A new survey has found more than a third of people of faith say religious education would improve if schools engaged more deeply with local faith communities.

The finding comes as England prepares for a consultation on bringing religious education into the national curriculum, with the research suggesting there is an appetite for reform among people of faith.

The report, Faith, Fluency and the Future of Religious Education in Britain, found that greater engagement with local faith communities was the most popular proposed improvement to RE. Some 36% of respondents selected greater engagement with faith communities, rising to 50% among non-Christian respondents.

The research, published by the Institute for the Impact of Faith in Life (IIFL), aimed to challenge the view that RE is an outdated subject.

A nationally representative survey of 1,196 adults found that 56% said RE had a very or mostly positive impact on their, or their child's, school experience. Only 5% reported a negative impact.

Seven in ten respondents, 70%, also said the RE they or their child received was generally factually accurate, compared with 4% who disagreed.

The research found that non-Christians were more likely than Christians to say RE had encouraged them to think more positively about their own faith, at 46% compared with 32%.

There was also support for a standardised national curriculum, with 48% saying they were in favour and 20% opposed. However, almost a third, 32%, said they did not know.

The least popular proposed reform was greater government oversight, chosen by just 4% of respondents.

The report also found little evidence that RE contributes to religious stereotyping or teasing, with 64% rejecting the suggestion that it had contributed to them being stereotyped or teased more at school. Eight per cent agreed.

Rania Mohiuddin-Agir, IIFL research associate and author of the report, said: "For a subject so often debated, and usually criticised it truly was refreshing to see just how positive its impact has been on people of faith, and. more importantly, how much appetite there is for deeper, more meaningful engagement.

"Religious education is at its best when it gives young people not just facts about faith but genuine encounters with it, equipping them to contribute to Britain's pluralist society. As England prepares to bring RE into its national curriculum for the first time, there can hardly be a more important moment to get this right. "