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This paper examines the meaning of plurality and diversity with respect to deaf children’s sign and spoken language exposure and repertoire within a super diverse context. Data is drawn from a small-scale project that took place in the North of England in a Local Authority (LA) site for deaf education. The project documented the language landscape of this site and gathered five individual case studies of deaf children to examine their plural and diverse language practices at home and at school. Analysis of the language landscape and case studies from this context is undertaken in order to define and exemplify deaf children’s language plurality and diversity in terms of context and individual experience. Concepts of repertoire are explored with particular reference to the unique type of translanguaging that the plural use of sign and spoken languages affords. Implications of these preliminary insights are discussed in terms of the development of methodologies that are sensitive to the particular translanguaging practices of deaf children, and approaches to pedagogy that are appropriately nuanced and responsive to deaf children’s language plurality and diversity.

This research examined the educational inclusion of children who are deaf or hard of hearing (DHH) and from Roma families who have migrated to England. The study was co-developed with practitioners in the field and involved: a demographic survey of deaf education services; five institutional case studies of local authority services and four individual case studies of children who are DHH and from Roma families. An intersectional approach to the analysis of the data revealed the different vulnerabilities associated with being a child who is DHH and being from a migrant Roma family in England. The study provides the first estimate of the numbers of children who are DHH and from Roma families in England. It also documents an overview of the support offered to Roma children by local authority services and offers insights into the experiences of families and children. In conclusion, it considers the implications for multi-professional practice.

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