| Borough of Northampton | |
|---|---|
| — Town & Borough — | |
| Northampton Guildhall, built 1861-4, by E.W. Godwin | |
| Northampton | |
| Coordinates: | |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Constituent country | England |
| Region | East Midlands |
| Ceremonial county | Northamptonshire |
| Founded | |
| Admin. HQ | Northampton |
| Government | |
| • Type | Northampton Borough Council Mayor of the Borough and Chair 2011–2012 Cllr Jamie Lane[1] |
| • Leadership: | Leader & Cabinet Cllr David Palethorpe[1] |
| • Executive: | Conservative |
| • MPs: | Brian Binley, Michael Ellis |
| Area | |
| • Total | 31.2 sq mi (80.76 km2) |
| Area rank | 237th |
| Population (2010 est.) | |
| • Total | 212,100 |
| • Rank | Ranked 74th |
| • Density | 6,802.1/sq mi (2,626.3/km2) |
| Demonym | Northamptonian |
| Time zone | Greenwich Mean Time (UTC+0) |
| • Summer (DST) | British Summer Time (UTC+1) |
| Postcode | NN1-NN6 |
| ISO 3166-2 | |
| ONS code | 34UF |
| OS grid reference | |
| NUTS 3 | |
| Ethnicity | 86.1% White 6.4% S.Asian 3.9% Black British 2.1% Mixed Race 2.3% Chinese or other[2] |
| Website | northampton.gov.uk |
Northampton (pronounced /nɔrˈθæmptən/ ( listen)) is a large market town and local government district in the East Midlands region of England. Situated about 67 miles (108 km) north-west of London and around 50 miles (80 km) south-east of Birmingham, Northampton lies on the River Nene and is the county town of Northamptonshire. The demonym of Northampton is Northamptonian.
Original settlements in Northampton date back to the 6th century. Its modern development is largely due to its rapid population increase since the 1960s after a planned expansion occurred under the New Towns Commission in the early 1970s. In 2001, its urban area population was 197,199[3] while its town population was 189,474,[3] making Northampton the 27th largest settlement in England, and the UK's 3rd largest town without official city status after Reading and Dudley. Northampton is the most populous district in England that is not a unitary authority, a status it failed to obtain in the 1990s local government reform.[4]
Northampton has a history of the manufacture of boots and shoes yet engineering has taken over as a modern key industry; other industries include food processing, brewing, and the manufacture of shoe machinery, cosmetics, leather goods, and car accessories. At present, the major employers are public administration, financial services, and the distribution trade.
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Remains found here date from the Bronze Age. Farming settlement probably began around the 7th century AD. In the 8th century it was an administrative and/or religious centre for the kingdom of Mercia. The pre-Norman town was known as Hamtun and was only ca.0.60 acres (2,400 m2).
A large hall was discovered just west of St. Peter's church that is estimated to be 8–9th century[5]
The town became significant in the 11th century, when the Normans built town walls and a large castle under the stewardship of the Norman earl, Simon de Senlis.[6] The original defence line of the walls is preserved in today's street pattern (Bridge St, The Drapery, Bearward St and Scarletwell Street). The town grew rapidly after the Normans arrived, and beyond the early defences. By the time of the Domesday Book, the town had a population of about 1500 residents, living in 300 houses.
The town and its castle were important in the early 12th century and the King often held Court in the town. During his famous fallout with Henry II, Thomas Becket at one time escaped from Northampton Castle through the unguarded Northern gate to flee the country.
Northampton had a large Jewish population in the 13th century, centred around Gold Street. In 1277 300 Jews were executed, allegedly for clipping the King's coin, and the Jews of Northampton were driven out of the town. Archaeological sites include a medieval Jewish cemetery and the Northampton Medieval Synagogue.[7]
The town was originally controlled by officials acting for the King who collected taxes and upheld the law. In 1189 King Richard I gave the town its first charter. In 1215 King John authorised the appointment of William Tilly as the town's first Mayor and ordered that: 'twelve of the better and more discreet residents of the town join him as a council to assist him' . In 1176 the Assize of Northampton laid down new powers for dealing with law breakers.
A university was established in 1261 by scholars from the University of Cambridge. It briefly flourished, but was dissolved by Henry III in 1265 apparently as it posed a threat to the University of Oxford.
The first Battle of Northampton took place at the site of Northampton Castle in 1264 – when the forces of Henry III overran the supporters of Simon de Montfort. In 1460, a second Battle of Northampton took place in the grounds of Delapré Abbey – and was a decisive battle of the Wars of the Roses, and King Henry VI was captured in the town by the Yorkists.
