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Bishop joins ‘Trojan horse’ school probe

02 May 2014

PARLIAMENT.CO.UK

THE Bishop of Birmingham, the Rt Revd David Urquhart, has been appointed to a panel set up by Birmingham City Council to review allegations of an organised plan by Islamic extremists to recruit sympathisers to teaching staff and governing bodies of several of the city's schools (News, 25 April). The panel meets for the first time today.

Other members of the panel are Liam Byrne, MP for Birmingham Hodge Hill; Gary Forsyth, Assistant Chief Constable of West Midlands Police; Kamal Harif, head of Waverley Primary School and a national leader in education; and a representative of Birmingham Central Mosque.

The review will be chaired by Stephen Rimmer, West Midlands director for the Preventing Violence Against Vulnerable People initiative. Mr Rimmer is on secondment from the Home Office.

Ian Kershaw, the former head of a Coventry comprehensive who has worked with Birmingham schools on education strategy, has been appointed adviser to the investigation.

The charges, which have been referred to as "Trojan horse" allegations, are disputed, and have led to a number of claims. This week, the Council set up a confidential phone line for potential complainants.

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