By Catherine Marston BBC News

Colin Hunt's boxing club is helping turn troubled teens around

Colin Hunt is a very modest man. He will tell you he is just doing his job, working with young people in trouble, but in reality he is totally dedicated and passionate about his work and the teenagers he works with call him their hero.

Colin runs a boxing and gym club in Birkenhead for teenage boys and girls who have either offended or are at risk of offending or getting into trouble.

Some of the young people are referred by agencies, others are here because they've heard about Colin and want to join in.

Many of them have problems with alcohol, drugs and substances and many are excluded from school. Colin prefers to describe them as "challenging".

"They are at a crossroads in their life and I am helping them choose the right path," he says.

It takes time to get respect. It takes time to discover what makes them tick and to capture that Colin Hunt

Colin runs the group through Positive Futures, a government-funded initiative to help young people in deprived areas. He offers free gym membership to the teenagers and runs extra boxing and circuit sessions.

Scott Brennan is 18 and has been coming to the club for some months.

He says he was getting into trouble regularly, taking drugs and being excluded from school. Then he met Colin.

"I'd be in the gutter," he says. "I'd be like a few of my mates, who are locked up, and one of my other mates, who has to go to crown court. So I sort of broke away from them. I'd probably be with them going down if I hadn't gone with Colin."

Colin gives up a great deal of his free time to help these teenagers too.

Friday night flashpoint

"It takes time to get respect," he explains. "It takes time to discover what makes them tick and to capture that."

He certainly does win their respect. They look up to Colin and listen to him in a way they would not with their parents or teachers.

It's Friday night, I'd just be out robbing out of cars, just to get money, but now I'm playing football Mikey Dean

Scott explains it's because Colin does not look down on them or judge them.

Friday evenings are a flashpoint for many of the teenagers. It's the night they are most likely to be out causing trouble, damaging property and being antisocial.

So Colin has set up a regular football match. It's really popular and one of those who attends is Mikey Dean. He explains he almost was sent to jail for his offending and ended up being referred to Colin.

He says: "It's Friday night, I'd just be out robbing out of cars, just to get money, but now I'm playing football."

Colin is turning lives around. When society has given up on these young people, he refuses to. He's had plenty of success stories too, with teenagers finding work, going through education and joining the marines because of Colin.