'Trojan Horse' school 'stopped Diwali and Christmas celebrations'

Oldknow, which went from "outstanding" to "failing" when Ofsted inspected, is now run by the Ark Trust

A teacher stopped Christmas and Diwali celebrations and told children they were not allowed pet dogs because they were Muslim, a misconduct panel heard.

Asif Kahn, who worked at Oldknow Academy, Birmingham, is also accused of banning pupils from listening to music.

Mr Kahn, and ex-acting head teacher Jahangir Akbar, face allegations of professional misconduct.

The school was investigated amid claims of a Muslim hardliners' plot to control several schools.

At the National College of Teaching and Leadership panel, in Bournville, Mr Akbar denies any wrongdoing. Mr Khan has not appeared at the hearing, with the panel previously told he is thought to be in Qatar.

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Both teachers are accused of agreeing "to the inclusion of an undue amount of religious influence in the education of pupils" at Oldknow, on or before 31 July 2014.

Bhupinder Kondal had been principal of Oldknow Academy for 13 years

Mr Khan allegedly also:

• Told some male pupils to change for PE in a cupboard so they would not show their thighs

• Banned youngsters singing during a production of The Wizard of Oz

• Turned his back on a woman as she offered to shake his hand

Giving evidence, Mr Akbar said he had first met Mr Khan at Kings College London many years before.

Within months of joining Oldknow, in April 2013, which was then under the leadership of a Sikh, Bhupinder Kondal, he said he was "put under huge pressure" and most of his time was taken with an application for the academy to become a free school.

'Don't believe in Christmas'

He said he felt "Ms Kondal felt overwhelmed" by the number of performance issues the school was dealing with.

He was also asked about a meeting when Mr Khan was spoken to by Ms Kondal for allegedly leading chants in pupil assemblies of "We don't believe in Christmas, do we."

He also said any final decision not to have a Christmas tree and other choices not to mark festivities at the school in 2013 had lain with Ms Kondal.

Ms Kondal resigned from the school in January 2014. She returned later in the year but left again at the end of 2014.

Mr Akbar said he was acting head for only 40 working days after Ofsted arrived, when the previously "outstanding" school was rated as "failing".

"In that time I could not have narrowed the curriculum or Islamify the school," he said.

A teacher who wished to remain anonymous, Teacher P, told the panel a picture of a Christian used in RE lessons "depicted a white person".

She said the picture was just one example of inaccuracies in the RE curriculum and that the school did not follow the Birmingham agreed syllabus.

She also said Mr Khan "behaved inappropriately by sharing his personal beliefs with the children, for example telling the children they were not allowed pet dogs as they were Muslim."

The hearing continues.