A former chairman of governors at a state secondary school embroiled in an alleged "Trojan Horse" Muslim takeover plot in Birmingham has complained of being made a "scapegoat".

Tahir Alam, who was chairman of governors at Park View School in Alum Rock, Birmingham, from 1997 to 2014, and chairman of a trust set up to manage the school, has been barred from involvement in the management of schools by the Department for Education (DfE).

Officials imposed a ban in September 2015 after concluding that he had engaged in conduct aimed at undermining fundamental British values.

Mr Alam has appealed against the ban at a specialist tribunal hearing in London.

A three-strong care standards tribunal panel began analysing evidence on Wednesday.

The hearing is expected to last several days.

Lawyers representing Mr Alam and Education Secretary Justine Greening outlined rival arguments in written submissions to the tribunal.

Martin Chamberlain QC, who led Ms Greening's legal team, said in late 2013 Birmingham City Council had received an anonymous "Trojan Horse" letter which described a "strategy" to take over a number of state schools in Birmingham and run them on "strict Islamic principles".

Investigators found evidence of "co-ordinated, deliberate and sustained action, to introduce an intolerant and aggressive Islamic ethos" into a few schools in Birmingham.

Mr Chamberlain said Mr Alam - plus Park View School and the managing trust - were "at the centre" of what had happened.

Department officials had then imposed a school involvement ban on the grounds that Mr Alam's behaviour had undermined British values.

Mr Alam has complained that investigators had a "pre-conceived agenda" and reached "unfair or inaccurate" conclusions.

He said he had been "made a scapegoat", that investigation reports had not "accurately reflected" reality and denied holding "intolerant or narrow" views.

Barrister Hugo Lodge, who led Mr Alam's legal team, said there had been a human rights breach.

Lawyers said the tribunal would have to decide whether the ban was "appropriate".

Mr Chamberlain said Mr Alam had held a number of influential national and local education roles, including chairing the education committee of the Muslim Council of Britain.

"The appellant has extensive experience and influence within the Birmingham education community and the wider British Muslim community," said Mr Chamberlain.

"He espoused a conservative, intolerant and narrow faith-based ideology and believed that the practices associated with this ideology should be imposed on or incorporated into state-funded non-faith schools with predominantly Muslim pupils."

Mr Chamberlain added: "He either personally engaged in acts or, alternatively, encouraged, permitted or failed to challenge policies, practices and actions of others, which were aimed at undermining fundamental British values or were so inappropriate as to make him unsuitable to manage a school."

He said the appeal should be dismissed.

Tribunal members heard that the Park View Education Trust was set up to manage Park View School in 2012, and Mr Alam had chaired its board of trustees.

The trust had gone on to become a "multi-academy trust" incorporating two other schools.