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13 October 2023
West Northamptonshire Council’s Cabinet has approved a two-year plan for Youth Justice in Northamptonshire.
The Youth Offending Service (YOS) is a statutory multi agency service, which has a responsibility to prevent offending and reoffending by those aged under 18 years who are resident in Northamptonshire. Under the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 there is a statutory requirement to publish an annual Youth Justice Plan which must provide specified information about the local provision of youth justice services.
The plan covers 2023 to 2024 and sets out how, through the delivery of a range of services and interventions, the YOS will work hard to ensure that children and young people are kept out of the formal criminal justice system.
The plan also sets out the direction and strategy of youth justice services, describing how quality services will be provided to ensure positive outcomes for children and improvements in performance indicators, in particular: reducing first time entrants to the youth justice system:
- reducing the use of custody
- reducing reoffending rates
- locally agreed performance indicators that evidence positive outcomes for children
The areas of work for the YOS are laid out in legislation, government policy and national guidance and are developed in partnership with key local strategic boards including the Community Safety Executive; Children Trust Board; Local Safeguarding Children’s Board and Northamptonshire’s North and East Criminal Justice Board.
These indicators are identified under three key priority areas:
- Early Help & Prevention.
- Recognising and responding to child exploitation and serious youth violence.
- Tackling disproportionality in the criminal justice system.
In West Northamptonshire we take pride in our Youth Justice Team and the highly valuable work they do to ensure that our children and young people avoid custodial sentences.Cllr Fiona Baker, Cabinet Member for Children, Families and Education at West Northamptonshire CouncilIt is one of the Council’s top priorities to deliver the best outcomes for children and young people and ensure they lead fulfilling, healthy and safe lives, and we are happy to have been able to approve the Youth Justice Plan for 2023/2024.
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13 October 2023
West Northamptonshire’s fleet of gritters will be deployed this week to prepare the roads for winter, with the Met Office forecasting a cold snap is on its way.
With a sharp decline in temperature across Northamptonshire expected towards the end of October, precautionary gritting routes are now underway. West Northamptonshire Council’s highways provider, Kier is set to grit over 1,100 miles of the road network - the equivalent of driving from here to Venice.
West Northamptonshire has a stockpile of over 5,500 tonnes of salt ready to use on public roads and foot paths over the winter months. More than 880 grit bins have also been filled.
Met Office reports have shown that due to an El Niño weather pattern, a term for when the sea surface temperature warms every few years, the UK is headed for greater snowfall this winter – with the first of the UK’s snowfall predicted for this week.
By working together with Kier, we have taken all necessary precautions to ensure that our roads are kept safe for our communities as we enter the winter months – and prepare for the cold snap ahead. Our 12-strong fleet of gritters are set to head out on the network from this weekend when required.Cllr Phil Larratt, Cabinet Member for Environment, Transport, Highways and Waste at West Northamptonshire CouncilAs the cold weather approaches, this can cause a major impact on our roads and an increase in road defects and potholes. We will continue to work with Kier to ensure these are resolved as quickly as possible, and advise all residents to report any road defects via our website with location details and photos so we can resolve this.
The council is targeted in its approach – and has designed routes based on high-quality weather forecasting and real-time temperature readings, through weather stations and sensors along West Northamptonshire’s roads.
Through route-based forecasting, roads will be treated if the temperatures are forecasted to drop below 0.5C.
The fleet of gritters will also all have names this year, thanks to the creative thinking of local schoolchildren, meaning trucks named Pretty Gritty, RoadZipper and Gritzilla will be among those helping to keep our roads safe this winter.
We are proactively planning for the predicted weather conditions this winter. Our crews are on standby 24/7 during the winter months, as we work to keep road conditions safe and quickly respond to any changing weather conditions. We will be mobilising our gritting fleet, which have all been named by local primary school pupils, in trial routes this weekend.John Coombes, general manager at Kier TransportationWe urge road users to be vigilant – as even once a road has received a gritting treatment, the salt requires activation from the movement of vehicles and drivers should take extra care. We also actively encourage feedback from the community to help us to continue to deliver a resilient and reliable service.
As stocks run low, people can also report bins that need refilling.
To find out more about the precautionary and adverse gritting routes and other useful winter service information.
People can keep up to date with highways and travel news for West Northamptonshire Council highways on Twitter and Facebook via @WNHighways.
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This is an exciting opportunity to provide independent advice and assurance on the governance of the Office of the Northamptonshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service and Northamptonshire Police.
The Joint Independent Audit Committee performs a statutory function and has an important role in ensuring best practice, adherence to policies and good governance.
Members will also scrutinise the adequacy and effectiveness of risk management, internal audit and control and corporate governance arrangements of both organisations, as well as reviewing financial management and reporting.
Successful applicants to join the committee will receive training, an annual allowance of £3,000 and expenses, and will be subject to a police vetting check.
Applicants must be able to demonstrate a connection with Northamptonshire, have a good awareness and understanding of the public sector, and knowledge of best practice in audit and corporate governance.
Applications are encouraged from individuals with project management, estates and information technology skills and experience.
The closing date for applications is 31st October 2023. You can find out more about the role of the Committee and download a copy of the information pack from the Northamptonshire OPFCC website here.
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10 October 2023
Work is under way to make alternative arrangements for all children affected by Southfield Primary Academy trustees decision to close next year, with West Northamptonshire Council’s (WNC) admissions staff on hand this week to meet and support parents and carers.
