West Northamptonshire

Last updated

West Northamptonshire
All Saints Church (geograph 7247736).jpg
Daventry, High Street and Market Square and market cross (resize)- geograph.org.uk - 1729537.jpg
Brackley Town Hall (geograph 4247452).jpg
Watling Street passes Towcester Town Hall - geograph.org.uk - 3451184.jpg
Arms of West Northamptonshire.svg
Motto(s): 
Ambition, Pride, Unity, Prosperity
West Northamptonshire UK locator map.svg
West Northamptonshire shown within Northamptonshire
Coordinates: 52°14′13″N0°53′42″W / 52.237°N 0.895°W / 52.237; -0.895
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Country England
Region East Midlands
Ceremonial county Northamptonshire
Incorporated1 April 2021
Administrative HQ Northampton
Government
[1]
  Type Unitary authority with leader and cabinet
  Body West Northamptonshire Council
   Control Conservative
   Leader Jonathan Nunn (C)
  ChairJohn Shephard
   Chief Executive Anna Earnshaw
   House of Commons
Area
[2]
  Total530 sq mi (1,380 km2)
  Land532 sq mi (1,377 km2)
  Water1 sq mi (3 km2)
  Rank 16th
Population
 (2021) [3]
  Total426,462
  Rank 15th
  Density800/sq mi (310/km2)
Ethnicity (2021)
[4]
   Ethnic groups
List
Religion (2021)
[4]
   Religion
List
Time zone UTC+0 (GMT)
  Summer (DST) UTC+1 (BST)
Postcode area
NN
Dialling codes
  • 01327
  • 01604
ISO 3166 code GB-WNH
GSS code E06000062
ITL code TLF24
GVA 2021 estimate [5]
 Total £13.2 billion
 Per capita£30,905
GDP (nominal)2021 estimate [5]
 Total£14.7 billion
 Per capita£34,385
Website westnorthants.gov.uk

West Northamptonshire is a unitary authority area covering part of the ceremonial county of Northamptonshire, England, created in 2021. [6] By far the largest settlement in West Northamptonshire is the county town of Northampton. Its other significant towns are Daventry, Brackley and Towcester; the rest of the area is predominantly agricultural villages though it has many lakes and small woodlands and is passed through by the West Coast Main Line and the M1 and M40 motorways. The district includes the site of the Roman town of Bannaventa, [7] and the grade I listed Althorp House and its estate. [8]

Contents

History

West Northamptonshire was formed on 1 April 2021 through the merger of the three non-metropolitan districts of Daventry, Northampton, and South Northamptonshire, it absorbed the functions of these districts, plus those of the abolished Northamptonshire County Council.

In March 2018, following financial and cultural mismanagement by the cabinet and officers at Northamptonshire County Council, the then Secretary of State for Local Government, Sajid Javid, sent commissioner Max Caller into the council, who recommended the county council and all-district and borough councils in the county be abolished, and replaced by two unitary authorities, one covering the West, and one the North of the county. [9] These proposals were approved in April 2019. It meant that the districts of Daventry, Northampton and South Northamptonshire were merged to form a new unitary authority called West Northamptonshire, whilst the second unitary authority North Northamptonshire consists of the former Corby, East Northamptonshire, Kettering and Wellingborough districts. [10] [11]

Governance

West Northamptonshire Council
West Northamptonshire Council.svg
Type
Type
Leadership
John Shephard,
Conservative
since 18 May 2023 [12]
Jonathan Nunn,
Conservative
since 20 May 2021 [13]
Anna Earnshaw
since 2020 [14]
Structure
Seats93
UK West Northamptonshire Council 2021.svg
Political groups
Administration (63)
  Conservative (63)
Other parties (30)
  Labour (20)
  Liberal Democrats (6)
  Independent (4)
Elections
Last election
6 May 2021
Next election
1 May 2025
Meeting place
One Angel Square, Northampton.jpg
One Angel Square, 4 Angel Street, Northampton, NN1 1ED [15]
Website
www.westnorthants.gov.uk

West Northamptonshire Council provides both county-level and district-level services. The whole area is also covered by civil parishes, which form a second tier of local government. [16]

Political control

Since its creation in 2021, the Conservatives have held a majority of the seats on the council: [17]

Party in controlYears
Conservative 2021–present

Leadership

The leader of the council from its first meeting following its creation in 2021 has been Jonathan Nunn, who was the last leader of the old Northampton Borough Council:

CouncillorPartyFromTo
Jonathan Nunn Conservative 20 May 2021

Ian McCord, outgoing Conservative leader of the old South Northamptonshire District Council, had served as leader of the shadow authority set up to oversee the transition to the new arrangements. [18]

Composition

Following the 2021 election and subsequent changes up to January 2024, the composition of the council was:

PartyCouncillors
Conservative 63
Labour 20
Liberal Democrats 5
Independent 4
Vacant 1
Total93

The next election is due in 2025.

