National pub chain J D Wetherspoon is eyeing up new sites in Yardley, Northfield, Redditch and Stourbridge as it looks to expand further following the announcement of record results.

The chain, which saw its half-yearly profits rise 17.5 per cent to £36.2 million, is looking to open 50 new pubs nationwide over the next year.

And all of its outlets will be opening at 7am from April 28, as it looks to expand the breakfast service and food offering that has driven a sales rise at the company even during the recession.

The Watford-based group hailed the record profits and sales despite a difficult trading environment that has seen many smaller pubs collapse. Total sales were up 4.1 per cent at £488.1 million.

Chairman Tim Martin said: "I think we are doing well with record profits, record sales, very strong cash flow and good opportunities to double the number of pubs over the next 10 to 15 years, doubling the number of jobs."

He said the firm paid out an average bonus of about 13 per cent of salary to all staff, with cash and share awards totalling £12.5 million over the period, adding: "The motivation is that pubs depend on people. If we can attract and retain the best people then we will do better and it is as simple as that."

The company has also arranged a refinancing that extends its banking facilities to a new £530 million four-year facility, which finance director Keith Down said would mean it was no longer limited by debt and cash availability.

He said: "We aren’t going to spend cash blindly, but we can take advantage of any opportunities that come along now.

And he added that while the group now made about two thirds of its revenue from food sales, there was still an opportunity to increase its drink sales by taking a larger share of the declining market.

He said: "Effectively I think over time we have turned more into a pub restaurant than a pub group. We are moving away from the more traditional boozer to more of a restaurant with a wide product range."