Former Swindon Teacher Appeals Dismissal Over Student Pronouns

A former mathematics teacher at New College Swindon is challenging a ruling that upheld his dismissal after he refused to address a transgender student by their chosen name and pronouns. Kevin Lister was fired for gross misconduct in September 2022, and his appeal is being heard by an employment appeal tribunal in London. The case centers on whether the college unfairly dismissed Lister or discriminated against him because of his gender-critical beliefs.

The original employment tribunal ruled in 2024 that his dismissal was justified by the way he expressed those beliefs, which college staff characterized as bullying and harassment. During the appeal, Anna Loufti, representing Lister, argued that the teacher had been required to support the student's social transition despite his personal convictions. The hearing before Justice Mansfield is scheduled to conclude on Wednesday.

According to the college's representative, Jude Shepherd, Lister raised questions about parental support and whether the 17-year-old student had received counseling when asked to use the student's new name. However, Shepherd said he did not seek guidance from the school and instead declined to follow the student's request.

Shepherd also told the tribunal that Lister wrote the student's birth name, sometimes described as a deadname, on the classroom whiteboard in front of other students. She said he gestured toward the student rather than using the requested name and told the student they could participate in an all-female mathematics competition. Shepherd further alleged that Lister told the student they should not burden the National Health Service during the pandemic and would become a burden to their parents.

In public posts on X, Lister expressed opposition to using transgender students' preferred names, arguing that doing so supported the loss of their former identities. He compared using a preferred name to encouraging a person at risk of suicide to jump from a cliff. Other posts attributed to Lister described sexual orientation as a choice, comparing it to the decision to play golf. He also argued that same-sex relationships were not as valid as heterosexual relationships by definition.

At the appeal hearing, Loufti argued that the college had effectively required Lister to socially transition the student. She maintained that he could not comply because doing so would conflict with his beliefs. Loufti also challenged the college's policy requiring staff to use students' chosen names and pronouns.

She argued that the policy placed the rights of transgender people in conflict with those of people holding gender-critical views and said the college had failed to consider that tension adequately. The appeal follows the 2024 tribunal decision that found Lister had not been unfairly dismissed or discriminated against because of his beliefs. The appeal tribunal is considering his challenge to that ruling.