I understand you don't need to speak Japanese and that schools look for "native speakers" to converse with the children in everyday-situations. I've had some experience of teaching (volunteer work) but I have had no formal training.

Does anyone know of any companies/societies in England with links to Japanese schools? Is there any kind of society within the UK which foreign countries can send "requests" to?

I'm taking a gap year before University and would love a chance to get some "real world" experience of a new culture while simultaneously giving something back to that culture. Does anyone know if any assistance is given once you arrive in the country (eg: will the school help with finding accomodation/send someone to meet you at the airport?)

The best thing to do is look at companies which are in Japan, that are hiring. I recommend checking out the website www.gaijinpot.com, which has a lot of job listings and support for teachers, both new and old. You could sign up with a company in England, but unfortunately, what you are told in England may not be what you experience in Japan.

Keep in mind that if you do not have a degree or diploma of some kind, you will have a hard time finding employment with a reputable company. Most good companies require teachers to have a degree of some kind.

Also a word of caution: one of the biggest English conversation schools in Japan is called NOVA, and you should avoid it at all costs. It is rapidly going bankrupt, and yet they still advertise for teachers. NOVA is a terrible company; the reason why it is doing so badly (so suddenly!) is that it has been more or less prevented from signing up new students (by the government) because of extremely questionable business tactics. You can read about this on the online English language version of the Daily Yomiuri or the Japan Times.