THE APPELLANT AS A VULNERABLE WITNESS
10 . I have also reminded myself of the case of the case of AM (Afghanistan) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2017] EWCA Civ 1123 in which Sir Ernest Ryder, Senior President, referred to the Joint Presidential Guidance Note No. 2 of 2010: Child, Vulnerable Adult and Sensitive Appellant (“the guidance note”) and also the Practice Direction, First-tier and Upper Tribunal Child, Vulnerable Adult and Sensitive Witnesses. He went on to state that “the directions and guidance contained in them are to be followed and…Failure to follow them will most likely be a material error of law”. 11. Paragraph 2 of the Guidance Note states that, when considering whether an individual is vulnerable, any mental health problems, his or her social and cultural background and any domestic circumstances are to be taken into account. In the Appellant’s case, the letter by Dr Ceaser , a specialist clinical psychologist, dated 18 December 2017, stated that “the Appellant presented with symptoms associated with Type 2 PTSD (complex trauma) and that she continued to experience flashbacks and nightmares alongside symptoms of anxiety, panic, low mood and low self-esteem. Other symptoms include dissociation, hypervigilance and hyperarousal, constantly checking her surroundings to monitor her safety, emotional regulation difficulties, with intense feelings of sadness, anger and irritability with associated low self-esteem”. 12. All of these symptoms were likely to lead to her having difficulty giving cogent oral evidence. In addition, the medical documents from the Queen’s Medical Centre Campus in Nottingham confirmed that she is pregnant with a n expected due date of 17 July 2018 and that the fact that she had another appeal hearing in relation to her claim for asylum was having a negative effect on her mood . (I have noted that she was not receiving any psychotherapy or counselling at the time of the hearing but take into account that the medical evidence explained that this was because she had reached the end of the services that could be provided by the NHS and that her clinician had recommended that her GP refer her to a generic counselling service after the birth of her child.) 13. On the basis of this evidence, I f ound that the Appellant is a vulnerable witness and, in accordance with paragraph 8 of the Guidance, I considered whether it was necessary to hear oral evidence from the Appellant. She was in court and the Home Office Presenting Officer had discussed with her counsel, whether it would be appropriate to adjourn the appeal hearing until after the birth of her child. However, counsel for the Appellant stated that he was instructed to resist any application for an adjournment due to her on-going mental health difficulties. 14. The Home Office Presenting Officer accepted that, although “inconsistencies” were referred to in the Respondent’s refusal letter, the issues raised generally went to the plausibility, as opposed to the consistency, of her evidence. He informed me that he was content for the hearing to proceed on the basis of oral submissions, as long as I addressed the issues raised in the refusal letter and did not treat his failure to cross-examine the Appellant as an acceptance of the credibility of her account. I have not done so and have proceeded to assess the credibility of her account below.