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06 October 2025
Families across West Northamptonshire will benefit from further face-to-face support and activities, as the next phase of Family Hubs are set to open this autumn.
Following on from the already thriving Family Hub in Towcester, a further four sites will open their doors to parents, children and young people in Daventry, Upton, Moulton and Kingsthorpe in the coming months, improving their access to information, support and guidance as well as a range of activities in a setting local to them.
West Northamptonshire Council’s (WNC) plans to open more hubs across its communities is a core focus of the new Family Help Strategy, which sets out how the Council will work with partners to improve access to early support and help so it can prevent escalation or crisis intervention down the line. The draft strategy will be discussed by Cabinet at its meeting next week (Monday 13 October).
“Improving early support, guidance and information for families and young people is one of our administration’s top priorities as we work to deliver upon the ambitions of One West Northants plan to make our area the best place to grow up. It is essential we get this early support right and these new family hub sites are a great step in achieving this, with our Towcester Family Hub being a fantastic example of the positive impact they can have.Cllr Kathryn Shaw, Cabinet Member for Children and Families at West Northamptonshire Council“The Family Help strategy sets out to do just this and has had incredible involvement and feedback from many families and stakeholders across West Northants. This strategy further strengthens the work underway and sets the direction of how together with our partners, we can continue to build the support available to help create a strong structure of family help and prevention, making West Northamptonshire the best place to grow up.”
Family Hubs will offer services for children, young people and their parents from pre-birth to 19 years, and up to 25 years for those with additional needs. Families will be able to enjoy a variety of bookable and drop-in sessions, as well as speak to a range of professionals from health, education and support organisations. In addition, many activities will be available from sensory and baby massage, to starting preparation, school holidays craft sessions as well as spaces for young people to utilise and unwind.
Alongside the Family Hub sites opening, the proposed Family Help strategy sets out a bold and collaborative vision to make West Northamptonshire a Child Friendly Place where children and families thrive through timely, joined-up support. It aims to transform how services work together to prevent crisis, promote resilience, and improve outcomes for children and young people to make West Northamptonshire the best place to grow up.
To read the cabinet paper please click here. To find out more information about the family hubs please visit the Family Hubs page.
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If you have ever wanted to be a firefighter, then now is the time to give it a go.
Northamptonshire Fire & Rescue Service is currently looking for new wholetime firefighters, with the deadline to apply closing at 10am on Monday October 13.
So what happens once you click that apply button? We want to make it clear, so you all know what to expect.
Once the deadline closes, our HR teams will come up with a shortlist of people who best meet the criteria we are looking for.
They will then be invited to attend a Recruitment Day in the middle of November. This is where you will take part in a one-hour group exercise, a 45-minute written assessment and will be tested on your fitness skills.
Our assessors will judge your leadership capabilities, but also how you work within a team – both of which are vital skills you will use every day as a firefighter.
Those who successfully pass the recruitment day will then have a go at our Job-Related Tests. These are designed to test your basic skills in some of the day-to-day activities firefighters carry out, such as running a hose, climbing a ladder and dragging a dummy casualty to safety. You can prepare and find out more by clicking here.
Remaining candidates will then undergo a short assessment to test your confidence in and around water. Firefighters may have to rescue people from the water if they have gone open water swimming.
Flooding is also a growing risk across the county – so it’s important for recruits to feel confident and safe around the water. Support will be on hand in advance of this task, and the assessment will be carried out in a controlled and supervised environment.
The final candidates will then be invited into Fire HQ at the end of January, where they will be interviewed and give a presentation on areas such as effective communication, working with others and showcasing a commitment to diversity and integrity.
They will also undertake a ‘safe and well’ exercise, which will test their ability to showcase good communication, empathy, active listening and a passion to help people.
Our assessors will then make the final decision on who to make conditional offers to. Prior to any offer of employment, the Fire Service will carry out DBS and employment checks.
Once you have passed a final fitness test and medical, you will be formally offered your role, fitted for your uniform, and can start to look forward to the beginning of your firefighter journey in May 2026.
Area Manager Mick Berry said: “We know this is a challenging recruitment process to go through, but we recruit people from many different backgrounds who have never been exposed to the demands of a firefighter role before.
