Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many parents of deaf children participated in British sign language courses that were funded through the adult education budget in Kent and Medway in each of the last three years.

The department is continuing to invest in education and skills training for adults through the Adult Education Budget (AEB), which was £1.34 billion in the 2022/23 financial year.

This includes qualifications in, or focusing on, British Sign Language (BSL) up to and including level 2. These qualifications include, for example, the Level 1 Award in BSL which allows learners to communicate in BSL on a range of topics that involve simple, everyday language use, thereby giving them the basic skills and confidence in production and reception of BSL.

About 60% of the AEB has been devolved to Mayoral Combined Authorities and the Greater London Authority, who determine which provision to fund for learners who live in their areas. The Education and Skills Funding Agency provides the remaining funding for learners who live in non-devolved areas. Where community learning providers offer BSL courses, those providers are responsible for determining the course fees, including levels of fee remission.

There were 60 adult (19+) education and training learning aim enrolments in the 2021/22 academic year by learners living in Kent or Medway with ‘British Sign Language’ or ‘BSL’ in their aim title. In 2020/21, there were 35 enrolments and in 2019/20, there were 87. The department does not hold information as to whether the learners taking these aims have deaf children.

These figures do not correspond to learners, as learners may enrol on multiple aims. Additionally, these are funded adult (19+) education and training aim enrolments. This will include AEB-funded learning, as well as other funding provision, such as advanced learner loans.