BOLTON School's junior school is set to expand its facilities using portable buildings.

From September next year both the girls division on Chorley New Road and boys division in Park Road will start taking in pupils as young as seven, instead of eight.

The move is being made to bring the school into line with national guidelines on the starting age at junior school.

However, until the junior schools undergo a complete revamp the facilities will be expanded using portable buildings.

The school this week applied for planning permission to put up buildings at the two sites for a period of five years.

Four classrooms are to be erected at the girls' school but at the boys school the buildings will be more extensive.

At the moment the boys have a 200-yard walk to the senior school for their lunch each day.

But now a temporary dining room and kitchen will be put up on the Park Road site.

There will also be a two-storey portable building to form a library, two classrooms and a toilet block.

School governors are currently looking at schemes to revamp the whole school complex but no decision on the development has yet been taken.