06 July 2023

West Northamptonshire Council (WNC) Cabinet are set to review the progress and impact made against the Anti-Poverty Strategy following its year one of implementation. 

The Anti-Poverty Strategy was launched in April 2022 as a three-year strategy which strengthened a joint commitment towards helping people live their best lives by adopting a fresh approach towards tackling poverty and deprivation. The strategy was produced by a number of partners with an accompanying action plan that included ‘must-do’ actions to be completed by the end of year one. 

With over 6,000 vouchers distributed via community organisations to vulnerable residents and over £240,000 allocated to foodbanks via the Food Aid Alliance in West Northamptonshire as part of the Household Support Fund 3, the report looks in detail at the many steps taken to provide needed support for residents in West Northants as the cost of living continued to increase in the last year. 

In addition, the warm welcoming spaces project which launched during the 22/23 winter period emphasised the need of this provision with nearly 53,000 attendances between December 22 to February 23, and 3,371 residents who attended the spaces being referred onto wraparound services. Over 90 local partners registered to be a warm welcoming space, which confirmed the importance of this provision and secured further funding for the winter period for the next few years as well as the summer 2023 period, with a focus on mental health support and social connection.  

The report emphasises the impact that the increasing cost of living has had, and continues to have, on residents and the criticality of the support available that helps towards day-to-day essentials as well as their mental wellbeing. 

The support implemented and/or underway has been varied and focused on a number of a key areas including; fuel poverty, money and debt advice, immigration support, employment support and the development of a new Community Training Partnership that will equip with front line workers and volunteers with knowledge on social welfare issues and signposting. 

In the last year, we have also developed an extensive cost of living support hub which has a number of different services and resources available to help residents navigate through support they may be eligible for. This has already seen a huge amount of use and we continue to work to keep this as up to date as possible. 

The action plan for year one to accompany the Anti-Poverty Strategy was incredibly ambitious and it is through the dedication and commitment of those working hard behind the scenes that we’re able to make so much of this happen, so a huge thank you to them. As we move on to focus on year two actions, we will continue to work closely with our community and voluntary sector organisations, as well as our other partners to implement learnings and best practice.

Cllr Matt Golby, Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Public Health at WNC

Several other impactful projects have started including a Community Training Partnership which will provide training for all frontline workers and volunteers on the key social welfare issues in West Northamptonshire, due to launch in Autumn 2023, as well as funding provided to voluntary and community partners to increase money and debt advisors in response to cost of living demand queries. 
Partners will continue to work together to identify and implement actions for year two of the strategy. 

To view the full strategy please visit: www.westnorthants.gov.uk/community-safety-and-emergencies/tackling-poverty-west-northants 

For more information on cost of living support please visit visit Cost of living or call 0300 126 7000 (Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm).

05 July 2023

Hundreds of people including families, school and health professionals have come together to produce a fresh three-year strategy to improve outcomes for children with special educational needs and disabilities in West Northamptonshire.

Members of West Northamptonshire Council’s (WNC) Cabinet will meet on Tuesday 11 July to consider the new draft Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) Strategy, which sets out the key priorities towards better meeting the needs of all families up to 2026.

The strategy has been co-produced with the involvement of more than 800 people, including young people, parents, carers and health and education professionals, who attended over 20 engagement sessions and provided over 3,000 pieces of feedback.

The joint approach has involved a range of partners led by WNC’s SEND Improvement Team and the Northampton Parents Forum Group alongside local education, health and care providers from across the area.

The strategy focuses on six priority areas towards ensuring better outcomes for SEND families over the next three years as West Northants, like many other local authority areas nationally, tackles the challenges towards addressing a lack of specialist school places against a rising additional demand of 20% each year. Priorities include:

• Accessibility – ensuring admission for specialist schools and units is based on need and location, improving accessibility of transport and being clearer in how partners communicate with families
• Resources – ensuring there are enough high-quality SEND services and places, which are jointly planned and delivered so children and young people can stay within their local communities wherever possible.
• Identification and Assessment – continuously improving the timeliness of assessments and reviews, and that partners provide joined-up support so that children and young people can effectively transition between settings and services.
• Training – providing training so that children and young people receive the right support, in the right place and at the right time within their inclusive communities and developing a shared understanding of SEND across all partners so they can identify needs early
• Alternative Provision – co-producing and putting in place an Alternative Provision (AP) Strategy to reduce the number of suspensions and permanent exclusions
• Preparation for Adulthood - providing training so all partners effectively support young people prepare for adulthood from the earliest stages, as well as developing and delivering supported internships and apprenticeships are accessible for SEND and AP young people.