Elections

Elections for a shadow authority were due to be held on Thursday 7 May 2020 but were postponed until 6 May 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. New ward boundaries have been drawn up to take effect from the 2025 elections, which will reduce the number of councillors from 93 to 76, to be elected from 35 wards each electing one, two or three councillors. From 2025 elections will be held every four years. [19]

Premises

Council meetings are generally held at Northampton Guildhall, with the nearby former Northamptonshire County Council offices at One Angel Square serving as the council's headquarters. [20] The council also inherited offices at The Forum in Towcester from South Northamptonshire District Council and Lodge Road in Daventry from Daventry District Council. The Forum continues to be used as additional offices and for some council meetings, whilst Lodge Road has closed, being replaced by a smaller area office in Daventry. [21]

Demographics

Population

Population pyramid in 2020 West Northamptonshire population pyramid 2020.svg
Population pyramid in 2020

The West Northamptonshire population was estimated to be around 406,733 people in 2020, in 2011, off of previous administrative boundaries, the population of the West Northamptonshire area was around 375,101 people, with it being 345,589 people in 2001. [22]

Gender

In 2020, there was around an estimated 202,004 men and 204,729 women. [22]

Ethnicity

Ethnic Group1991 [23] 2001 [24] 2011 [25]
Number%Number%Number%
White: Total301,94096.1%326,51394.5%336,93389.8%
White: British 315,12791.2%314,92484%
White: Irish 4,9964,011
White: Gypsy or Irish Traveller 214
White: Other 6,39017,784
Asian or Asian British: Total6,2682%7,2242.1%16,0634.3%
Asian or Asian British: Indian 2,9183,9156,471
Asian or Asian British: Pakistani 5639151,789
Asian or Asian British: Bangladeshi 1,2151,8183,474
Asian or Asian British: Chinese 8471,4952,005
Asian or Asian British: Other Asian7255762,324
Black or Black British: Total4,7461.5%5,0781.5%11,5983.1%
Black or Black British: Caribbean 2,8773,0776,837
Black or Black British: African 5131,4653,298
Black or Black British: Other Black 1,3565361,463
Mixed or British Mixed: Total4,4121.3%8,8232.4%
Mixed: White and Black Caribbean2,0093,819
Mixed: White and Black African3531,241
Mixed: White and Asian1,1301,947
Mixed: Other Mixed9201,816
Other: Total1,2830.4%8670.3%1,6840.4%
Other: Arab579
Other: Any other ethnic group1,2830.4%8671,105
Total314,237100%345,589100%375,101100%

Age structure

Age distribution of West Northamptonshire in 2020 [22]
0-9 years10-19 years20-29 years30-39 years40-49 years50-59 years60-69 years70-79 years80+ years
52,45348,85745,49452,91954,38757,32243,18134,67617,865

Settlements and parishes

For a county-wide list for Northamptonshire see List of places in Northamptonshire

West Northamptonshire is entirely covered by civil parishes, of which there are 166. [26]

Arms

Coat of arms of West Northamptonshire
Notes
Granted in May 2023. [27]
Motto
Ambition, Pride, Unity, Prosperity

See also

Related Research Articles

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Northamptonshire is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Leicestershire, Rutland and Lincolnshire to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire to the south and Warwickshire to the west. Northampton is the largest settlement and the county town.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Towcester</span> Human settlement in England

Towcester is a market town and civil parish in the West Northamptonshire unitary authority area of Northamptonshire, England. From 1974 to 2021, it was the administrative centre of the South Northamptonshire district.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Northamptonshire</span> Former local government district in England

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Northamptonshire</span> Former non-metropolitan district in England

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daventry District</span> Former local government district in England

Daventry District was a local government district in western Northamptonshire, England, from 1974 to 2021. The district was named after its main town of Daventry, where the council was based.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Borough of Kettering</span> Former borough in England

The Borough of Kettering was a local government district and borough in Northamptonshire, England, from 1974 to 2021. It was named after its main town, Kettering, where the council was based. It bordered onto the district of Harborough in the neighbouring county of Leicestershire, the borough of Corby, the district of East Northamptonshire, the district of Daventry and the borough of Wellingborough.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Borough of Wellingborough</span> Former borough in England

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Far Cotton</span> Human settlement in England

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Structural changes to local government in England took place between 2019 and 2023. Some of these changes continue the trend of new unitary authorities being created from other types of local government districts, which was a policy of Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick from 2019.

West Northamptonshire Council elections are held every four years. West Northamptonshire Council is a unitary authority covering the western part of the ceremonial county of Northamptonshire. Since its creation in 2021, 93 councillors are elected from 31 wards. The council was created as a merger of Daventry District Council, Northampton Borough Council, and South Northamptonshire District Council.

References

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