In May 1328 the Treaty of Northampton was signed – being a peace treaty between the English and the Scots in which Edward III recognised the authority of Robert the Bruce as King of Scotland and betrothed Bruce's still infant son to the king's sister Joanna.
A large network of medieval tunnels remains under the centre around All Saints church.
Northampton supported the Parliamentarians during the English Civil War. For this reason the town walls and castle were later torn down on the orders of King Charles II as punishment. The railway station in Northampton stands on the site of the former castle, and used to be called "Northampton Castle Station".
The town was destroyed by fire in both 1516 and 1675 (for the latter see Great Fire of Northampton), and was rebuilt as a spacious and well-planned town. In the 18th century Northampton became a major centre of footwear and leather manufacture. The prosperity of the town was greatly aided by demand for footwear caused by the Napoleonic Wars of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. In his 18th century "Tour through the Whole Island of Great Britain", Daniel Defoe described Northampton as, "...the handsomest town in all this part of England."
Northampton's growth was accelerated in the 19th century, first by the Grand Union Canal, which reached the town in 1815 and later the coming of the railways. The first railway to be built into Northampton was a branch from the main London-Birmingham line at Blisworth to Peterborough through Northampton which opened in 1845. This was followed by lines to Market Harborough (1859) and Bedford (1872). The Northampton loop of the West Coast Main Line was built in the late 1870s. After 1850 the town grew beyond the old town walls. In 1800 the population was round 7,000 and was 87,000 a century later. In the 19th century Northampton acquired a reputation for political radicalism when radical non-conformist Charles Bradlaugh was elected as the town's Member of Parliament.
Growth after 1900 slowed until the 1960s. The shoe industry declined and other employment was slow to arrive. In the 1920s and 30s, council houses were built in the east of the town at Headlands; north at St. David's; and south in Far Cotton. The Borough boundary, first extended in 1900, expanded again in 1932. From the 1920s until 1975 the town had its own power station supplying electricity to areas as far away as Wolverton.
In the 1960s The Deco was an ABC cinema. The Beatles appeared there twice on stage in 1963, on Wednesday, 27 March as part of the Tommy Roe/Chris Montez Tour.[8] Montez commented "Who are these guys The Beatles? I try to keep up with the British scene, but I don't know their work".[8] The Beatles were back on Wednesday, 6 November, in their own right and on their own tour.
Northampton was designated a New Town in 1968, and the Northampton Development Corporation (NDC) was set up to almost double the size of the town, with a population target of 230,000 by 1981, rising to 260,000 in later years. In 1959 the M1 motorway was opened nearby. Growth was slower than planned. The 1960s and 70s saw the town centre change with development of a new bus station, the Grosvenor Shopping Centre, flats and hotels.
The population grew to 100,000 by 1961, and 130,000 by 1971. When NDC wound up after 20 years, another 40,000 residents and 20,000 houses had been added. The borough boundaries changed in 1974 with the abolition of Northampton county borough and its reconstitution as a non-metropolitan district also covering areas outside the former borough boundaries but inside the designated New Town.
The rail link and busy M1 motorway to London helped the growth as a commuter town for London. Northampton's housing expansion was east with the 1970s eastern district estates built mainly for the London overflow population and more recently, in the west at Upton and south near M1 junction 15 at Grange Park, initially of 1,500 houses actually in South Northants Council area.
Current projections (February 2008) are that the district's population will grow to 226,400 by 2016 and to 261,300 by 2026.[9] Northampton asked, unsuccessfully, for city status as a part of the 'millennium cities' scheme.[10][11] The University of Northampton was established in 2005 after several years as a University College and before that being Nene College.
In 2006 Northampton became a government expansion zone with new growth by West Northamptonshire Development Corporation (WNDC)[12] an unelected quango. Expansion began in 2007 at Upton and St Crispins spreading west towards junction 16 of the M1. The other major projected area was south-east of the town enveloping villages such as Little and Great Houghton, Quinton, Hackleton and Cogenhoe though as at 2011 nothing had happened. Some expansion will be on brownfield sites such as Ransome Road, Far Cotton, an inner suburb, and in existing borough boundaries.
Northampton is administered by both Northampton Borough Council, run from May 2007 for the first time by the Liberal Democrats and from 2011 by the Conservatives, and also Northamptonshire County Council. From 2005 the latter has been controlled by the Conservative Party. The Borough Council runs services such as housing, waste collection and smaller planning items in the Borough. The County Council looks after social services, education and libraries in the whole county. Since April 2006 major planning decisions such as large housing schemes and new roads have been the responsibility of the WNDC.
