SOUTH Craven School pupils met their new headteacher on Tuesday.

Andrew Cummings has moved from George Abbot School, in Guildford, a suburban large comprehensive near London.

He brings with him a wealth of experience of working in large comprehensive schools, and has already been through the process of bidding for specialist status with his former school.

South Craven School, the largest in the county, is waiting to hear whether it will be awarded technology status.

Mr Cummings, who has moved to Leeds with his wife and twin sons, said one thing he would be looking to do at the school is raise the profile of comprehensive education in the area.

"I am very committed to the whole ethos of comprehensive education, where pupils all have equal value, and we have to do our very best to allow them to achieve their potential," he said.

He said he was looking forward to working within the curriculum to provide more vocational based classes for the pupils, as well as the more conventional qualifications.

"There's no such thing as a 'bog standard' comprehensive", he added.

Mr Cummings said that he was looking forward to working in a more diverse school, with different issues than inner-city schools.

"This community is more diverse, there are kids from parts of Bradford as well as more genuinely rural areas. It is more comprehensive in the true sense of the word, in that it is serving such a wide and diverse community. The school needs to be that much more radical because we have such a wide range of needs to serve," he said.

Mr Cummings' move to the North will also allow him to pursue his interest in walking, and has already been getting his boots dirty over the Easter weekend!