The parents of a student at Bristol University who took her own life rather than face giving a presentation to scores of other students have criticised university chiefs for starting the process of appealing against a court ruling which awarded them £50,000 damages.
And Natasha Abrahart’s parents said the university still hasn’t met them to discuss the breaches in law found by the judge in the case which shocked the academic world back in May.
Bristol University have told Bristol Live they have not decided whether they will be appealing against the verdict in the case - but have asked for permission to appeal to keep their options open if they do decide to.
Read more: Bristol University breached law in Natasha Abrahart suicide case, judge rules
At the time of the judgement in May, Bristol University said it would be considering the verdict in the case, and now they have applied for permission to appeal against the court ruling that it broke the Equality Act 2010 in the way it dealt with Natasha.
The 20-year-old took her own life back on the last day of April 2018, after suffering months of increased mental health problems. She had been diagnosed with chronic Social Anxiety Disorder and had been due to give a presentation on that day as part of her course, in front of dozens of fellow students and lecturers in a large lecture theatre.
Her parents took legal action against the University of Bristol for their role in Natasha’s death, and last month a senior judge at Bristol County Court found the university had breached the Equality Act for not making reasonable adjustments in the way it dealt with what was a diagnosed disability she was suffering from.
The judge in the case, Judge Alex Ralton, awarded Natasha’s parents more than £50,000 in damages and the ruling set a precedent for the way in which all universities deal with students with mental health conditions.
At the time, the university pointed out that the judge had not found the university was negligent, but had deemed the adjustments made by the university for Natasha’s condition were insufficient.
Responding to the judgement, the university said: “We cannot replicate the NHS but are committed to working with the NHS and other partners to improve services and ensure we are collectively providing the best possible support for students.
“Given the significant impact this decision could have on how all higher education providers support their students, we are reviewing the decision carefully, including whether to appeal. In light of that review, it would not be appropriate to comment further on the judgement at the present time,” they added.
Now, the university has sought permission to appeal the judgement. It remains to be seen if the university will, or even can, appeal. The appeal court will only allow the appeal if it deems it has a reasonable prospect of success or there is another compelling reason for the appeal to be heard.
A University of Bristol spokesperson told Bristol Live today, Monday, July 4: “We have not yet decided whether we will be appealing the judgement or not. Seeking permission to appeal means we can appeal if we eventually decide to do so.
“Given the significant impact last month’s judgement in relation to the death of Natasha Abrahart could have on how all higher education providers support their students, we continue to review the decision carefully, including whether to appeal.
“We are fully committed to working with our partners in the NHS, charities and across the higher education sector in a collaborative effort to ensure we are collectively providing the best possible support for students in their studies. This commitment means we are continually reviewing and improving the pastoral support offered to our students,” she added.
Robert and Margaret Abrahart, who said they brought the legal action against the university to force higher education institutions to do more to help students with mental health issues, said they were disappointed that rather than work with them to make improvements, the university continues to battle them.
“It’s been a month since we called on the university to sit down with us so we could help it make the changes needed to keep students safe,” said Robert, 66, a retired university lecturer. “We are deeply disappointed that the university is instead trying to re-run arguments which failed at trial,” he added.
Margaret, 60, a retired psychological wellbeing practitioner, added: “How much longer will we have to wait before the university apologises for what happened to Natasha? Even more importantly, how much longer is the university going to wait before implementing the lessons from Natasha’s death, which have been obvious for years now?
“At the trial the university couldn’t point to one meaningful change it had made to the systems which failed our daughter. It should be focusing on keeping students safe instead of dragging out this painful legal process,” she said.
The couple are being represented by Bristol lawyer Gus Silverman, from Irwin Mitchell. “Natasha’s family will now submit representations to the court opposing the university’s arguments, which closely follow the points already made at trial,” he said.
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