- School governors behind Trojan Horse scandal 'still agitating community'
- Politicians warned that many ex-governors could still ‘preach nonsense’
- Birmingham teachers say they have been subject of intimidation campaign
- MP: ‘The governors involved in Trojan Horse are still around and active'
Tahir Alam (pictured), the former chairman of governors at Trojan Horse school Park View, still runs a parental ‘advice’ service in Birmingham
School governors behind the Trojan Horse scandal are still agitating in the community despite a supposed crackdown, it was claimed last night.
Politicians warned that no action has been taken against key figures in the alleged attempts by hardliners to take over Birmingham schools.
They said that – although some had resigned or been removed from governing bodies – many former governors were still allowed to work with families and ‘preach nonsense’.
This week a number of Birmingham head teachers said they have been subjected to an ‘ongoing’ intimidation campaign. One head teacher received death threats while two others had dead animals strung up on school gates.
Khalid Mahmood, Birmingham Perry Barr MP, said: ‘The governors involved in Trojan Horse are still around and still active.
‘Many of them have resigned or have been removed from governing bodies, but no action has been taken against them.
'There’s still a group of people in the community who believe what they’re saying.
'It’s not good enough to say they’ve been removed. They’re still able to go out and preach this kind of nonsense.’
It comes a year after the scandal, when governing bodies of state schools were allegedly infiltrated by hardliners wanting to impose an Islamic agenda.
Birmingham council said all ‘relevant’ governors have been removed. However, delegates at the National Association of Head Teachers complained at the weekend that no one involved had been ‘investigated or banned’.
Tahir Alam, former chairman of governors at Trojan Horse school Park View, still runs a parental ‘advice’ service in Birmingham.
The Muslim Parents Association aims to ‘help improve the personal development of Muslim schoolchildren through spiritual, moral, social and cultural development’, according to a statement filed to Companies House.
Last year, it was reported Mr Alam wrote a document calling for ‘girls [to] be covered except for their hands and faces’, advocated gender segregation and attacked a ‘multicultural approach’ to collective worship.
A Department for Education report found girls at Park View were made to sit at the back of the class, GCSE syllabuses were ‘restricted to comply with a conservative Islamic teaching’ and an extremist preacher was invited to speak to children.
Meanwhile, governors at nearby Anderton Park school voted for an Islamic agenda at the school. The school’s head teacher Sarah Hewitt-Clarkson has now received death threats on Facebook for trying to clamp down on homophobic bullying.
She said: ‘It’s very unpleasant and brutal, so that in itself is intimidating. It’s probably designed to unnerve. Incidents continue to happen at different schools. It’s not a new campaign – it’s ongoing.’
Yesterday Mr Alam denied all knowledge of the incidents and said: ‘If someone made threats, obviously that’s wrong. I hope somebody’s been arrested.’
Responding to questions about his community activities, he said: ‘Thirty-three per cent of all children in Birmingham schools happen to be of Islamic backgrounds.
‘They have a right to ask how their children are educated. If they have strong objections, they should raise these issues.’
A council spokesman said its education commissioner had a ‘one year on’ review of the schools but none of these issues were mentioned, adding: ‘Nor had they been previously reported to the city council, DfE or the commissioner.’
Chief Superintendent Richard Moore, of Birmingham police, said officers ‘have been supporting Anderton Park Primary School’ over the messages.
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