THE welcome could have been warmer when Jeremy Glover visited Bolton for the first time in the early 1970s.

Huddersfield, his home-town team, was beaten by Wanderers at Burnden Park and some of the thuggish Bolton fans of the time chased him along Manchester Road to Trinity Street railway station.

These days, Jeremy enjoys the respect of the thousands of young people he has helped over nearly 25 years with Bolton Lads and Girls Club.

"I class myself as a Boltonian now," he told me. "I love the town."

Jeremy, who is 49 and lives in Heaton with his 14-year-old son, Tom, is close to seeing the realisation of a dream which he and others had seven years ago when it was evident that the premises in Bark Street -- home to the club since 1889 -- were no longer able to meet the demands of a growing membership.

The club will shortly be moving in to a £4.2 million building in Spa Road which has a breath-taking array of facilities including a large sports hall, a cyber cafe, catering facilities, a study room complete with computers, a well-equipped gym, a performing arts room and an outdoor pitch for six-a-side football.

It is a fantastic addition to the fabric of the town and one which will be the envy of communities throughout the UK.

Jeremy, who is the manager, is clearly thrilled to bits with the opportunity he now has to develop the club's important work with Bolton's young people.

"This is something for the whole town to be proud of," he said as we chatted in his new office. He came to Bolton Lads Club, as it was then known, in 1978 as a 25-year-old graduate in business studies.

Membership grew from 400 to 800 in a five-year spell as leader before he left to take up a similar post at a youth centre in Trafford.

In January 1985, he returned to his old job -- suitably upgraded -- after he was "headhunted" by the Bolton management committee.

Since then, he has become a familiar figure in Bolton and has fond memories of the Bark Street premises and the young people and helpers he has worked with over the years.

Bark Street will initially be let out to businesses and organisations, but it is hoped that it will eventually be sold to raise money towards the running costs of the new building.

At the moment, the youth club -- the title seems inadequate for such magnificent surroundings -- has 1,500 members -- and Jeremy expects that figure to top 2,000 before long.

"We want to encourage kids to be positive," he says. "You have to have somewhere for them to go."

This is a point which will have particular resonance in those areas of town where bored youths continue to cause upset and damage. The hope is that more of them will be attracted to Bolton's cheapest sports and social club -- 30p for four hours -- just two minutes walk from Moor Lane Bus Station.

The new club will cater for everybody between the ages of five and 21. You can play football, badminton, basketball, netball, rounders, volleyball, table tennis, indoor cricket, short tennis and boxing.

Jeremy is hoping that some individuals will go on to become top class sportsmen and women.

To help this process, the club hopes to enter teams in local leagues, such as those for badminton and table tennis.

An added bonus is the close proximity to Queen's Park and its potential for expanding club activities.

Bolton Lads and Girls Club is a limited company and a registered charity run by a board of 12. It is chaired by local businesswoman Laura Nuttall.

The club received Lottery funding of £3.6 million and has raised a further £500,000.

However, Jeremy is well aware of the struggle that lies ahead to continue to fund the wide range of activities planned.

Running costs for the last 12 months were £850,000 -- and it looks like being £1.2 million for the next 12 months.

"It is going to be a real challenge," Jeremy said.