MANY of our town centres seem to have become a magnet for teenagers who tend to congregate in the street to chat because there is nowhere else for them to hang out without spending money.
Some people, especially the elderly, can find these groups intimidating and it is all too easy for groups of youngsters to find themselves getting into trouble.
The concept of a Lads and Girls club like that in Bolton, with its new multi-million-pound base, is a great one.
advertisement
It's not a new idea however.
The original Bolton club opened in 1889 for mill boys. Girls were allowed to join in 1961.
But today's centre has a fully equipped gym, an indoor climbing wall, performing arts space and a cafe.
Plans to try to attract lottery funding for something similar in Blackburn's Cathedral Quarter deserve the support of everyone.
The scheme has already received cross-party backing and since the borough has the highest proportion of under-19s in England, and very little for them to do in the town centre, the case for lottery funding is compelling.
Money has already been set aside for running costs.
What we need now is a firm government commitment to help turn the dream into reality.
If you liked this article and would like to share it with others on the web who might be searching for good content we've made it easy for you to do it.
At the bottom of all articles, you'll see links to six sites. These sites - commonly called 'social bookmark' or 'social news' sites - have large communities of web users who share and rate interesting, useful and fun things on the web.
Clicking the links will automatically add the address of the story you are reading to one of these sites, letting you share it with others. Each site will ask you to register to share stories. Registration is free and once a member, you can store, recommend and search for stories that interest you.
Print
Email this
Comment
