THE headteacher of a Newport school where halal meals containing pork were served to some Moslem pupils has spoken of his "outrage" over the blunder.

Stephen Marshall, (pictured) head of St Julians School, said staff and pupils felt a "sense of shock" following the incident, exclusively revealed in the Argus yesterday.

A Newport county borough council school meals worker has been suspended following the incident which saw lamb burgers, labelled as suitable for halal, substituted for a product containing chicken and pork during this year's summer term.

Moslems are forbidden to eat pork as one of the commandments laid down in their holy book, the Koran.

St Julians was the first secondary school in Newport to diversify its menu to specifically cater for the needs of its ethnic pupils.

Mr Marshall said: "We were very pleased that we had been able to meet the needs of our pupils and had brought things forward. We felt that as a school we were doing our bit. "So you can imagine the sense of outrage when we found out about this."

Mr Marshall and the school's chairwoman of governors, Mrs Marion Marsh, were told about the mix up on Thursday afternoon after being called to the Civic Centre for a meeting with Newport council's education officers.

Mrs Marsh said: "The matter is now in the hands of the council who will obviously be taking every step to stop this happening in the future."

Mr Marshall said: "We are very, very concerned about our pupils who unknowingly had eaten food that they would not have wished to have eaten. We had another meeting on Friday, where the chair of governors was emphatic in demanding a full and comprehensive report into how this situation had arisen. We know that a worker has been suspended and trust that the council's disciplinary procedures will now be followed.

"There is a sense of shock that this could have happened, and we are all concerned for those pupils who have been misled.

"What is most galling is that the school have been moving things forward, and are able to offer a more diverse menu within the school canteen.

"But the one thing I have been pleased with is the speed in which the authority have acted over this.

"We were told about this situation on Thursday, and by Friday we were in a position to inform parents about what had happened."

The school held a full assembly yesterday morning where pupils were told that if any of them had concerns they should speak to Mr Marshall directly.

Mr Marshall added: "I also have other members of staff available who are prepared to offer pupils help and guidance if they want it."

We revealed yesterday how Moslem community leader Mushtaq Ahmed described what happened as "a miserable incident" and said some Moslem parents felt "deceived"