Where will this course lead?

These courses are ideal for those who want to learn the basics or students who would like improve on their current knowledge of British Sign Language.

What will I study?

Designed to enable learners to communicate with deaf people in British Sign Language (BSL).

Students will draw on a range of topics, involving simple, everyday uses.   Learn to use and recognise fingerspelling, use and understand a range of signs for everyday use, take part in basic conversations and learn more about deaf culture and deaf awareness.

Students will go on to study a range of topics such as shopping and spending, holiday and travel, food and drink. All topics will include full conversation skills and role play.   Students will be given the opportunity to attend deaf clubs and deaf events.  Short video clips will be played to assess students receptive and productive skills.

How will this course be delivered?

Classroom based learning led by tutor demonstration. You will practice as a whole class, in pairs and in groups and use some role-play.

What qualifications will I get?

This is a personal development programme.

How will I be assessed?

This course is for personal development and is informally assessed by the tutor, there will be no recorded assessments but through questions and answer small group quizzes but no video recording.

How do I get a place on the course?

Enrolment opportunities are available throughout the year. Please contact us for more details on 0121 678 7000 - option 2 or e-mail Community@Solihull.ac.uk

What are the entry requirements?

Students must be aged 19+.

If you have learning difficulty or a disability please let us know when you apply.

To enrol on to the January course you need to have completed term 1 or have previous experience in signing.  Please note that we can only accept enrolments for the April start date from those students that have completed terms 1 and 2.

What else do I need to know?

For terms 2 and 3 only existing students are able to enrol. 

Please bring a pen and paper with you to your lessons.

Please note: Materials are not supplied for Cakes, Flowers/Floristry, Textiles, Soft Furnishings, Homemade Crafts, Calligraphy, Art, Cookery, Tiling, Painting & Decorating, Sewing or Dressmaking.

This course will run subject to a minimum class size.

All courses, including those with a fee shown will be free for you to join if you are:

• In Receipt of Job Seeker Allowance

• In Receipt of Employment Support Allowance

• In Receipt of Universal Credit

• In Receipt of another income based benefit (not JSA/ESA/UC)

Students must also meet the residency criteria in the Adult Skills Fund rules 2025 to 2026.

What can I do after this course?

You may be interested in progressing to a higher level BSL programme.