Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she has taken to increase sign language fluency in English state schools.

The department supports British Sign Language (BSL) as an important part of our inclusive education strategy. While BSL is not currently part of the national curriculum, schools are free to teach it if they wish, and many already do to meet the needs and interests of their pupils.​

The government, working with the Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation (Ofqual), has also developed the content and assessment arrangements for a new BSL GCSE and is actively encouraging exam boards to develop qualification specifications. We have written to the exam boards to encourage them to seize the opportunity to offer this high-quality qualification to ensure young people can study BSL at GCSE. The development of a BSL GCSE is an important step toward fostering greater recognition of BSL as a language. It will give young people the chance to develop fluency in BSL and to explore its rich history as a language, helping to break down barriers between deaf and hearing communities.