THE man in charge of the £15 million Bolton Arena project is understandably upbeat about a major new boost to community life.

"I think it is absolutely fantastic," Chief Executive Mike Barlow said this week.

"The philosophy is that 90 per cent of its time it is a community facility providing opportunities for everybody in and around the Bolton area."

The Arena, which is just over the road from the magnificent Reebok Stadium, is set to have a considerable national and international profile as it trains the lawn tennis stars of the future and stages major tournaments attracting up to 6,000 people.

It has been developed through a partnership between Bolton Council, the Lawn Tennis Association (which has its regional office there), Sport England, the Emerson Group and Bolton Wanderers.

Impressive

Next July it will be on the world stage for two weeks as it hosts the badminton events at the 2002 Manchester Commonwealth Games. But initially the emphasis is on encouraging local people to use the impressive facilities on offer. The Arena is staging a preview weekend tomorrow and Sunday in advance of the opening on Easter Saturday, April 14. It will be a relatively low-key affair which will be followed by a big opening ceremony at a later date.

Mr Barlow, who is 43, is Chief Executive of the Bolton Middlebrook Leisure Trust, the organisation which Bolton Council -- the instigator and owner of the ambitious project -- has established to run the Arena on its behalf. Members are drawn from sports club/organisations, local businesses, education and public authority/voluntary organisations.

Rochdale-born Mr Barlow, who now lives in Leyland, began his career as a trainee Leisure Services Officer in Pendle in 1974. He moved to the North-east in the late 1980s to be Assistant Director responsible for leisure management at Langbaurgh-on-Tees and had a spell as Director of Commercial Leisure Services with the City of York Council.

In 1997 he became Business Development Manager for the North with a private sector company, CCL Leisure later becoming Regional Operations Manager responsible for the company's South-west operations.

When he started the Bolton Arena job at the beginning of December, 2000 it was a "hard hat" building site which has since been transformed into a splendid new asset for the town.

Indoor facilities include eight acrylic tennis courts, a health and fitness centre, an aerobics and dance studio, a sports education theatre, a sports science and performance unit, bars, catering and social facilities and rooms for conferences and meetings.

Athletics

Floodlit attractions outside include six American fast dry clay tennis courts, a 400- metre athletics track, a multi-use games area and pitches for football, "street basketball" and netball.

Mr Barlow's management team consists of Martin Eden (Operations), Linda McBrearty (Finance and Administration) and Suzanne Kirk (Marketing and Sales). There is a team of 50 full and part-time staff to look after the interests of people who are being encouraged to use the Arena on a casual "pay and play" basis.

Mr Barlow and wife Tracey have three children. All this is available for you! Chief Executive Mike Barlow on the indoor tennis courts Ref: J945/19a