The appointment of a new team of Boys’ Division Monitors has this year coincided with a redesign of the Monitors’ tie, the new version of which has now been presented to the 2026-27 Monitors.
The new tie displays broad black and green stripes and a thinner red line, along with the Boys’ Division coat of arms at the base of the tie. All of the elements are intended to reflect the coat of arms as well as symbolising the qualities and merit of the Monitors themselves.
The base colour of black is the colour of the Boys’ Division and represents the school itself, along with the crest at the base of the tie. The colour of the green stripe is drawn from the sprigs of laurel on the crest of the coat of arms; laurels were handed to winners in the first Olympic Games and to victorious generals and, in heraldry, they are used to indicate distinction and achievement, while also reminding Monitors not to ‘rest on their laurels’. The thin red line references the comb of the cockerel in the crest: not only part of the ‘canting arms’ on the name of Lever, one of the School’s key benefactors, but also a symbol of vigilance, courage, pride, leadership and order.
The design was somewhat inspired by the Old Boltonians’ Association tie proudly worn by Boys’ Division alumni: this was first introduced around 1931 and changed to the current design in 1986.
There are unfortunately no definitive records of when a Monitors’ tie was introduced in school, nor of when the first team of Monitors was appointed. However, it is likely that the Monitors’ Boards on display in the Boys’ Division begin their record with the inaugural team in the early 1900s. This means that the tradition of Monitors at Bolton School Boys’ Division dates back over 100 years.
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