The Specialist Schools and Academies Trust (SSAT) suggested that languages are best learnt in a bilingual setting.

The advice follows the considerable decline in modern language uptake by GCSE pupils since they were made optional in 2004.

According to the BBC, the number of pupils opting to take GCSE French and German has decreased by almost 50 per cent since 2002.

By learning languages alongside other subjects, pupils are more likely to have the language embedded into their learning, the organisation suggests.

SSAT also proposes that employers work with overseas businesses to encourage applied language learning.

The measures were put forward as more than 2,000 teachers attended the organisation’s annual conference in Birmingham.

Children’s secretary Ed Balls suggested that staff with teaching jobs and pupils could help schools save money by considering their electricity usage, for example.

To help in this goal, a total of £12 million has been earmarked to introduce smart meters into schools so that electricity usage can be monitored.

Headteachers, governing bodies and local authorities will also be asked to work together to make the best use of taxpayers’ money in schools.

He suggested, for example, collective buying and better use of technology to make the best use of funds and shared services between schools.

Schools are also being encouraged to sign up to the Schools Recruitment Service to help them save time and money when recruiting teaching staff.

"It is in order to get the maximum value from every pound we spend on the school system that I am taking the unprecedented step of promoting a national debate with schools, school leaders and their colleagues about what steps we can all take to ensure the best use of our school resources in the coming years," Mr Balls stated.

In other news from the Department for Children, Schools and Families, there was a 21.6 per cent decrease in the number of young people entering the criminal justice system last year.

More people are looking for teaching opportunities because they want a more altruistic career these days, director of Talent Transitions Chris Morrall said.

Mr Morrall was responding to the latest figures from the Teaching and Development Agency for Schools, which showed that the number of people recruited onto teaching training courses exceeded government targets this year for the first time ever.

Even the target for maths teacher recruitment has been exceeded, a subject traditionally hard to recruit people into.

The quality of people starting teacher training so they can be recruited into teaching jobs in London and across the UK has also improved this year, with 61 per cent of those training with a 2:1 degree or better, up from 56 per cent last year.

Mr Morrall added that a teaching career also has attractions to a more mature applicant.

"Job changers want to go into it because they have had enough of corporate life," he said.

The move is to be part of a major campaign launched early next year designed to cut carbon emissions in schools.

As part of the scheme, schools secretary Ed Balls has stated that £12 million is to be invested in smart meters, which will allow schools to see their electricity consumption levels in real-time.

Staff with teaching roles in London and across the UK could find the new technology useful for teaching children about climate change and carbon reduction.

It will also help schools with financial management.

According to research from the Carbon Trust, smart meters and wider behavioural changes in energy use could lead to ten to 15 per cent cuts in fuel bills.

This could mean that the average one-form primary school could save up to £700 a year on their energy bills, the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) has estimated.

In other news from the DCSF, there has been a 21.6 per cent decrease in the past year in the number of young people entering the criminal justice system through a reprimand, warning or conviction.

Some of those applying for the scheme in order to gain access to the UK labour market may be staff looking for teaching jobs in London and across the UK.

Countries from which migrants have applied include Cyprus, Malta, Czech Republic and Lithuania.

According to the UK Border Agency, the number of applicants from Poland fell during this period to 13,700 in comparison to 25,145 in the third-quarter of 2008 and 41,195 during the same time period in 2007.

The statistics also showed that a total of 112,000 work permits holders and dependents were admitted to the UK in 2008, a 12 per cent decrease on 2007.

Some of these could be European staff looking for teaching roles in the UK.

The status of a school is secondary to its management, levels of investment, leadership and ethos, a spokesperson for Voice said.

Positive relationships with local communities and support for social problems are also central to a school’s success, he added.

His comments follow the release of the Ofsted annual report, which revealed that five out of the 30 schools inspected this year were rated inadequate.

Fifteen, however, were rated good or outstanding, arguably a good achievement since some of these educational institutions were set up to replace failing schools.

Some of the concerns raised about inadequate academies included weaknesses in strategic leadership and the inability to set up a positive ethos and consistently high quality teaching.

The spokesperson for Voice suggested that academies may have other flaws.

"We are concerned about the influence and control that sponsors have over academies," he said. "Providing high quality education and care may not be their overwhelming priority, as they may well have political, religious or profit motivations."

This is so that they are able to teach lessons about how to prevent violent relationships, the BBC notes.

The move is part of a new government initiative, under which all children will attend compulsory lessons in gender equality and preventing violence in relationships.

Teachers in London and across the UK are likely to teach the lessons as part of the personal, social, health and economic education curriculum.

The content of the lessons will vary depending on the age of pupils, schools minister Vernon Coaker commented.

"The appropriateness of what you do with someone who is five years old is totally different in terms of content and how you will be taught to someone who is 15 or 16," he added.

Wattenden primary school in Purley was particularly commended for its family feel and the way in which pupils from different backgrounds work together, according to the Croydon Advertiser.

Headteacher Jan Kennard told the paper the school was particularly proud to have received an outstanding rating for its effectiveness in promoting community cohesion.

"It is something we try and actively promote as part of our school ethos," she added.

Ms Kennard also stated that the Croydon teachers worked very hard before the inspection as they were only told about it two days before it took place.

The Ofsted report stated that teachers work hard to ensure lessons are planned to suit pupils’ interests and ability levels.

"The curriculum is outstanding and provides memorable experiences for all groups of pupils and contributes significantly to their good progress," it added.

Dr John Dunford, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, added that it would be too simplistic and potentially damaging to come up with a national policy on this issue.

Instead, he proposed that an open discussion on mixed ability teaching versus setting is necessary, as recently recommended in a report from Teach First.

The report was written, researched and edited by over 500 Teach First teachers who have been recruited into teaching jobs after university.

It stated that a discussion on the benefits and drawbacks of streaming versus mixed ability classes should consider the recognised impact of the ‘peer effect’ on pupil learning.

Mr Dunford added that he also agreed with the Teach First report that no overall grade should be given within the school report card, which is to be introduced into all schools in the future.

"The school report card represents a real opportunity to change the accountability system for the better," he added.

Ofsted inspectors rated primary, secondary and special schools over the course of the year and recorded the results in the school inspectors’ annual report.

Chief inspector Christine Gilbert commented that the report, which included the news about Birmingham schools, showed there had been sustained improvement in many areas of the UK.

However, she added that all schools should aspire to be good and work towards excellent standards.

"That’s what gives children and learners, whatever their age, hope and the belief in themselves to succeed," she said.

The annual report is based on 40,000 inspections and covers childcare and children’s services as well as schools and colleges.

It stated that 19 per cent of schools inspected this year were labelled outstanding, while 49 per cent were rated as good.

Just four per cent were considered inadequate and 28 per cent satisfactory.

The report also stated that of the 30 academies inspected this year, five were found to be inadequate and five satisfactory.