Jersey hosts first national signing choir competition

St Clement's school has entered a signing choir

The first national signing choir competition is to be held in Jersey at the annual Eisteddfod festival.

Choirs that use sign language to represent a song instead of singing it will be able to enter two classes on 6 November at the Jersey Opera House.

Entrants include St Clement's School in Jersey, which has special provision for deaf students.

They have entered the competition with a signing choir and will compete against others from across the UK.

The St Clement signing choir is made up of deaf and hearing children.

Jackie Pickup, the group's teacher, said the competition allowed deaf children to be included in the annual arts festival.

She said: "Some of the deaf parents were very active in this and the children's society on the island were very keen to raise awareness of signing.

"This is an ideal way of doing that because it becomes part of a mainstream organisation and the deaf community becomes included in what is for everybody."