The Council was recently informed that Trustees of the Brackley-based school, with approval from the Department for Education (DfE), have decided to close the school at the end of the current academic year in July 2024 due to a significant shortfall in the take-up of places – 109 children on roll out of a possible 420 – making it financially unviable to continue.
Following the school and DfE’s closure announcement last week, the Council is taking immediate steps to support families of the pupils affected and provide assurance to them that they will all have access to an alternative school within a reasonable distance from Southfield Primary. The aim will be to ensure that friendship groups are maintained and that siblings can stay together wherever possible. A letter on place availability will be sent out to parents this week by the WNC admissions team alongside details of a simplified application process, when parents will then be able to start considering alternative future options.
Members of the Schools Admissions Team will also be attending sessions with parents and carers at the school from this week to discuss concerns and answer queries about the future process.
I am disappointed and saddened to hear about the Academy and DfE’s decision to close the school in summer next year and fully understand how distressing this news will be to children and their parents.Cllr Fiona Baker, WNC Cabinet Member for Children Families, Education and SkillsI would like to reassure them all that our Council will be doing everything possible to support them through this, by providing alternative school places still within the Brackley area, to maintain continuity and a smooth transition for youngsters for next year.
We know Southfield has faced challenges in recent years but the school has worked hard to make improvements; we have also looked at how to help the school resolve its under-capacity, such as exploring other ways to use the space for alternative educational purposes, although unfortunately these did not prove viable in the end.
Sadly the number of parents choosing to send their children there continues to be low and, at just under a quarter full, we understand why the trustees and DfE feel it is no longer financially viable to stay open from next summer.
Our priority now is to ensure all families affected by this decision are kept fully informed and updated around future steps in the process and we support Southfield staff to help them find new positions at other schools. Our admissions team will be meeting parents and carers during a series of sessions at the school in the coming weeks to listen to their concerns and address their queries.
Cllr Baker recognised that the recent announcement around Southfield had also brought a wider debate around school places in Brackley to the fore, as updates are shared within the community on social media.
We are aware that some people have expressed concerns that the closure of Southfield, coupled with planned housing growth, will lead to pressures on places at nearby schools and have provided this information to the DfE as part of our annual planning forecast.Cllr Fiona Baker, WNC Cabinet Member for Children Families, Education and SkillsThere have also been suggestions around controlling the number of pupils admitted to Southfield but this is not something we could legally do nor would wish to, as it is important that parents are given a choice of which school their child attends, and they make this based on what best suits their family’s needs and the performance of schools available to them.
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Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service teamed up with GAINN (Growth and Inclusion North Northamptonshire), a Community Lottery Funded Project, to trial a three-day course that delivers key life skills to young people experiencing social isolation, anxiety and mental health issues.
The initial idea came about following discussions within a Local Area Partnership, whose primary aim is to ensure health and care services are better co-ordinated and delivered more proactively for people at local level.
The course was designed to provide a positive learning environment and safe space to build resilience in young people and improve their communication skills. The trial, which the young people named ‘Communication at the Station,’ was held at Kettering Fire Station on 26 – 28 September and combined classroom-based workshops and discussions alongside practical scenarios and exercises.
Over the three days, 10 young people registered with GAINN carried out fire service drills and were introduced to some of the kit and equipment used to respond to emergency incidents. They were put through their paces in a mock road traffic collision where they had to manage the casualties, call Fire Control to explain what had occurred and pass on information to the crew from Kettering Fire Station who were first in attendance at the mock incident.
They also learnt about fire safety in the home, water safety and how to use a throw line effectively, and they were shown basic lifesaving first aid, including how to carry out CPR on resuscitation manikins which were funded by Northamptonshire’s Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner.
Building communication and other social skills using practical real-life scenarios is a key aim of the course. It encourages young people to think before they act, to understand and communicate effectively with other people, as well as better manage their own decision-making process. Learning in this way reduces the chance of young people needing the assistance of the emergency services.
Lisa Bryan, Prevention, Safeguarding and Partnerships Manager at Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service said: “Delivering targeted interventions to young people using practical firefighting skills helps to build personal strengths, resilience and skills that will enable young people to contribute positively to society and cope better with challenges in later life.
“Working in collaboration with partners such as GAINN allows us to target often harder to reach audiences and help to ensure that the messages and advice we are delivering are relevant and engaging to those groups of people.”
GAINN aims to help young people between the ages of 17 and 24 overcome challenges that prevent them from being socially involved and supports them in developing skills that build confidence and help them to enter employment, education or further training.
Jo Dale, Programme Manager at GAINN said: “Anyone that works with young people will know how difficult it can be to get them out of bed before 12 noon and get them to remain focussed while they are outside their comfort zone!
“This course has motivated and inspired my young people to achieve so much more than that. They became a strong team, found communication skills that we had never seen before and learnt so much and they really enjoyed the physical challenges. The organisation was incredible, and my young people are still talking about it. It has given them skills and the confidence to take with them on their journeys that they will use every day. You really have made a difference!”
Maxine, one of the young people posted the below on her social media.
“Wow! What an amazing experience. I learned so much about fire safety, health and safety and most importantly communication.
“I have struggled with communication for ages and this course really brought out the importance of communication within normal day to day life. I look forward to hopefully growing to gain a career in becoming a firefighter and hoping to save lives and to keep others around me safe.
“Thank you to the (Kettering) Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service and the GAINN project for allowing me to have this opportunity. I have made memories of a lifetime.”
