Help me take my disability discrimination case to tribunal

It took more out of me to ask for changes than to do the job itself.

My name is Caroline. I'm autistic, diagnosed as an adult. I had a job I was good at and didn't want to leave, but doing it well came at a real cost to my health. I asked for changes so I could keep doing the job without paying that cost. What happened after that is now the subject of the claims my former employer denies. The tribunal will decide the case, on the evidence, and I won't argue it here.

No one else steps in to sort this out for you. What you're promised on paper means nothing if you can't afford to make it real. So I'm doing something about it, and not only for me.

What the £2,500 pays for

At an Employment Tribunal each side normally pays its own legal costs, win or lose, so like many people bringing these claims, I represent myself. £2,500 buys expert help at the points where a case is won or lost:

I've already organised hundreds of documents and taught myself the process to get this far. I'm asking for help so that, at the points that matter most, I'm not doing it alone. Whatever happens, this money buys real help where it counts, and I'll post updates here on how the money is used.

If support goes past the target

A claim that reaches a full hearing can cost £20,000 or more. A hearing is days of fast argument and cross-examination, hard for anyone and harder still while representing yourself. Anything above £2,500 goes towards a barrister for the hearing itself, so someone can make the legal arguments while I focus on my evidence.

Donations are gifts. They give no one a say in the case, access to private information, or a share of any outcome. There will be times, especially around hearings, when I can't post updates or answer questions about the case. If it ends early, I'll stop taking donations, update this page, and refund anything unspent through GoFundMe.

What my case can and can't do

One case won't fix the system, and it won't change the law. I'm not pretending it will. Here is what it does do:

None of that is dramatic. It's a fraction of a change. But a fraction is honestly how this moves, and I'd rather add mine than let it pass. One case won't fix the system. But systems move one case at a time.

Bigger than my case

I'm far from the only person who's needed something to change at work: extra breaks to manage pain or medication, a phased return after illness, working from home on the bad days, time off for appointments.

Asking should be simple, but it can mean forms, delays, and justifying yourself again and again, until asking starts to feel like the problem. It's the same for anyone with a long-term health condition, seen or unseen.

These changes are not favours. The law expects employers to make them. But a right you can't afford to enforce becomes a privilege.

Ordinary people bringing ordinary claims are the reason employers can't simply ignore that.

How you can help

Donate if you can. Even £5 genuinely counts, and I'm grateful for it.

If you do one thing - send this page to one person who would care.

A personal WhatsApp, text or email does more than any public post.

If you share it on social media, don't just post the link: add a line about how you know me, or why this matters to you. One line from you is worth more than anything I can write here. The share button does the rest, or copy the link: gofund.me/edb2a862e

A note on sharing: your own feed, story or a direct message is perfect. Please don't post the link into groups or forums, as most don't allow fundraisers. One share in your own words does more than ten pasted ones.

One thing I'll ask: please don't try to identify or contact anyone involved, or post names or speculation online. Comments here are for messages of support; I can't answer questions about the case. It gets decided in a tribunal, on the evidence.

Thank you for reading, and for anything you can do.

Caroline