Salford Lads Club saved from closure as £250k target smashed following fundraising appeal

A youth club made famous after featuring on one of The Smith's hit albums has been saved from closure after a huge fundraising effort.

Salford Lads Club - a lifeline for young people from deprived communities - announced in October 2024 it needed to raise £250,000 by the end November or face imminent closure.

The club, which opened in 1903, found itself in financial trouble after a rise in energy costs and a reduction in public funding for community organisations.

In just six weeks £273,000 has been raised, with donations include £100,000 from Salford City Council and £50,000 from Smiths frontman Morrissey.

The fundraising target was surpassed two days before the looming deadline after £30,000 was pledged by the gas company Cadent.

Now the club, which offers sport and other activities six days a week to more than 200 local youths has some breathing space.

The next move is to set up a £1 million 'Legacy Fund' - a permanent endowment fund that could draw down £40,000 to £50,000 a year in returns.Leslie Holmes, projects manager at the club for 22 years, said: "It's incredible that so many people have helped us to reach our total in such a short period of time.

"I don't think James and Williams Groves, who built the club in 1903, could ever have imagined a time when Salford Lads Club would be valued by people from almost every country in the world."I think a lot of our appeal is just that - we are local history with a worldwide audience. Local people have knocked on my door to give me cash donations, people have come up to me in Sainsbury;s to ask about the appeal; it has had such a powerful effect on everyone around here."Among the names of people who have made donations there are those of recent visitors from as far afield as Santiago in Chile, Reykjavik in Iceland, and Busan in South Korea."Over the past 120 years, Salford Lads Club has come to mean so many different things to so many people, including me. But I think one thing we can all agree about is that this place is unique and irreplaceable."

The club is located inside a listed building, officially opened in 1904, and was immortalised into music history after featuring on the inside sleeve of the 1986 album, The Queen is Dead.

Costs in recent years have rocketed, with the club finding it difficult to look after and maintain its Edwardian home with the care it need. Bosses say they also need to employ staff to run the club and be able to compete for grants.Phil Burrows, head of customer vulnerability at Cadent, said: "This is not just an iconic centre, it is a vital part of the community, providing a safe and welcoming place for young people in particular, and many more too. It has been wonderful to learn all about the incredible work that goes on within the club.

"I am glad that we can provide the final amount of funding the club needs to reach its target to stay open. As someone born and raised in Manchester, and being a big fan of The Smiths, I am more than just a little proud that we could make this happen. Stealing words from a certain songwriter, this is a light that should never go out."

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