PLANS for a new sports facility at Bolton Lads and Girls Club’s Hacken Lane site have been given a welcome boost thanks to a £200,000 grant from the council.

Town hall bosses agreed to provide the money for the charity to develop the site in Darcy Lever as a multi-sports facility with a full size sports pitch, training room and new kitchen.

The grant follows a pledge at this year’s budget meeting to spend £1 million on developing facilities for young people in Bolton.

Karen Edwards, chief executive of the charity, said it would cost the organisation £1.7 million to transform the current grounds into a multi-sports facility to be enjoyed by schoolchildren across the borough.

She added: “We are very grateful to the council for its generous contribution to our Hacken Lane appeal, which will help the club and the town to continue to build on the legacy of the successful Bolton 2012 Year of Sport.”

A council spokesman added: “The club is looking to provide a wide range of community facilities which will include sports such as football, cricket, hockey and rounders.

“Users will include the Sixth Form College, Bolton College, the University and Bolton School, all of whom will make a contri-bution for the use of the facilities.”

Bolton’s first outdoor gym opened in Queens Park earlier this month. The council has spent £12,000 installing new equipment at the park off Chorley New Road, including two slaloms, a fitness walker and a leg push for people to get fit in time for summer.

The outdoor gym was paid for out of a £2 million investment pot into sports and recreational facilities across Bolton.

The council is also spending £474,000 improving Hulton Lane Playing Fields with four new football pitches, changing rooms and toilets.

More than £600,000 will be spent draining other playing fields, as well as £300,000 refurbishing tennis courts including the set at Moss Bank Park.

Another £200,000 has been earmarked for new and refurbishing multi-use games areas, and around £150,000 is set to be spent improving cycle trails.