“A shared passion in those who want to join us is a desire to serve and protect their local communities, so we hope to be able to choose from a diverse pool of talent from across the county so that are truly representative of the communities that we serve.”
So, let us know if you fancy the challenge.
You can apply to join Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service as a wholetime firefighter by clicking here.
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02 October 2025
On behalf of West Northamptonshire Council and the communities we represent, I offer our deepest condolences to the families and loved ones of those who tragically lost their lives in the attack this morning outside Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue in Manchester. Our thoughts are also with those who remain in critical condition, and with all those affected by this senseless act of violence.
That this atrocity occurred on Yom Kippur – the most sacred day in the Jewish calendar – makes it all the more heartbreaking. It was not only an attack on innocent lives, but on the values of reflection, compassion, and peace that this day embodies.
We stand in unwavering solidarity with the Jewish community in both Manchester and closer to home. At a time when many feel vulnerable, we reaffirm our commitment to ensuring that people of all faiths, backgrounds, and beliefs feel safe, respected, and supported.
I would also like to express our gratitude to the emergency services and first responders for their swift and courageous actions, which undoubtedly prevented further loss of life.
West Northamptonshire joins the nation in mourning. As a Council, we remain steadfast in our efforts to foster understanding, unity, and resilience – values that must guide us through moments of darkness and help us build a future rooted in mutual respect and shared humanity.
Cllr Mark Arnull
Leader, West Northamptonshire Council
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Over eight days in September, crews from Mereway, Wellingborough and Corby have been training together to ensure Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service has a joined-up approach to tackling largescale flooding.
As we head into autumn, the risk of flooding across the county increases, so we need to ensure we are best prepared to be able to respond to any potential incidents where there may be a risk to life.
For many years now, our water rescue crews in Mereway and Wellingborough have been fully trained to be able to carry out rescues in fast moving water.
Crews at Corby have now also come on board to strengthen this capability and have been given PPE to carry out their new roles.
The Corby crew had only previously been able to enter the water to set up our High-Volume Pump, which is based at the station and is deployed both locally and nationally to pump out large volumes of water.
More than 80 firefighters attended training sessions at Hollowell Reservoir across September to understand the capabilities, equipment and PPE that other stations had.
Crew Manager Tony Labrum (pictured left below) is a technical rescue trainer for the Service and was overseeing the exercises along with Watch Manager Casey Waldock.
Tony said: “The training we’ve done has allowed everyone to come together and understand where they all fit into a joint response.
“It also gave our Corby crews a chance to understand the hazards and risk of a flooded environment, and for them to teach our crews in Mereway and Wellingborough about the capabilities of the High-Volume Pump and how they operate it.
“I would like to thank Anglian Water and the Hollowell Sailing Club for their generosity in allowing us to use their facilities for these training exercises.
“We know that flooding is a growing risk for us here in Northamptonshire, so it’s vital that our crews maintain their skills so they can ensure the safety of residents across the county.”
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Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service’s on-call response from Desborough will be temporarily relocated to Rothwell Fire Station while Desborough is closed for essential work.
The station in King Street, which was built in 1975, needs a roof replacement costing more than £30,000 due to deterioration over many years.
Scaffolding is being put up at the Station this week ahead of the start date for the work on Monday (October 6) and is expected to take no longer than four weeks to complete.
The fire engine from Desborough is being relocated to Rothwell during this time, and the on-call crew will continue to respond to incidents in the local area when alerted.
Mick Berry, who is the Area Manager for Response at Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service, said: “We understand that local communities, particularly in our villages, want to see their fire crews on location to respond to incidents.
“We want to reassure residents in the area that both the on-call crews of Desborough and Rothwell will be able to respond to incidents as usual and keep their local communities safe.
“The roof replacement is very important and unfortunately cannot be completed safely while there are staff in the building. This is why we have plans in place to relocate the crew and ensure that the area is sufficiently protected as usual.
“This is an important investment of more than £30,000 to ensure the Desborough station is fit for purpose. It also demonstrates our commitment to ensuring that our firefighters – both wholetime and on-call – have the best buildings possible in which to carry out their work.”
