BBC parenting advice tells families to speak to children in their mother tongue before using English.
The broadcaster has launched a new service, called CBeebies Parenting, to support families raising young children.
It offers advice on subjects such as buying nappies, reading bedtime stories, cooking meals , and accessing child benefit payments.
And its advice on developing language skills urges parents to use their preferred language before English.
In an instructional video, Monal Gajjar, a speech and language therapist, says: “Generally, we encourage parents to talk to their child in the language they are most competent in, their social language.
Ms Gajjar explains that this will help the children build a relationship with their family, and provide a solid foundation for “an additional language, such as English”.
The BBC material explains that it “is increasingly common for one parent to speak one language and another parent to speak another language” and for them to use “a common language such as English… to interact with each other”.
Additional videos offer insights into introducing children to speaking Polish, Urdu, Punjabi and Gujarati.
The launch of this material on the CBeebies Parenting website comes after the 2021 censusrevealed that 8.9 per cent of people in England and Wales speak a language other than English as their main language. It also comes amid concerns that too many migrants do not have a good grasp of English.
Government planning fluency requirement
Last month, Sir Keir Starmer unveiled plans to make sure migrants speak fluent English if they want to remain in Britain.
The level of English required is to be raised from the equivalent of GCSE to the equivalent of A Level.
The BBC’s guidance takes into account increased levels of bilingualism.
Case studies are offered in a Parenting Life section that cover “raising a multicultural, multilingual child” and “LGBTQ+ adoption”.
Advice is offered on how to create meals on a tight budget, and how to manage screen time for young children, noting that “there can be benefits to your child’s screen time”.
WhatsApp helpline for parents
The BBC will also offer a Cbeebies Parenting WhatsApp service which parents can contact for advice
Patricia Hidalgo, the BBC director of children’s and education, said: “We know parents and carers love the support they get from CBeebies as a safe space for their small children to learn through play.
“So, we wanted to help parents and carers to find expert advice and support in one place from when they are parents-to-be, right through to when their little ones are starting school. We have everything they need to build the virtual village it takes to raise a child.”
CBeebies Parenting will offer a Parenting Helpline podcast hosted by celebrity parents Holly Hagan-Blyth, known for starring in Geordie Shore, and Charlie Hedges.
Videos on the CBeebies Parenting site include a number of testimonials from other celebrities, including Joe Wicks and Dani Dyer, talking through their approach to raising children.
