Westminster City Council has apologised after a tribunal found the borough had discriminated against social worker Rachel Meade following complaints about her gender critical beliefs.

Meade faced disciplinary action after Social Work England received complaints that she had shared content on social media that was offensive to the transgender community.

The regulator found Meade had ‘engaged in a pattern of discriminatory behaviour which persisted over an extended period’ and her actions ‘could be perceived to be derogatory and potentially discriminatory to members of the transgender community’.

Westminster City Council subsequently suspended Meade and started a disciplinary investigation.

An employment tribunal has now concluded that Meade’s posts fell ‘within her protected rights for freedom of thought and freedom to manifest her beliefs’ under the Equality Act 2010.

A council spokesperson said the local authority accepted the findings of the tribunal and apologised.

‘As recent landmark cases have shown and the tribunal noted, the issues and policy making involving gender recognition and rights is a fast-evolving area,’ they said.

‘We will be carefully studying the points made in the judgement and considering what changes we need to make at Westminster City Council to ensure the best balance we can to support our staff, service users and our partners.’

In a statement on a crowd-funder page, Meade said: ‘The judgement has landed and I am vindicated! My employer, Westminster City Council and my professional regulator, Social Work England, were wrong to have sanctioned me for expressing my legitimate views around sex and gender.

‘It’s been a very difficult and harrowing three years for me and my family.’

Colum Conway, chief executive of Social Work England, said: ‘Following the Judgment, all parties have the opportunity to consider the decision and their options. As such, we do not intend to provide further comment at this time.’