A Muslim free school in Derby, which was closed during an Ofsted inspection amid health and safety concerns, reopens.
The Al-Madinah school has insisted it was closed on undisclosed health and safety grounds and not due to the inspection.
Sources said Ofsted found incomplete records of child protection checks being done for all staff.
Media reports have suggested that female teachers at the school were forced to wear hijabs even if they were not Muslim.
It was also claimed girls were made to sit at the back of the classroom and boys at the front.
Free schools – which can be opened by anyone – are state funded but not overseen by the local authority.
National Union of Teachers (NUT) spokesman Nick Raine said: “It is a publicly-funded school – if there are health and safety concerns that were serious enough to close the school then what were they and have they been an issue for some time?”
Over the weekend Labour politicians asked Education Secretary Michael Gove to clarify matters urgently “to reassure the public”.
The Department for Education said it was already investigating allegations against the school.
The school, which opened in September 2012, claimed to be the first free school in England with a Muslim ethos, catering for all reception, primary and secondary pupils.
Does the al-Madinah Muslim free school in Derby really segregate girls and boys? We’re trying to get to the truth. It reopened today #c4news
— Darshna Soni (@darshnasoni) October 7, 2013
A statement on the school website from Interim Principal Stuart Wilson said: “Unsurprisingly, there has been a number of rumours circulating.
“While unfortunate, my decision to close the school related to a short-term health and safety issue that has now been completely resolved and will not reoccur.”
Al-Madinah is funded directly with £1.4m of public money from the government through the Education Funding Agency – which is carrying out a separate investigation.
Free schools are a flagship policy of Education Secretary Michael Gove and it is understood that the unprecedented speculation and publicity surrounding Al-Madinah School has caused great consternation in Whitehall.
Before Ofsted stepped in, the school was already at the centre of an investigation by the Education Funding Agency into its financial situation.