FRIENDS reunited to mark 100 years of Catholic education in Farnworth.

Around 300 former pupils of Mount St Joseph School travelled from as far afield as Germany to be at the centenary reunion.

It was part of a year of celebrations to mark the anniversary of the Catholic school.

Headteacher Penny Walker said: "It was wonderful to see so many ex-pupils, some of whom were at Mount St Joseph in the 1920s.

"I think our school has always had a very strong sense of community and that is what makes people keep coming back."

Mount St Joseph was founded in 1902 by the Sisters of the Cross and Passion as a private school for girls in a cottage at Avery Terrace, now Willows Lane, in Bolton.

It later moved to Hawthorne Road, becoming a mixed comprehensive, and more recently to a new purpose-built school in Minerva Road.

Former pupils at the reunion browsed through old photographs, sharing memories of their school days.

Martha Blunt, one of the oldest ex-schoolgirls at 93, said: "Things were different when I was a girl. I remember we used to get Wednesday afternoons off but come in on a Saturday morning. The school had boarders back then as well."

Father Phillip Brady, a former pupil and the school's first priest, led a Mass at the reunion.

He said: "The school has always had a very strong ethos that its pupils should find their vocation in life and look beyond themselves to help others.

"Even though the school has been on three different sites, the caring character of the school has always remained exactly the same."

Other events planned for later in the year include a Centenary Games sports day.