The Church of England has sharply criticised Government proposals, championed by Education Secretary Nicky Morgan, to require schools to 'actively promote' British values.
An official response to a Government consultation on the issue warns, "we are concerned that British values should emanate from a broad public conversation and not from the Secretary of State."
"By assuming the power to decide what reasonable or unreasonable behaviour is in our education system, the Secretary of State would be taking very wide powers for herself and her successors and closing down the broader public debate across communities and schools themselves," the document continues.
Concerns about the plans are also expressed in a separate essay by Nigel Genders, the Church of England's Chief Education Officer.
Nearly one million pupils are educated in Church of England schools.
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Church alarm at ‘danger’ of Government's ‘British values’ test in wake of Trojan Horse row (Telegraph)