In some positive news across the country, pupils in England will soon be able to complete a GCSE in British Sign Language (BSL).

The subject content has been published today (Thursday 21 December), providing pupils with an important life skill as well as advancing inclusivity within education.

Parents, teachers and organisations from the deaf and hearing communities have provided overwhelmingly support for introducing the BSL GCSE, following a public consultation that lasted 12 weeks.

The community involvement has helped ensure that the content is knowledge-rich and diverse in its teaching, as well as being challenging. Students who take this GCSE will learn to communicate effectively with other signers in work, social and academic settings and possess valuable life skills.

To have exam board syllabuses approved from September 2025, the BSL GCSE will teach students to effectively communicate using BSL and provide an understanding of the history of BSL in the UK.

In line with all qualifications, the GCSE is open to all pupils and will be recognised and accepted in school and college performance tables.

As well as learning how to sign effectively, the GCSE will also give students an understanding of the history of sign language in the UK.

Education Secretary, Gillian Keegan said:

“It’s fantastic to see such an overwhelming amount of support across both the education sector and the deaf and hearing communities for this new GCSE.

“Studying British Sign Language can open so many doors for young people, giving pupils an understanding of how thousands of people communicate and ultimately even expanding job prospects.

“This new qualification will not only break down barriers and give young people valuable new skills, but also celebrate the history and rich culture of British Sign Language.”

Deputy Chief Regulator of Ofqual, Michael Hanton said:

“We’re grateful to those who engaged with our consultation, which was a crucial step forward for this new and important qualification.

“We will now begin the detailed regulatory work to ensure that the new GCSE in British Sign Language will be high quality and fair for students.”

Influencer and activist for the deaf community, Tasha Ghouri said:

“It’s so important to have inclusivity in schools.

“Accessibility is something I massively stand for and it’s amazing that BSL is now a GCSE course and students will soon have the opportunity to learn the foundations of BSL, the history and how it was formed.

“It’s such a beautiful language to learn. Thank you to everyone who has supported this step in the right direction!”

Chief Executive of the National Deaf Children’s Society, Susan Daniels OBE said:

“After more than a decade of campaigning for a GCSE in British Sign Language (BSL) we’re delighted we now have the finalised course content published.

“A GCSE in BSL is vital as it will break down barriers and celebrate the rich culture and history of British Sign Language. An incredible amount of work has been undertaken to get to this point, not least from young deaf campaigner Daniel Jillings who fought so hard for the right to study a GCSE in BSL.”