Skills for Life: British Sign Language
British Sign Language is an Agored Cymru Skills for Life unit in which learners learn to greet, introduce themselves, share personal information, sign everyday items, statements of fact, questions, feelings, fingerspelling and numbers in BSL, and from Entry 3 learn about the features of BSL, deaf culture and ways to support communication for deaf people. It is one 20 hour unit, printed at Entry 1, Entry 2, Entry 3, Level 1 and Level 2, that learners combine with other units into an Agored Cymru Skills for Life, or Skills for Life and Work, Award, Certificate or Diploma, and it is the only unit that can be taken at more than one level within one qualification. Assessment is internal, and the signing is captured as role-play on video and/or annotated photographs. Literacy demand is Medium and is the core of the unit: BSL is a visual language, so the speaking and listening statements cover producing and receiving signs, fingerspelling moves between English spelling and BSL, and from Entry 3 learners state, outline or describe BSL grammar, deaf culture and communication support. Numeracy demand is Low: learners sign between 2 and 10 numbers at Entry level, such as their age or a short date of birth, and number signs for times, money and dates are encouraged but not required.
- Awarding body
- Agored Cymru
- Level
- Entry Level 1 to Level 2
- Guided learning hours
- 20
- First taught
- September 2027
- Amount of literacy work
- Medium
- Amount of numeracy work
- Low
- Specification
- Open the specification
How this unit is assessed
- Entry Level 1 (Unit ID CDR928, Unit Code KB6E1CY001) and Entry Level 2 (Unit ID CDR927, Unit Code KB6E2CY001): Practical signing only, with no knowledge outcome. Entry 1 learners use BSL for greetings, farewells and thanks, introduce themselves, sign at least 5 single word items, express at least 2 simple feelings and sign at least 2 numbers. Entry 2 adds personal information, at least 10 single word items, fingerspelling at least 10 letters and at least 4 numbers, such as a short date of birth. The prescribed assessment method is role-play captured on video and/or annotated photographs with an assessor observation statement for LO1, LO2 and LO3. Internally assessed by the centre using the mandatory Summative Assessment Package in Appendix A, moderated by Agored Cymru. 20 guided learning hours and 2 credits at each level. Graded Pass or Fail.
- Entry Level 3 (Unit ID CDR926, Unit Code KB6E3CY002): A knowledge outcome is added: learners state key features of BSL (grammar, structure and non-manual features), list at least 2 ways to support communication for people with deafness and state how fingerspelling is used. Practically, learners greet and say farewell, introduce themselves to at least 1 person, give at least 2 pieces of personal information, sign at least 2 statements of fact and 2 feelings, fingerspell at least 15 letters and sign at least 10 numbers. Role-play on video and/or annotated photographs with an assessor observation statement is prescribed for LO2, LO3 and LO4. Internally assessed using Appendix A. 20 guided learning hours. Graded Pass or Fail.
- Level 1 (Unit ID CDR925, Unit Code KB61CY013) and Level 2 (Unit ID CDR924, Unit Code KB62CY007): Learners outline (Level 1) or describe (Level 2) the main features of BSL, at least 2 or 3 ways to support communication, and the role of fingerspelling. Practically, they greet and say farewell in more than one way, introduce themselves and at least 2 other people, give at least 2 or 3 pieces of personal information, respond in sign to signed personal questions, sign statements of fact, ask and answer at least 2 questions in everyday situations, and express at least 2 (Level 1) or 4 (Level 2) feelings using signs and body language. Role-play on video and/or annotated photographs with an assessor observation statement is prescribed for LO2 and LO3. Internally assessed using Appendix A. 20 guided learning hours. Graded Pass or Fail.
Skills that use Purpose
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Signing and responding to personal information
From Entry 2 learners give personal information in BSL, such as favourite colour or number of brothers and sisters, rising to at least 3 pieces including address, age and school at Level 2. At Level 1 and Level 2 learners also watch a signed question, for example on video, and reply in sign. This is required by the assessment criteria.
Literacy: Questioning, Listening as part of collaborative talk, Purpose
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils share 3 facts about themselves with a partner, such as age, favourite colour and school, and the partner repeats them back to check.
- Year 8
- Pupils watch a short clip of a question being signed, such as how old are you, and answer it in sign to a partner.
- Year 9
- Pupils interview each other in pairs using signed personal questions, adapt their answer when the partner shows confusion, and report one fact about their partner to the class.
Show the specification wording and the LNF statements
Where it is in the specification: British Sign Language, AC 2.3 and 2.4, Level 2, page 31; Level 1, page 34; AC 2.3 Entry Level 3, page 37; AC 1.3 Entry Level 2, page 38
“sees a video of someone asking them a question”
Progression step 3
I can ask and answer questions, building on and developing the ideas of others in group discussions.
I can listen to and respond to others with questions and comments which focus on reasons, implications and next steps.
Progression step 4
I can listen to and respond to others with questions, comments and suggestions in order to develop collaborative talk and reach compromise/consensus.
