A third of English schools report a drop in interest in studying foreign languages following the Brexit vote, raising concern for the future preparedness of the country to develop international business and trade.
A survey by the British Council of nearly 1,500 state and independent primary and secondary schools shows a decline in the study of languages over the past five years, despite government targets to promote the subjects in its baccalaureate.
The proportion of pupils taking a GCSE in a modern language subject at the end of key stage 4 fell by two percentage points to 47 per cent between summer 2016 and summer 2017; only a third of those taking the exam obtained a grade C or above, according to figures from the Department for Education.