An Islamic State-obsessed teacher showed children as young as 11 videos of beheadings and plotted a terror attack at Westfield shopping centre, a court has heard.

Umar Haque, 25, allegedly showed pupils at the Lantern of Knowledge Islamic School in Leyton videos of beheadings in an attempt to convert them to his extreme ideology, the Old Bailey heard this week.

He enlisted the help and support of fellow extremists at his local mosque where he tried to groom children with role-play and extremist videos, jurors were told.

Haque became "fascinated" by last year's Westminster Bridge attack and discussed bringing a reign of terror across London in secretly recorded chat, the court heard.

In a bugged conversation four days after the March 22 attack, Haque allegedly said: "So what I want to personally is launch different attacks in all the different areas, one in Westminster, one in Stratford, one in Forest Gate.

"We're here to cause terror, my brother. We are a death squad sent by Allah and his messengers to avenge my Arab brothers' blood.”

Prosecutor Mark Heywood QC told jurors Haque was hell-bent on carrying out one or more violent attacks in the capital.

He said: "Umar Haque was fascinated by the warped and extreme ideology of Islamic State. He had identified methods and targets.”

Abuthaher Mamun, 19, Muhammad Abid, 27, and Nadeem Patel, 26, who knew Haque through the Ripple Road Mosque in Barking, are accused of helping him.

Mamun assisted with attack planning and set about raising money to fund it through trading in options, Abid was involved in "discussion and lower level of support" while Patel agreed to provide a gun, jurors were told.

Mr Heywood said Haque had shown pupils between aged between 11 and 16 images of guns, burning passports and beheadings while working as a teacher at Lantern of Knowledge between September 2015 and September 2016.

He and Mamum were also heavily involved in running Ripple Road Mosque, where Haque assumed the role of "teacher", jurors were told.

In the months before his arrest in early 2017, he "manipulated" vulnerable children, telling them he intended to die a martyr and IS was "good", the court heard.

Haque and Mamun are jointly charged with preparing acts of terrorism between March 25 and May 18, 2017.

Haque is further charged with preparing terrorist acts by leading exercises with children at the mosque and dissemination of terrorist publications at Lantern of Knowledge.

Abid is accused of having information about Haque's plans and Patel is charged with plotting with Haque to possess a firearm or imitation firearm.

The defendants, who are all from east London, have denied the charges.

However, Haque has admitted charges of collection of terrorist information and dissemination of a terrorist publication at the mosque, while Patel has admitted possessing a prohibited weapon.

The trial, which is scheduled to last six weeks, continues.