Northampton is represented in Parliament by three MPs:
Northampton's constituency boundaries changed significantly for the 2010 General Election with the creation of a new constituency, South Northamptonshire, which includes large residential areas in the south of Northampton borough, including East and West Hunsbury and Upton.
Northampton's nearest towns are Wellingborough, Daventry and Towcester
| Rugby, Coventry, Birmingham | Market Harborough, Leicester, Loughborough, Nottingham | Kettering, Corby | ||
| Daventry, Long Buckby, Stratford-upon-Avon, Worcester | Earls Barton, Wellingborough, Rushden | |||
| Northampton | ||||
| Towcester, Brackley, Banbury | Milton Keynes, Aylesbury | Bedford, Dunstable, Luton, London |
As with the rest of the British Isles, Northampton experiences a maritime climate with cool summers and mild winters. The official Metoffice Weather Station for Northampton is the Moulton Park Weather Station at the University of Northampton. Situated at an elevation of around 130m above sea level compared to Northampton town centre at 50-60metres, it is one of the highest points in the Borough, and so may not be a perfect representation of other parts of the town. Its hilltop location means less pooling of cold air on calm clear nights, and lower maximums during summer. The absolute maximum recorded is 34.7c (94.5f)[13] on 3 August 1990. A high of 34.4c (93.9f)[14] was recorded on 19 July 2006. The absolute minimum is −16.8c (1.8f),[13] recorded during February 1986. It is likely the absolute maximum in the town centre is a degree or so higher owing to the lower elevation, and absolute minimum on the eastern and western edges of the Borough around the Nene valley a couple of degrees colder due to katabatic drainage of cold air allowing a frost hollow effect. Most recently, the temperature fell to −9.6c(14.7f)[15] on 20 December 2010.
Rainfall, at around 650mm per year is not high, though is often unpredictable, giving rise to flooding events such as 1998, but also short term droughts. Desborough Weather Station also supplies the public with a local weather service.
| Climate data for Northampton Moulton Park, elevation 127m, 1971–2000. Rainfall data Althorp, elevation 122m, 1841–1987 | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | 6.4 (43.5) |
6.8 (44.2) |
9.5 (49.1) |
11.9 (53.4) |
15.6 (60.1) |
18.5 (65.3) |
21.2 (70.2) |
21.1 (70.0) |
17.9 (64.2) |
13.7 (56.7) |
9.3 (48.7) |
7.2 (45.0) |
13.3 (55.9) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 0.8 (33.4) |
0.6 (33.1) |
2.3 (36.1) |
3.5 (38.3) |
6.3 (43.3) |
9.2 (48.6) |
11.5 (52.7) |
11.5 (52.7) |
9.5 (49.1) |
6.6 (43.9) |
3.3 (37.9) |
1.7 (35.1) |
5.6 (42.1) |
| Precipitation mm (inches) | 54.7 (2.154) |
42.6 (1.677) |
44.9 (1.768) |
45.5 (1.791) |
53.5 (2.106) |
55.4 (2.181) |
64.1 (2.524) |
64.3 (2.531) |
58.3 (2.295) |
66.1 (2.602) |
61.3 (2.413) |
56.7 (2.232) |
668.5 (26.319) |
| Source no. 1: YR.NO[16] | |||||||||||||
| Source no. 2: WorldClimate[17] | |||||||||||||
Northampton was a major centre of shoemaking and other leather industries, although only specialist shoemaking companies such as Church's[18] and Trickers,[19] formerly located in nearby Earls Barton, survive. A large number of old shoe factories remain, mostly now converted to offices or accommodation, some of which are surrounded by terraced houses built for factory workers. Northampton's main private-sector employers are now in distribution and finance rather than manufacturing, and include Avon Products,[20][21] Barclaycard, Blacks Leisure Group, Nationwide Building Society, Panasonic, Travis Perkins, Coca Cola, Schweppes, National Grid, Texas Instruments and Carlsberg.[22] The University of Northampton is also a major employer, as is St Andrew's Healthcare, a national mental health charity whose St Andrew's Hospital campus in Northampton is by far the UK's largest psychiatric hosptial.
