A Muslim faith school which was rated 'outstanding' by the education watchdog Ofsted has suspended a teenage pupil who is accused of breaching its behaviour policy after he interacted with a female student in a way which amounted to harassment.

Al-Khair secondary school in Croydon, south London, considers 'free mixing' between male and female students who are considered 'non-mahrams' (not close relatives) to be a 'high level offence'.

But a spokesperson denied that the school has a blanket ban on boys and girls talking to each other.

The parent of one pupil told The Sunday Times that the policy of the private school, which won praise by Ofsted for promoting pupils' personal development, was 'nonsense', and that students were not being prepared to integrate in British society.