THE business of leisure has been opened up to pupils at a Bolton primary school after they spent a whole week on a health course.

Year 5 pupils from St Paul's CE Primary, Astley Bridge, were given the low-down on Bolton's fitness scene as part of their Healthy Living project.

To learn more about a life in leisure the children were given the grand tour of some of Bolton's fitness facilities.

At the Excel Centre and Esporta Health and Leisure they were given a tour and learned how to use gym equipment.

And at The Water Place the group had a splashing time learning all about the management of a swimming pool.

Back in school the health conscious youngsters were given the chance to put what they had learned into practice.

Year 5 teacher Angela Eastwood said: "The children have been devising circuits in their PE lessons, including warm-up and cool down elements.

"They have compared the three venues visited and then decided what they would like in a new gym."

The youngsters even designed their own ideal gym which they called Sportak for which they produced brochures and an activity list.

The school also teamed up with leisure and tourism students from Bolton College who have been at the Newnham Street primary telling the pupils more about healthy eating and exercise as well as touching on drugs, tobacco and alcohol-related issues.

The week climaxed with a circuit challenge where pupils got to grips with the equipment and exercised against each other to win a special certificate.