Mrs Clayton was one of the first two women to join the fire service when she joined the Hereford and Worcester Brigade in 1989 after an exemplary career in the Womens Royal Army Corp. Over the next 5 years, she was the subject of continuing harassment and verbal abuse together with victimisation which included forcing her to take a turntable ladder to 100 feet and spin it for more than an hour. She was also made to carry out dangerous drills which male firefighters do not have to do. The tribunal decided that her personality and self-confidence had been totally destroyed and her career shattered. The brigade had done little or nothing to prevent sexual discrimination and its management was totally ineffectual. She was awarded substantial compensation.