes.

NF: And you say, this is false?
RH: This encounter never occurred.

After reading this account, I may regret eating five mini stollen. I have had quite a few hospital appointments over the past couple of years and my wife always asks me if I have decent socks and underpants on.

From TT:
RH: Already said. I stare at my locker or use a cubicle.

Why would you want to use a facility where you were so constricted in your movements?

This is so much worse than I thought it was ☹️🤬

Did not know Netto had a mascot. The tribunal taking place in my imagination has taken a sudden turn.

TT

NF: When were you first made aware of the details of all this?
RH: Can't remember exactly

It's quite upsetting to read (by accident as they've not been released) all these excerpts from witness statements from so many distressed women all saying the same thing.

And their employer did nothing, the atmosphere was hostile to them as senior managers supported the 1 man .And they couldn't just walk out of their jobs as they need to pay for life, from food to rent/ mortgage etc. Truly awful.

I mean, for fuck's sake. If it was just one woman, maybe. But this is a relentless, never-ending litany of testimony!

edited to add an exclamation mark, because seriously, mate?

Break 10 mins

TT

NF: [ref p 1015] NF: Seems to have been raised with you during i/x Nov 24? Asks about what KD had said, you say you don't know who she is. You didn't just say no, that's not true. Why not?
RH: Cd be, bcs I'd just come off night shift b4 meeting. But answer is true - didn't know KD at the time

I think NF is being quite theatrical in naming each woman, and obliging Rose to say each woman is a liar.