Dr Susan Gilby was advised by arch.law and Old Square Chambers
A former NHS chief executive, Dr Susan Gilby, has won her unfair dismissal case against Countess of Chester NHS Foundation Trust and its chair Ian Haythornthwaite. Dr Gilby was forced out of her role after whistleblowing to both the Trust and NHS England in 2022 about the ‘confrontational and aggressive behaviour’ of the Trust chair.
A tribunal [*] found that Ian Haythornthwaite, who has subsequently resigned, led a coordinated effort to remove her, with senior leaders deleting key documents to cover up their actions. The case involved unfair dismissal, protected disclosure, whistleblowing and bullying and harassment in the workplace. The judgement is available here.
Employment Judge Shotter delivered a damning judgment on 13 February 2025 exposing a coordinated effort to remove Dr Gilby as CEO as she approached her fourth year in the role. The Tribunal found that “Project Countess”led by Haythornthwaite, with chief people officer Nicola Price and non-executive directors Ken Gill (who serves as non-executive chair of the Legal Aid Agency’s Audit and Risk Assurance Committee (ARAC) and is an LAA board member) and Ros Fallon – was designed to fabricate criticisms of Dr Gilby’s performance and integrity to justify her removal while protecting the chair’s position.
The judgment also revealed that key documents crucial to Dr Gilby’s defence were deliberately deleted or destroyed, further obstructing her ability to challenge the baseless allegations. Witness evidence from those involved was repeatedly deemed ‘not credible’ with the Tribunal concluding that the group sought to keep hidden Dr Gilby’s excellent performance and paint a different picture from the one that existed, obscuring the reality.”
A culture of fear and governance failures
The ruling exposed serious governance failures, revealing that senior figures prioritised personal agendas over ethical leadership. Haythornthwaite, a former BBC accountant, sought to intervene in operational matters beyond his remit, adopting an “extremely and unnecessarily aggressive” approach, which left staff frightened.
Dr Gilby’s legal team highlighted the wider implications for NHS governance and accountability. Ian Radford, who acted for Dr Gilby, said:
“The tribunal’s findings expose a serious failure in governance at the Trust, with senior figures prioritising personal criticism over constructive leadership. The directors and governors tasked with overseeing the actions of those senior figures signally failed to monitor them adequately; failed to prevent serious wrongs from being committed; and later failed to take any meaningful steps to right those wrongs It is disappointing that even now the Trust still has not offered an apology to Dr Gilby for the wrongdoings committed in its name.”
The role of HR in enabling misconduct
The tribunal also found that HR processes failed to prevent unacceptable conduct, enabling a culture where misconduct could thrive. Robyn Barron, solicitor at arch.law, commented:
“This case underscores the importance of HR professionals acting impartially and following proper procedures to prevent unacceptable conduct from going unchecked. Unfortunately, that did not happen here and I urge all involved in HR to read this judgment carefully.”
A victory for whistleblowers
Dr Gilby’s case highlights the ongoing challenges faced by NHS professionals who speak out. She described her experience as “nothing short of torture at times”, stating:
“My career has been taken from me with no justification, and the financial losses we have suffered are significant. However, I was not prepared to compromise my integrity, so I put my faith in the judicial system. The destruction of evidence by trust officers to cover up wrongdoing is particularly shocking. The time for these behaviours to be acceptable within the NHS is over.”
The tribunal’s decision serves as a stark warning to NHS leadership—accountability and professionalism must be at the heart of healthcare management.
The team at arch.law was led by Ian Radford and Robyn Barron and assisted by Jo Jones, Barbara Kranjcec, Issy Chang and Sally Marsden.
The Counsel team was Oliver Segal KC and Madeline Stanley of Old Square Chambers with assistance from Kelly Yu at 4 New Square.
[*] The tribunal was heard during November and December 2024 in Liverpool.
* Read the latest press release here: Countess of Chester NHS Trust agrees £1.4m settlement with former Chief Executive following tribunal ruling