I can organise talk effectively to respond to how listeners are reacting by adapting what I say and how I say it.
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Expressing feelings with signs and body language
All levels ask learners to express feelings in BSL, from at least 2 simple feelings such as I-AM-TIRED at Entry 1 and Entry 2 to at least 4 feelings, emotions or concerns at Level 2, using appropriate signs and body language. This links to the Health and Well-being What Matters statement for the unit and is required by the assessment criteria.
Literacy: Purpose, Clarity and vocabulary
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils show happy, sad and tired using only facial expression and body language while a partner guesses the feeling.
- Year 8
- Pupils sign 2 feelings with a matching facial expression and explain in English why the face matters as much as the hands.
- Year 9
- Pupils sign a short message about feeling worried before a test, with the sign, facial expression and posture matching the feeling, and a partner says what they understood.
Show the specification wording and the LNF statements
Where it is in the specification: British Sign Language, AC 3.4, Level 2, page 31; Level 1, page 34; AC 3.2 Entry Level 3, page 37; AC 2.2 Entry Level 1 and Entry Level 2, pages 38 and 40
“using appropriate signs and body language to support effective communication.”
Progression step 3
I can share, talk and write about my thoughts, feelings and opinions using a range of techniques to show impact.
I can speak clearly, recognising the appropriate language for different audiences and purposes, and varying my expression, vocabulary, tone and gestures to engage the audience.
Progression step 4
I can share, talk and write about my thoughts, feelings and opinions showing empathy and respect.
I can convey meaning convincingly in a range of contexts so that the audience is fully engaged.
Good to know
- BSL is the one exception to the unit aggregation rule: "learners may complete British Sign Language units at more than one level", and "each unit taken may contribute to the overall qualification" (Section Two, Unit aggregation, page 9). For example, Level 1 BSL and Level 2 BSL together give 40 GLH towards a Level 2 Certificate, provided at least a further 60 GLH is at Level 2. This matches the WJEC unit and differs from Pearson, where BSL GLH count only once.
- Every level is 20 guided learning hours and 2 credits, with a "Lower age restriction: 14" (unit details, pages 30, 33, 36, 38 and 40).
- The signing evidence format is fixed: "Role-play - video and/or annotated photographic evidence with assessor observation statement is required for LO2 and LO3." (Prescribed Assessment Methods, Level 2, page 32). At Entry 1 and Entry 2 it covers all 3 outcomes (pages 39 and 41).
- The assessor "should be a competent BSL-user" (Assessor and Resource Requirements, page 32, repeated at every level).
- Minimum amounts rise with level, for example fingerspelling "Using at least ten letters." at Entry 2 (page 38) and "Using at least 15 letters." at Entry 3 (page 37), and feelings rise from 2 at Entry 1 to "A minimum of four different" at Level 2 (page 31).
- The command words set the literacy demand of the knowledge outcome: Entry 3 "State" means "Express in clear terms" (page 94), Level 1 "Outline" means "Give the main characteristics or key points/features" and Level 2 "Describe" means giving "detailed and factual information" (Command Word Definitions, page 93).
- Learners "must produce their own reference materials", "AI tools must not be used at all" and "Drafting and redrafting are not permitted in this summative task." (Appendix A, page 106).
- The assessment is short and supervised: "20 GLH incorporates assessment time of no more than 60 minutes." (Appendix A, Duration and timing, page 106), and "There are no resubmission opportunities available for these qualifications." (Section Five, page 99).
- The Areas of Learning and Experience are Languages, Literacy and Communication and Health and Well-being, with the What Matters statement "Languages are a key part of our identity and communicate our ideas, thoughts and feelings." (Statement(s) of What Matters for this unit, page 32, repeated at every level).
Links with other qualifications
The unit sits in Languages, Literacy and Communication and Health and Well-being, so its signing, fingerspelling and description of deaf culture build on the speaking, listening and translanguaging in GCSE English Language, GCSE Welsh Language and the modern foreign language GCSEs in French, German and Spanish, and the communication support content links to GCSE Health and Social Care, and Childcare and to the Agored Cymru units Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, Looking After Others and Fairness and Inclusion in the Workplace. The number work links lightly to GCSE Mathematics and Numeracy. Compared with the WJEC British Sign Language unit, which covers meeting people, fingerspelling, numbers, weather, transport and directions, Agored has no weather, transport or directions, so its numeracy is lighter, but it adds a written or signed knowledge outcome on BSL grammar, non-manual features, deaf culture and communication support from Entry 3, and asks for feelings and everyday questions. Both let each level count. Compared with Pearson, which has one broad criterion per level, covers time, dates and directions, and counts the GLH only once, Agored sets detailed minimum numbers at each level and prescribes video or annotated photographic evidence. All 3 are Medium literacy and Low numeracy.
Source: Agored Cymru The Skills Suite: Skills for Life and Work Specification, version 1.0, October 2026, British Sign Language.