39 languages spoken in one British school

LONDON - A British school is finding it difficult to cope with 39 different languages spoken by its pupils and it is now looking for multi-lingual volunteers, a media report said Tuesday.

Endeavour High School in Hull has seen a significant rise in pupils who do not speak English as their first language, Daily Express reported.

There are students from Eastern Europe as well as from Cambodia, the Congo and Taiwan. The languages spoken by the students include Kurdish, Mandarin, Arabic, Polish and Farsi.

Many parents of English-born children are now trying to look for alternative schools.

School head Chris Straker is looking for public help to tide over the problem. “We would love to recruit and recruit and recruit but that isnt possible in this economic climate.

The rate of change in Hull has been breathtaking. Five years ago you didnt see a foreign face or hear a foreign language spoken in the city. Now it is very different,” he was quoted as saying.