SCHOOLBOY David Cross will spend a day as headteacher at Minety School after his parents bid for the honour in a fundraising auction of promises.

David, nine, will join headteacher Bernard Crooks bright and early tomorrow at 8am before taking the school for assembly and accompanying pupils on a trip to an art exhibition at Crudwell School.

"It should be interesting and very funny and something of a shock for David to come in at 8am," said Mr Crooks.

David, who lives in Upper Minety, said he is looking forward to his day in the hot seat. "It's going to be a bit strange and just feels really weird that I'm going to be the headmaster," said David.

"I think I will go a bit easy on all the other children but it will be really different because I won't be able to go out and play with them at lunchtime.

"I will have to sit in here and that will be hard because I will want to play with them.

"I will also be doing lots of things I don't usually do, like going on the computer, opening letters, going in the kitchen at lunchtime, and taking the dinner registers and seeing who is having packed lunches.

"I am just looking forward to all of it."

The chance to be head for the day was one of a host of items that went under the hammer at the primary school on Friday in the auction of promises, hosted by GWR's Gary Vincent.

Mr Crooks said the school wanted to do an event that raised a lot of money in one go. "It was a great success and a great deal of fun. We raised £4,138.72p," he said.

He said Heather Whitcombe, from Minety, bid successfully for a bag of manure. Other items included three weekly ironing sessions for cotton shirts, which was put up by Heather Pilcher.

A year's supply of weekly deliveries of or Mr Crooks said the money would go towards general funds for the improvement of the school.

"We raised a little more than I expected but I had soon realised how popular the night was becoming in the run up to the event," added Mr Crooks.