Damian Hinds told religious representatives at a round table discussion on Tuesday that the move would place “freedom into the hands of school leaders”.
Academy schools are state-funded schools in England which are directly funded by the Department for Education and are independent of local authority control.
Mr Hinds detailed the benefits of faith schools changing status to Premier.
“There’s more leeway on things like the curriculum,” he said. “You’re still expected to have a broad and balanced curriculum but you’re able to make that a bit more tailored if you wish to.
“A lot of schools don’t – they want to stick with the national curriculum.
“But for those who do wish to – make it a bit more tailored to something different.”
Mr Hinds also highlighted to the representatives from all major religions the role faith organisations have had in the Government’s education reforms since 2010.
He said: “The Church of England is the biggest name in primary education in England and the Catholic Church is the biggest single name in secondary education. And there are other faith groups involved of course as well.
“They’re a really, really important part of our diverse school system.”
Faith schools make up one-third of the schools in England and more than a quarter of state-funded faith schools already have academy status.
Mr Hinds…
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