THE young star of an Oscar-winning short film has received an award from none other than the Prime Minister.

Maisie Sly met the PM at Downing Street’s Christmas light’s switch-on to be recognised with a special Points of Light award for raising awareness of the issues facing deaf people.

Her mum Elisabeth, dad Gilson, older brother Jack and younger sister Chloe joined Maisie and her Silent Child co-star Rachel Shenton to see the switch-on for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Maisie said: “It is really cool and brilliant that I’ve got this award. Thank you.”

The Points of Light award she received recognises outstanding volunteers who are making a change in their community and inspiring others.

Each day, someone, somewhere in the country is selected to receive the award to celebrate their achievements.

In a letter to the youngster, Theresa May wrote:”Through your role in the Oscar-winning short film The Silent Child, you have become an inspiration to the deaf community.

“By bravely sharing your personal experiences at this year’s Global Disability Summit, you have raised awareness of the issues that deaf people face.

“This is a tremendous achievement, particularly at such a young age, and I wish you every success as you continue to highlight the importance of sign language.”

The seven-year-old Red Oaks Primary School pupil shot to fame in her first-ever acting role after the short film The Silent Child, in which she played the deaf main character Libby, won Best Short Film at the 2018 Oscars.

Maisie and her family attended the glitzy LA awards ceremony earlier this year. She was picked out of more than 100 other deaf and hard-of-hearing children who auditioned for the role.

Since then, she's starred in adverts for Aldi and Huawei which shine a spotlight on sign language, and become the youngest ever delegate at the DFID Global Disability Summit.

The Silent Child, in which Libby feels lonely and struggles to communicate with her family until a kind social worker teaches her sign language, was screened at the summit.

Maisie then sat on a question-and-answer panel with her proud dad to share her experiences with other delegates and the global media.

Maisie also teaches sign language to pupils in her school who do not have hearing problems, so that they can all communicate with each other.