Shropshire Star

'Vendetta' fears over Shrewsbury woman's whistleblowing claim

A Shrewsbury businesswoman has accused the South Staffordshire and Shropshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust of carrying out a vendetta and victimising her for making whistleblowing allegations.

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The accusations were made by Jacqueline Boam, of Berwick, who was general manager of business development for the trust.

Mrs Boam, who was employed in the job for 26 years, has made her legal claims against the trust at Birmingham Employment Tribunal for unfair dismissal and detriment for making the whistleblowing allegations.

She accused the trust, in the public disclosure allegations, of management malpractices. She also made an official complaint about a leading trust member. The allegations were revealed as Mrs Boam applied at a tribunal preliminary hearing to include further allegations against the trust in her claims.

Full details of her whistleblowing allegations were not revealed as the tribunal was convened only to decide whether to include the additional allegations. The trust has denied the allegations and objected to them being included in Mrs Boam's existing claims.

It said extra witnesses would have to be contacted which could delay proceedings.

Tribunal judge Miss Sheila Woffenden described Mrs Boam as an intelligent and well-informed woman but told her she could not add the new allegations to her existing claims because they had been made too late.

"The new allegations are out of time because they should have been made within the tribunal's three-month deadline," said Miss Woffenden. "To add the new allegations could cause delays to the designated hearing, add costs and cause more witnesses to be brought in."

Miss Woffenden told Mrs Boam she could have sought legal and union advice to have included the additional allegations within the three-month deadline. She said Mrs Boam could still go ahead with her existing claims for unfair dismissal and detriment for making whistleblowing disclosures at a full tribunal hearing lasting six days this year.

Mrs Boam later declined to enlarge on her allegations about the management malpractices.

Greg Moores, for the trust, said: "We are aware of the complaints lodged at the employment tribunal by Jackie Boam, a former employee. We are dealing with the issue through normal legal channels and it would be inappropriate for us to comment at this stage."

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