MORE than £1 million will be spent on drug users in Bolton in a new attempt to stamp out addiction.

For the first time, the Government's funding of a treatment programme in the town will break through the £1 million mark -- giving Bolton's drugs team an extra £249,000 to spend next year.

The cash, which amounts to £1,152,000, is coming directly from the Government which this week announced it was to spend £1.5 billion nationwide in a crackdown on the devastating effects of drugs.

Bolton's council-run Drugs Action Team will use the windfall to employ seven extra people to work with the 2,500 addicts believed to be living in the borough.

It comes just days after the mother of murdered prostitute Carly Bateman warned parents that heroin was one of Bolton's biggest killers.

She said: "You don't know when heroin will come knocking on your door."

Heroin is Bolton's most widely used illegal substance and the town's drug team has seen an increase in the number of users being referred to them.

The new staff members will include four drug workers, a hostels worker, a GP liaison worker and a care co-ordinator.

Sandie Nesbitt, the Drug Action Team co-ordinator, said: "For every £1 that is spent on treating drug users, there's a saving of £3 in terms of the cost to society because of the strong link between illegal drug use and crime.

"I'm delighted that we have received this money because it will allow us to expand our team and help more people." Mrs Nesbitt is also looking to expand the under-19 drug service, Project 360. It is believed more money is on the way to fund preventative drug programmes.

This year Bolton received £903,000 to fund community-based drug treatment and the cash boost is effectively a 28 per cent increase.

The Government plans to sanction further cash increases for Drug Action Teams over the next three years. By 2005 Bolton's team should have £1,538,000 available to spend.

The town's Drug Action Team currently sees 1,125 addicts, just less than half of the total number estimated to have a drug habit, and it is believed the extra money will help it to deal with more of them.

Phil Willan, North-west regional manager for the National Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse, said: "Drug treatment services have made real progress over the last year. Waiting times are coming down, services are expanding and we are seeing a more co-ordinated system of treatment."

An extra £100 million of central Government funding is being pumped into community-based drug treatment across Britain over the next three years.