Two Islamic school teachers from Birmingham charged with beating one of their pupils with a stick have admitted child cruelty on what was to be the first day of trial.

Mohammed Siddique, 60, and his 23-year-old son Mohammed Waqar had denied a charge of wilful cruelty to a child under the age of 16 but changed their pleas at Birmingham Crown Court.

Each man had used a stick to hit their victim and slapped him over four separate occasions last year, the court heard.

Matthew Brook, prosecuting, said it was content with the guilty pleas of the men, described as being "of some standing in the community", which would send a message such behaviour was "unacceptable and criminal".

"The prosecution had two main aims," he said.

"First was to get guilty pleas from these men so Mr Siddique and Mr Waqar would not be teaching in the future.

"Secondly, for it to be known in the wider community that this behaviour is unacceptable and criminal.

"Those aims have been achieved by the guilty pleas."

Both men, of Olton Boulevard West in Tyseley, were arrested in June last year after the accusation was reported to police.

The two men were teachers at the same mosque in the Sparkbrook area of the city, with Siddique and Waqar carrying out their crimes between May and June last year.

The hearing was adjourned for pre-sentence reports until September 7, and both men were bailed to appear back at the court on that date.

Judge Mark Wall QC told both men, who appeared in the dock wearing traditional Muslim religious dress and spoke through an interpreter: "The conduct of each of you was serious and the judge who passes sentence will have all options open to him or her."