Anglia Building Society was formed by amalgamation of Northampton Town and County Building Society with Leicestershire Building Society in 1966 and subsequently merged with Nationwide Building Society in 1987.[23]
Northampton is near junctions 15, 15a and 16 of the M1 London to North Yorkshire motorway. The A45 and A43 can be accessed by a partially completed ring road. The A14 is close by to the north.
Northampton railway station is on the Northampton Loop of the West Coast Main Line, and has regular services to London and Birmingham provided by London Midland. Virgin Trains provide one commuter service to London and a departure from Birmingham New Street late at night. These two Virgin Train services are scheduled to be Pendolinos.
Sywell Aerodrome is the nearest airfield which has recently been upgraded with a 1000 metre concrete runway.[24] For international links, East Midlands Airport and Luton Airport are quickly accessible by the M1; Birmingham International Airport via the M1/M6 and also by train.
In the town, buses are operated by Stagecoach Northants and First Northampton from the Greyfriars bus station. Stagecoach provide travel to outlying villages and towns during the day. National Express cover routes between major towns. There are good local links to Daventry, Wellingborough, Oxford, Milton Keynes, Rushden, Kettering, Corby and Market Harborough.
Northampton is the terminus of an arm of the Grand Union Canal. The arm connects to the River Nene and from that to the River Great Ouse and the North Sea. No longer used for freight, the waterway is now popular with anglers and narrowboaters. Principal outlying villages on the canal include Gayton, Blisworth, Braunston and Stoke Bruerne.
Northampton had a horse-drawn tramway which opened in 1881. The system was extended in stages and taken over by the council in 1897 and named Northampton Corporation Tramways. It was electrified in 1904, but closed in 1934 mainly as a result of competition from motor buses which were introduced in 1929. Two of the original tram shelters are preserved: one at the Racecourse park and another in Kingsthorpe opposite the Cock Hotel.[25]
Formal parks[26] include: Abington Park; The Racecourse, which used to be home in summer to the Balloon Festival and originally used for horse-racing until 1904 and also used as a cricket ground between 1844–1885; Delapré Park; Bradlaugh Fields; Becket's Park, named after Thomas Becket as are nearby Becket's Well and Thomas á Becket pub. There is a park around an Iron Age fort in West Hunsbury.
Billing Aquadrome leisure park is on the eastern outskirts with a caravan site, marina, funfair, bar, riverside restaurant and converted water mill with original workings. Other smaller ones are Thorntons Park and Victoria Park.
The main shopping centre is the Grosvenor Centre built in the 1970s. The town has one of Britain's largest market squares, dating from 1235. Outside the centre the Weston Favell Centre built in the 1970s is in the eastern district together with various out of town retail and leisure parks.
The Derngate and Royal theatres are in Guildhall Road, opposite Northampton Museum and Art Gallery. They were renovated and reopened in 2006, at a cost of £15 million. The Deco is a 900-seat theatre/conference centre based on the Grade-II listed former Cannon Cinema, in Abington Square used mainly by the voluntary and charitable sector. It was restored by the Jesus Army as part of their Jesus Centre project.
Northampton Museum and Art Gallery has a world-class collection of historical footwear, and also Italian art, glass and ceramics, plus visiting exhibitions and local history. There is also a smaller historical museum in a former mansion within Abington Park.
The old Fishmarket[27] opposite the market square, was renovated by the Northampton Arts Collective. It has three art gallery spaces, retail units, a café, and an arts studio and is host to exhibitions by leading artists and live music, community events and workshops.
An independent contemporary arts gallery and studios, The Sanctuary,[28] self-funded and supported by the Arts Council has 16 studios. The Avenue Gallery[29] is at the Avenue campus of Northampton University. Northamptonshire runs an annual county-wide Open Studios[30] event in which artists' studios are open to the public.
The university spent £3m on its Portfolio Innovation Centre,[31] and in early 2011 it now houses around 60 creative freelancers, digital media developers, and designers.
Two commercial cinemas are also in the town: Vue (formerly UCI) at Sol Central, Cineworld (formerly UGC, Virgin Cinema and MGM) at Sixfields. There is also the subsidised Forum Cinema at Lings Forum, whose film programme is widely varied and includes art-house and non-mainstream films.
