City's famous youth club saved from closure

An inner city youth club which became a worldwide tourist destination after appearing on the inside sleeve of a Smiths album has been saved from closure.

Salford Lads Club, which opened in 1904, has received the final donation it needed to take it past the £250k survival target.

The club in Ordsall, which launched a fundraising appeal last month, has been sent £30,000 from energy firm Cadent.

Hundreds of people have donated including former Smiths frontman Morrissey who gave £50,000.

The club which is situated on Coronation Street warned in November it could be forced to shut without urgent financial help.

An overjoyed trustee Leslie Holmes told BBC Radio Manchester: "It is fantastic we have been trying to get this funding for quite a while – to reach the target is amazing."

In addition to high profile donors such as Morrissey and Salford City Council - who gave the club £100,000 - he said local people were also keen to save it.

"I've had people giving me donations in the street - even in the supermarket, people stop me and ask what is happening," he said.

Visitors from Santiago in Chile, Reykjavik in Iceland and Busan in South Korea have all donated recently.

"I don’t think James and William Grimble 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," said Mr Holmes.

He added: "We are creating a legacy fund and reaching our target gives us a platform for longer term fundraising."

Kevin Hegarty from Cadent said it was "wonderful" to be among some "illustrious" donors to help such an "iconic" part of Salford.

He said the company had agreed the funding to set up one of its "centres of warmth" in the venue where people could get advice and support to deal with their fuel bills.

The club has become a tourist magnet thanks to its connection to The Smiths.

In an interview with the Guardian, photographer Stephen Wright described the 1986 image of the band as "one posed shot on an incredibly dark day in Salford" which had "continued to pleasantly haunt me".

Music fans and musicians including Noel Gallagher, who donated a guitar for auction have rallied around the club.

Salford-born musician Graham Nash, whose band The Hollies played a gig in their early days at the club, donated £10,000.