West Northamptonshire

West Northamptonshire is a unitary authority area covering part of the ceremonial county of Northamptonshire, England, created in 2021. 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, and the grade I listed Althorp House and its estate.

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. 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.

Governance
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.

Political control
Since its creation in 2021, the Conservatives have held a majority of the seats on the council:

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

Composition
Following the 2021 election and subsequent changes up to May 2024, the composition of the council was: Four of the six independents sit together as the 'Independent Group'. 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.

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. 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.

Population
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.

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

Media
In terms of television, West Northamptonshire is served by BBC East and ITV Anglia with television signals received from the Sandy Heath transmitter. However, some southwestern parts of the area such as Brackley is served by BBC South and ITV Meridian broadcasting from the Oxford TV transmitter.

Radio stations for the area are:


 * BBC Local Radio
 * BBC Radio Northampton on 104.2 FM
 * BBC Radio Oxford (covering Brackley) on 95.2 FM


 * Independent Local Radio
 * Heart East on 96.6 FM
 * Smooth East Midlands (formerly Connect FM) on 97.2 FM


 * Community radio
 * NLive Radio on 106.9 FM
 * Inspiration FM on 107.8 FM

The area is served by these local newspapers: Northampton Chronicle & Echo, Daventry Express and Banbury Guardian which covers Brackley.

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.


 * Abthorpe, Adstone, Althorp, Arthingworth, Ashby St Ledgers, Ashton, Aston le Walls, Astrop, Aynho
 * Badby, Barby, Blakesley, Blisworth, Boddington, Boughton, Brackley, Bradden, Brafield-on-the-Green, Braunston, Brington, Brixworth, Brockhall, Bugbrooke, Byfield
 * Caldecote, Canons Ashby, Castle Ashby, Chacombe, Chapel Brampton, Charlton, Charwelton, Chipping Warden, Church Brampton, Church Stowe, Clay Coton Clipston, Cogenhoe, Cold Ashby, Cold Higham, Cosgrove, Coton, Cottesbrooke, Courteenhall, Creaton, Crick, Croughton, Culworth
 * Daventry, Deanshanger, Denton, Dodford, Draughton
 * East Farndon, East Haddon, Easton Neston, Edgcote, Elkington, Evenley, Everdon, Eydon
 * Farthinghoe, Farthingstone, Flore, Fawsley
 * Gayton, Grafton Regis, Grange Park, Great Brington, Great Oxendon, Greatworth, Greens Norton, Grimscote, Guilsborough
 * Hackleton, Hanging Houghton, Hannington, Harlestone, Harpole, Hartwell, Haselbech, Hellidon, Helmdon, Hinton-in-the-Hedges, Holcot, Holdenby, Hollowell
 * Kelmarsh, Kilsby, King's Sutton, Kislingbury
 * Lamport, Lilbourne, Litchborough, Little Brington, Little Houghton, Long Buckby, Lower Catesby
 * Maidford, Maidwell, Marston St. Lawrence, Marston Trussell, Middleton Cheney, Milton Malsor, Moreton Pinkney, Moulton
 * Naseby, Nether Heyford, Newbottle, Newnham, Northampton, Norton
 * Old, Old Stratford, Overthorpe, Overstone
 * Passenham, Pattishall, Paulerspury, Pitsford, Potterspury, Preston Capes
 * Quinton
 * Radstone, Ravensthorpe, Roade, Rothersthorpe
 * Scaldwell, Shutlanger, Sibbertoft, Silverstone, Slapton, Spratton, Stanford-on-Avon, Staverton, Stoke Bruerne, Sulby, Sulgrave, Syresham
 * Teeton, Thenford, Thornby, Thorpe Mandeville, Tiffield, Towcester
 * Upper Catesby, Upper Heyford, Upper Stowe
 * Wappenham, Walgrave, Warkworth, Watford, Weedon Bec, Weedon Lois, Welford, Welton, West Haddon, Weston, Whilton, Whiston, Whitfield, Whittlebury, Wicken, Winwick, Woodend, Woodford Halse
 * Yardley Gobion, Yardley Hastings, Yelvertoft