Many local music venues provide events. One venue is The Roadmender, which used to be run and funded by the council and later bought by The Purplehaus group. It is host to mainstream touring bands and one off gigs. Alan Moore's underground magazine Dodgem Logic included a CD "Nation of Saints, 50 Years of Northampton Music" in the first issue, December 2009.[32]
The town is home to Premiership rugby union club Northampton Saints, who play at Franklin's Gardens in the St James area. "The Saints" had their greatest moment when they won the Heineken Cup in 2000 at Twickenham, beating Munster 9–8. There are also a number of "Junior" rugby clubs in the area, the most successful of these at producing young players is Northampton Old Scouts RFC[33] who have produced Ben Cohen and Steve Thompson amongst others.[33]
League Two football club Northampton Town, known as "The Cobblers" from the town's shoemaking background, are based at Sixfields Stadium. Established in 1897, in their centenary season of 1997 they reached Wembley through the play-offs and beat Swansea City 1–0 with an injury time winning free kick from John Frain. In 2010, they were drawn against premiership team Liverpool in the 2010-11 Football League Cup 3rd round/last 32. They were drawing 1–1 after full-time but won 2–4 on penalties. But they lost out against Ipswich Town 3-1 in the 4th round/last 16. It was the first club to set up a trust for supporters to work with the club as many have done. There is an athletics track adjacent to the ground. There are also three non-league clubs in the United Counties Football League: Northampton Spencer; Northampton Sileby Rangers; and Northampton Old Northamptonian Chenecks.
Northampton Town will also run a professional rugby league team from 2013 to compete in the Championship One and will be based at Sixfields Stadium. The new club will link with local club Northampton Demons in an effort to further promote rugby league in the area.[34]
Northamptonshire County Cricket Club, known in limited overs cricket as "The Steelbacks", play at the County Ground, in the Abington area.
Nene Whitewater Centre provides an artificial whitewater course for canoes, kayaks and rafts.
Northampton Swimming Club trained the young Olympic swimmer Caitlin McClatchey.
Collingtree Golf Club hosted the British Masters in 1995.
Northampton International Raceway near Brafield is a leading venue for stock-car racing and hosts the European Championships every July. Speedway racing has been staged at Brafield in the 1950s and again in the 1960s. In the 1950s the team was known as the Flying Foxes and in the 1960s they were known as the Badgers.
Speedway was also staged at the greyhound stadium in Northampton in the pioneer days of the late 1920s.
Until 2004 the county operated a three-tier system involving lower, middle and upper schools. In 2001 the move to a two-tier system began, aiming at improving educational standards.[35] A complete list of primary and secondary schools in the town and surrounding area is available on the County Council website.[36]
Northampton School for Boys became the top performing comprehensive school in the country in 2007.[37]
For a complete list see the NCC site.[36]
Northampton School for Girls was the first school in England to gain Specialist Music College status.[38]
Independent government reports on all schools can be obtained from the Ofsted website.[39]
Newspapers The Northampton Chronicle & Echo is the town's only paid-for newspaper. There are other free newspapers, but with a town circulation only: The Mercury (Thursday) and Northants on Sunday, both from the publishers of the Chronicle & Echo, and the Herald and Post (Thursday). These free papers are mostly advertising with limited news. The Mercury is one of the oldest newspapers still in circulation first published in 1720. It is the fifth-oldest such newspaper in the UK and the tenth-oldest such in the world.[40]
Radio Three stations are based in the town, two of which broadcast county-wide. BBC Radio Northampton[41] broadcasts news, topical items and some music, switching to a regional network after 7 pm. A commercial station, Heart 96.6 (formerly Northants 96), broadcasts mostly popular music. A community radio station, Inspiration FM was awarded a 5 year licence on 24 July 2008 and officially launched on Saturday 24 July 2010.[42]
Regional TV news is broadcast on the BBC East (terrestrial and satellite) with a main programme, BBC Look East, and on ITV's Anglia News. From 1999–2004, Northants TV (NTV) on cable and later terrestrial showed local ads, sport, and limited local activities.
Film and TV Northampton was the town location in the BBC's Keeping Up Appearances from 1990–1995. Parts of the 2005 film Kinky Boots were made in Northampton and featured shots of the statue outside the Grosvenor Centre in the Town Centre and inside RE Tricker's[19] shoe factory in St. Michaels Road representing the original factory, in Earls Barton. The third series of BBC Three's Bizarre ER was filmed at Northampton General Hospital.
Other notable church buildings include: St Edmunds, closed 1978 and demolished 2007 with the bells now in St Paul's Cathedral, Wellington, New Zealand; St Giles; St Matthew's in Phippsville, built 1891-4 has a Henry Moore sculpture of the Madonna ; Cathedral of Our Lady Immaculate & St Thomas of Canterbury, the mother church of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Northampton and seat of the Bishop of Northampton.
Northampton is twinned with:
Northampton is also a sister town of:
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