Hi Guys,
I have been meaning to write up the steps I went through for quite a while, time seems to have eluded me!
I have run through all the tests suggested by the helpful forum members in this thread, checking and then replacing the photocell, setting up the electrodes etc. all with no difference in symptoms.
I had tried to find a new control box and have been told by several wholesalers that they are no longer available and a newer compatible version was also not available, meaning that I had to replace the burner or the boiler. Faced with the decreasing range of options, I decided I had nothing to lose and took the control box apart.
Inside is a strange arrangement of multiple relay contacts, some resistors and diodes and a large relay coil. Shining a torch into the electronics, I managed to identify a broken wire on the base of the relay coil, this was quickly re-soldered onto the printed circuit board. The re-installed control box didn't work straight away, I also found some dry solder joints on the control box PCB and the terminal PCB in the control box base, so it's worth checking there as well.
Once I was sure everything inside the control box was connected to where it should be, it was re-installed and then the boiler fired up and remained running, as it still does today (touch wood). There were a number of random lock-outs in the first week, but these have cleared up.
About two weeks after the boiler was working, it went into lockout again, this time it turned out to be the solenoid valve electrical coil burnt out, open circuit when checked with a multimeter. It turned out I had put the spring washer on the spigot before the coil and then the lock nut, whereas it should be coil, spring washer then lock nut. The coil has been replaced and the boiler is now working fine.
I have also found out from the manufacturer that a new version control box is available, so I have a cheaper option than replacing the burner or boiler should it stop working again, hopefully not.
Hope this helps.
Tony