English Christian Teacher Dismissed After Saying She Is Pro-Life Heads to February Tribunal
Anita Meston says she briefly answered a student's question in class. The trust that runs her former school says it applies a clear staff code of conduct.
See where this is ›WASHINGTON, England —
Anita Meston, a 63-year-old Christian teacher with 28 years of experience, is suing Biddick Academy, a state school in Washington, Sunderland, for discrimination after she was dismissed for answering students' questions about her beliefs. The Alabama Baptist reported Oct. 28 that an employment tribunal is set for February. A preliminary hearing had been scheduled for Oct. 16, Alliance Defending Freedom, which is supporting her, said earlier this month.
See where this is ›According to the legal group, Meston was covering a Year 8 history lesson on the 1945 bombing of Dresden in March 2025 when a student asked whether she was pro-abortion. She answered that she was pro-life and a Christian and mentioned women she knew who regretted abortions. When a student disagreed, she replied, “fair enough.” Asked about other subjects, she said she was pro-Israel and lamented the situation of innocent people in Gaza, then returned to the lesson.
The group says the headteacher called her to a meeting the next day, told her a complaint had been made and that she could not give personal views in class, and said her contract would be terminated. Meston had joined the school in October 2024, mainly teaching French, and had worked there full-time as a supply teacher for about six months. Alliance Defending Freedom says her contract had been renewed the week before.
“I do not believe it is a teacher's role to impose beliefs unrelated to the lesson in the classroom,” Meston said in the group's statement. “What happened to me is nothing short of censorship, and this precedent cannot be allowed to stand.” Jeremiah Igunnubole, the group's London-based legal counsel, said, “The law protects all employees from discriminatory treatment.”
The North East Learning Trust, which operates the academy, told Christian Today it could not comment on the individual case but that “we have a clear staff code of conduct, which is consistently applied.” The Alabama Baptist reported that a petition backing Meston drew 21,000 signatures in less than a week.
What we don't know yet: The account of the lesson and the meeting comes from Meston and Alliance Defending Freedom, and Watchman News has not independently confirmed it. The sources do not give the exact February date or the tribunal's location, the outcome of the Oct. 16 hearing, or the school's own account of what happened in the classroom.
