A WOMAN who was made redundant by Preston North End, just three days after burying her father, has been awarded thousands of pounds after an industrial tribunal found she had been unfairly dismissed.

Pat Elliott, pictured, had been PNE's assistant club secretary for almost a year when she was told she was surplus to requirements on December 1, 1998.

Club bosses claimed her role had disappeared following a restructuring operation within PNE, which coincided with the departure of ex-chief executive Peter Church and Kevin Tamati, manager of Lancashire Lynx, Preston's Rugby League team.

But at the recent tribunal PNE were found to have breached set procedure by failing to consult Pat before she was made redundant and failing to prove they had drawn up a list of possible applicants for redundancy.

They also failed to look for alternative employment for Pat within the club and could not prove that 50 per cent of her workload had vanished, as they had claimed at the time.

Pat has now banked a cheque for 'a considerable sum' - the exact amount she cannot disclose - and this week spoke of the devastating effects PNE's mismanagement had on the her life. She said: "They literally frog-marched me off the premises and the chairman, whom I knew quite well, refused to talk to me.

"Their decision absolutely devastated me. They made me redundant three days after I had buried my father and less than a month before Christmas.

"They claimed I was no longer needed because, at the time, the club had no chief executive. But as I said to them, just because you get rid of the title, you don't get rid of the actual work.

"That is why I launched this action, and also because they didn't follow procedure."

Before adopting the role of assistant club secretary, Pat had spent 18 months building up the club's hospitality and catering division, which helped attract Paul Heathcote to the club.

Pat added: "I often worked seven days a week during the rugby season and worked on extra projects such as the women's football. I never left PNE before 6pm. I loved the club and still do.

"Even now, I look at the PNE result first on a Saturday. It is important the fans know what went on. I have been awarded what is effectively shareholders' money."

PNE deputy chairman Derek Shaw said: "This is an in-house matter and we would prefer to keep it that way. She may wish to comment, but we don't.

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