HusBos has a lot to recommend it - unfortunately it's the other side of Birmingham and Manchester to Lancashire (as is Bicester and Lasham), and in my experience those bits of the motorway network can be stuffed with traffic and traffic jams even at weekends. The Birmingham Toll Road is a great help (at least at the times I've used it) but adds £5 each way to his travelling costs.
Personally I feel that the OP is best to find a friendly club that's easy for him to get to and from at the weekend - he wants to glide, not drive! But if he wants a 5-day course then a lot more places are worth considering. I've met a few folks from Bowland Forest and they seem great fun. I've not flown there or visited but it seems to me the place for him to start as it's the nearest. That would be my tactic - start with the nearest that offers what he (thinks he) wants and work away from home if they don't suit for one reason or another. Or, pick a club with great facilities, and do a 5-day course. The one fly in the ointment with that is that if the weather is good that's great, but if it's poor then it can be very frustrating and a waste of hard-won holidays.