BOLTON School is confident it meets new criteria that will enable it to keep its charitable status.

If recommendations made by the Charity Commission are adopted, independent schools with charitable status will be asked to prove how they benefit the public.

If they do not meet new guidelines the schools will lose charitable status and the tax benefits that come with it.

Simon Marsden, clerk and treasurer at Bolton School, said it was a "key aim" of the school to offer places to all academically bright pupils, regardless of their financial circumstances.

He said: "This year our bursary fund has grown to £1.4 million, allowing 269 pupils in the boys' and girls' divisions to receive assistance with their fees; 85 of these received full fee support.

"We are hopeful that by September we will be able to offer 300 bursary-assisted places. Across the boys' and girls' schools more than 15 per cent of pupils come from families whose annual income is below the national average."

Mr Marsden also said that the school shares its sporting facilities with the local community and county-level clubs.

He said: "The school opens its facilities for an annual sports festival, which is run over two days and involves more than 200 children from 29 local schools.

"We also host an annual science fair, which last year involved 20 local primary schools, and the annual Patterdale Challenge for eight local secondary schools, which takes place at the school's outdoor pursuits centre on the shores of Lake Ullswater, in the Lake District. The School also hosts Bolton Wanderers' Football Academy."

Mr Marsden said that academic staff work within the community and this year are hosting a regional event for gifted and talented students.

He concluded: "The school also undertakes a huge amount of charity work, both in terms of time and money, at a local, national and international level."