The "prayer ban" by a school facing a court challenge made being Muslim "seem toxic" and "evil", former pupils claim.It did not respond for comment but Ms Birbalsingh previously said the school was a "happy and respectful" place.
"I felt belittled and that I had to somewhat change who I was in order to fit in because it's like they made it seem that being overtly Muslim was non-British or toxic. So I could never really be true to myself."Selena and Sarah allege prayer rules have disproportionately affected Michaela School's Muslim pupils
The two girls said they were also expected to tuck their hijab into the collar of their school shirt. "I do remember a teacher asking me if I was forced to wear it and it just shocked me so much," she said. When they then complained to the schools inspectorate Ofsted it told them "the resolution of individual issues falls to the school's senior leadership team and/or the local authority or multi-academy trust", suggesting they raise concerns formally "through the school's own complaint process".
She said existing Muslim students have had "positive experiences" and these "have helped grow the number of Muslim pupils at the school by 50%".