THE new headmaster at Bolton School Boys Division is determined to explore dynamic ideas to improve the school, even though it already achieves impressive results.

Mervyn Brooker, who is responsible for 1,106 pupils at the independent school, says there are a number of avenues that he would like to explore at his new school.

One of them is increasing the number of bursaries available to pupils from low income backgrounds, and another is attracting more students to the school at sixth form level.

He also wants to make more people aware of the extra-curricular activities at the school, which has scores of sporting clubs and societies.

Mr Brooker said: "This is a good school but I want to keep moving forward. There are a number of avenues that I am keen to pursue."

He is also keen to improve technology at the school and to have greater interaction with industry.

Mr Brooker was educated at Lancaster Grammar and then at Burnley High School, before going on to study Geography at Jesus College, Cambridge.

An accomplished cricketer, Mr Brooker was offered a contract by Somerset in 1976 but he opted to go into teaching instead.

Before his Bolton School appointment, Mr Brooker taught in five different schools, two of them comprehensives.

At one point he took time out to work at household products company Proctor and Gamble, but found he missed teaching.

For the last 11 years he has taught at King Edward VI Camphill School for Boys, a state school in Birmingham, latterly as headteacher.

He was also chairman of the Secondary Heads' Association in the city and one of six key headteachers on the local authority management group. Mr Brooker explained why he wanted to move to an independent school. He said: "I felt I had gone as far as I could in state schools. This school offers more opportunity. Also I wanted to move back to the area.

"The extra curricular activities here cannot be matched in state schools. The facilities and opportunities for the children go far beyond anything I could find in the state system."

Mr Brooker, who is married with two children, now lives in Darwen.