Children name new Northampton retirement village after foxy school ground visitor

The new pensioner's community, in Latchet Lane, Upton, has been officially named Foxfields in honour of the local wildlife.

The name was suggested by pupils from nearby Upton Meadow Primary School in celebration of a frequent foxy visitor to the school.

Headteacher Sue Gardner said: “We asked the school council to come up with some names, and at the time we kept seeing a fox on the school grounds so someone suggested Foxfields and that is the one that stuck.

“We are also big fans of Roald Dahl here, and they like the story of Fantastic Mr Fox, so that gave another reason for the name.

“We are looking forward to seeing the new scheme up and running, it will be wonderful for the school to have links with the older members of our community.”

Foxfields will be made up of 77 self-contained apartments with support and care services on-site.

The development will also offer communal facilities including a restaurant, residents’ lounge, activities room, hair salon, laundry room and buggy store, as well as landscaped gardens. There will also be a guest suite, for use by visiting friends and family.

Nathan Brough, Regional Director at Keepmoat, said: “It’s great that the school has been able to play such a key part in the naming of the new development – we hope that this will be the beginning of a long relationship between the children and the new residents of Foxfields.”

The retirement housing development is being delivered through a partnership between Housing & Care 21, Northamptonshire County Council, Northamptonshire Partnership Homes, the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) and developers Keepmoat.

Kris Peach, Housing & Care 21’s Director of Extra Care, said: “The new scheme will be an important part of the local community providing much needed housing and support for older people, and we wanted local schoolchildren to help us name it as a way to start developing those community links.

“Extra Care properties allow older people to live independently as part of a welcoming community, with the care and support they need right there on-site. We are very much looking forward to welcoming the first residents to Foxfields in late summer.”

Northamptonshire County Council cabinet member for adult social care Councillor Bill Parker said: “The Foxfields Extra Care development will deliver high quality, modern accommodation for people who can no longer remain safely in their own home but still want to enjoy some level of independent living.

“We know this is the type of supported living accommodation elderly people want to see more of in Northamptonshire, and that is why our accommodation strategy for the next five years sets out our intention to work with providers like Housing & Care 21 to establish more developments like Foxfields.”