Social club pays out £35k in '˜sexism' row with three female members

Irene James, Amanda Mitchell and Ellen Whiteley were awarded £3,000 each in an out-of-court settlement after launching legal action against Tyldesley Conservative Club in Blackpool.

The group say they had been unfairly blocked from serving on the club’s committee.

Ms James, 67, also claims she was told: “You’re as welcome at this club as a turd at a wedding.”

Speaking after the landmark win, she said: “It was never about the money, we just wanted an apology and for them to say that they did wrong.

“Before all of this we had to behave like Stepford Wives. It’s fine if you toe the line but they don’t like it if you speak out.

“They want you at home making food and behaving like women. Some of the women who go in there are all downtrodden - we’re not like that.

“We will not be silenced, we’ll fight for our rights and we’ll apply again to join the committee this year.”

The trio claim male members were rallied to put themselves forward to stop the them being appointed.

Retired nurse Ms James added: “I heard one member making sexist remarks and overheard him say he’d found a loophole to get the women’s names removed from the list.

“Most members are not talking to us now. I won a raffle and someone shouted ‘’haven’t you taken enough out of this club?’’

“We are going against the grain and are the modern day suffragettes.”

Ms James put herself forward for the committee in 2014 but was ‘encouraged’ to withdraw on the basis she had not been a member long enough. She was told to try again in 2015.

But when the trio went to apply a year later her partner, Stephen Farley, was informed ‘women had no right putting their names on the list’.

The friends wrote to the club claiming discrimination. They say they were then treated with contempt and subjected to a campaign of harassment and sexism.

Ms James said: “The committee told members about the letters we’d been sending. It was outrageous. They were private.

“Members were making comments at us. I was also called a witch. It was relentless.’

In November 2015, the committee voted by majority that women could not serve on it. Then 10 minutes before the annual meeting, the women’s names were removed from the list ofcandidates and an all male committee was elected.

The group claimed male members were rallied to put themselves forward to stop them being appointed to the committee and abused them when they stood up for themselves

Ms James said: “It’s nonsense. They just didn’t want us because we were female.”

Ms Mitchell said a male member called her a “cow” when they were drinking with pals at the club.

In January last year, the women brought a Manchester County Court case for sex discrimination under the 2010 Equality Act.

Two weeks ago the club acknowledged it acted unlawfully and agreed to pay £9,000 damages plus £26,000 legal fees.

Tim Fielding, solicitor and director at Barker Booth and Eastwood, said: “We believe this was the first case brought under the Equality Act against a private members club.

“It is outrageous that certain individuals and the committee of a members club still have a sexist and outdated attitude to women that would not be tolerated in any other business.”

When The Gazette contacted the club for a comment, we were told we would have to speak to the secretary by an employee who refused to provide the secretary’s details and then put the phone down.