The Church of England is to sponsor its first multi-faith academy with an organisation led by a leading British Muslim.
The church will join forces with the British Edutrust Foundation, chaired by Lord Amir Bhatia, a crossbench peer and businessman.
The organisations plan to co-sponsor one of three new academies in Oldham as part of a major overhaul of schools in the town.
The move will be a major step forward for the academies programme as it aims to tackle religious and racial segregation as well as poor educational performance.