A detailed action plan is also being developed with partners to underpin the new strategy, which the SEND Improvement Board will be responsible for ensuring delivery and holding partners to account. WNC’s Children’s Overview and Scrutiny Committee will also play a key role in shaping and influencing the delivery of the priorities through its SEND Task and Finish Group.

This new strategy ensures a true co-production approach towards tackling the challenges we face around ensuring improved outcomes for children with SEND in West Northamptonshire.

It has been so important from the very beginning to actively involve children and young people, their parents, carers and health and education professionals in creating this strategy so that it reflects the very real needs and priorities of all SEND families and how partners can support them effectively in the years ahead.

Cllr Fiona Baker, WNC’s Cabinet Member for Children, Families, Education and Skills

The Council continues to make progress against its action plan to address ongoing challenge of increasing SEND placements to help ensure better outcomes for families across West Northamptonshire. As part of its commitment, several new provision schemes have been created or are now under way since late last year including:

• November 2022: the opening of 20 places at Hunsbury Park primary school as part a new autism spectrum disorder (ASD) unit for children in foundation stage, early years and key stage 1.
• January 2023: 10 places created at Hardingstone Academy for pupils in key stage 2 with autism spectrum disorder. This department is for children who need mainstream curriculum and provides that access to this provision as and when they are ready.
• February 2023: 10 places provided at Castle Academy for pupils in key stage 1 and foundation / early year pupils.
• February 2023: building work started at Moulton School and Science College for pupils with ASD and will provide an additional 30 places in January 2024.
• Autumn 2023: consultation is underway for phase two of Hunsbury Park primary school at the Chiltern site to be completed which will see an additional 45 places for primary age children with ASD.
• Plans to open the new Special school in Tiffield are progressing with detailed design work underway between the Council, Greenwood Multi Academy Trust and developers.

The Council has also introduced new ‘SEND Ranges’ which provide a set standard for each child or young person in an education setting to better outline what support is needed based on children’s individual needs or behaviours.

To view the draft SEND and AP strategy along with all other Cabinet reports, visit WNC’s website.

05 July 2023

West Northamptonshire Council (WNC) has been successful in defending its decision to sell land to Northampton Town Football Club.

On 8 March 2022, WNC’s Cabinet agreed to accept a bid from County Developments Northampton Ltd (CDNL), which is owned by the club.

At a late stage, development firm Cilldara had submitted a bid for the land, but although this bid was for a larger amount of money, and was very carefully considered, other factors led the council to determine that the club’s bid was most advantageous. Cilldara challenged the decision via judicial review.

The case was argued on six grounds:

• Procedural unfairness
• Predetermination
• Failure to make proper inquiry
• Failure to achieve the best price
• Irrationality
• Failure to give reasons

A hearing was held at the High Court in March this year and The Hon Mrs Justice Steyn DBE, presiding, considered extensive evidence from both sides.

In her judgement, she found in favour of the council and dismissed all grounds of Cilldara’s claim.

We always make important decisions through the most careful consideration, and this decision was one for which we thought through every aspect and detail.

We also took a great deal of advice, both from our own officers and from external professionals. We were therefore optimistic that the decision we made was sound, given the complexities presented by the leases in place on this land, and what we felt the likelihood was of bringing it forward for development.

Despite questions raised in some quarters since Cabinet’s decision to dispose of the land to CDNL, Cilldara’s challenge through the High Court has been unsuccessful, and we’ve been completely vindicated on all six of the grounds raised.

We thank the court and The Hon Mrs Justice Steyn DBE for their time in considering this matter, and we’re pleased that we can now progress a deal which we’re confident will, in the long run, be of greatest benefit to our residents.

We still have much work to do in shaping and agreeing the final detail of the contractual arrangements with the club, and this will commence immediately.

Cllr Jonathan Nunn, Council Leader at West Northamptonshire Council

The council will now be seeking costs against Cilldara to recover the public money spent on successful defence of the decision.

The full judgement can be viewed on the National Archives website.