THE former chief executive of Bury Hospice has won her claim for unfair dismissal.

Jacqui Comber was suspended in February 2016 and sacked the following month, with the hospice citing an irreparable loss of confidence in her leadership.

After an employment tribunal, Judge Sherratt ruled in a reserved judgment that the method in which Mrs Comber was dismissed was unfair.

She could now receive a payout of up to £72,000 - but Bury Hospice said any money it has to pay out will come from insurance.

The exact wording in the hospice’s dismissal notice to Mrs Comber was that she was sacked because of the continued negative effect of the breakdown in working relationships with colleagues, and “some other substantial reason”.

The judge ruled that those reasons were only retrospectively laid out in a letter to Mrs Comber, outlining findings of an investigation into her leadership and conduct

The hospice’s board of trustees told Mrs Comber their decision to dismiss her was based on her handling of funding arrangements for Grace’s Place – the children’s hospice in Dumers Lane, Radcliffe; the naming of Grace’s Place; stakeholder and supporter concerns; and a lack of accountability.

But Judge Sherratt ruled that Bury Hospice had not satisfied him “that the reason for dismissal was some other substantial reason of a kind as to justify the dismissal of the claimant”.

Bury Hospice admitted in court that the dismissal was ‘proceedurally unfair’.

But the judge added: “Had this concession not been made then I would have found the dismissal unfair because [the hospice] has not satisfied me that [Mrs Comber] was dismissed for a potentially fair reason.

“In my judgment the phrase ‘some other substantial reason’ is a description of one of the categories of potentially fair reasons an employer can have to dismiss an employee but it is not of itself, without more, a reason.”

Bury Hospice maintained during proceedings that Mrs Comber’s leadership posed a threat to the charity’s reputation among stakeholders and supporters.

After the ruling, a spokesman for Bury Hospice said trustees acted in the best interests of the hospice by taking decisive action when they sacked Mrs Comber.

“All the costs of this case have been covered by Bury Hospice’s insurance and therefore no monies have been taken from the hospice’s fundraising activities,” added the spokesman.

“Bury Hospice is now recovering from a difficult period but, in the past year, positive steps have been taken to rebuild the trust of partner organisations, staff, volunteers and the Bury public.

“The hospice continues to deliver a high-quality service for the community in Bury and the dedicated care of the patients has remained unaffected by the management issues.

“We thank everyone for their continued support.”

Mrs Comber’s legal representatives were unavailable for comment.