An awarding organisation for British Sign Language (BSL) courses is to cease trading after more than a decade because of a shortage of money due to falling student numbers post-Covid. Up to 150 students could be affected by the closure.
The Institute for British Sign Language (IBSL) will lose its Ofqual recognition on Friday, March 3 and told FE Week that it is due to close its business at the end of the month.
Ofqual said it was informed by IBSL in January that the charity planned to surrender its status as a recognised awarding organisation. A letter sent from the institute to centres on Tuesday said the decision was made on financial grounds.
It was “with great sadness” that the charity had decided to wind up, the letter said, adding: “As trustees, we have had to make some very hard decisions about our future and ability to continue. Our conclusion has been that IBSL is not financially viable, and we will be closing the organisation in the next couple of months.”
