David Lambon, principal of St Malachy's college in north Belfast, has been appointed the first lay head of Ampleforth college, one of England's leading independent Catholic boarding schools.

In September, Belfast teacher Mr Lambon (46) will take over at Ampleforth in north Yorkshire where tuition and boarding fees are £30,000 annually. The school has about 500 boarders and 100 day students. Mr Lambon said he was “delighted” by the appointment.

St Malachy's, a non-fee paying boys' school, has just fewer than 1,100 pupils. As principal Mr Lambon helped improve GCSE results by 10 per cent, and at his previous school, St Mary's grammar in Magherafelt, Co Derry, assisted it to win the Sunday Times Northern Ireland School of the Year competition in 2009.

A trained engineer and mathematician, Mr Lambon also has an MBA in school leadership and management.

The Benedictine college in England until this year was normally run by a monk from the Ampleforth monastery.