Social worker’s £300k claim is rejected

A JUDGE has rejected a £300,000 damages claim by a social worker who said working excessive hours with violent and disruptive children forced her into early retirement on health grounds.

Mary Reynolds, 59, of Airdrie, alleged that assaults by youngsters were an everyday occurrence in a home run by North Lanarkshire Council, and that she was off work for a year because of anxiety and depression.

She was moved to a different home, but claimed the council reneged on an agreement that her working conditions would be better, and she suffered a relapse after only a few months.

North Lanarkshire Council denied Ms Reynolds’s allegations and asked Lord Brailsford at the Court of Session in Edinburgh to dismiss her case. Yesterday, Lord Brailsford upheld the council’s plea.