Here's why armed police were in two Northampton neighbourhoods on the same morning

A video circulating online shows armed police spotted in Kingsthorpe Village High street at its junction with The Rise at about 10am on Thursday November 20. They were also seen in St Crispin Drive, near the A4500, later that morning.

Explaining, a Northamptonshire Police spokeswoman said: “This was part of a planned training exercise and there was no risk to members of the public as a result.

“Training exercises are vital in testing our officers in a range of scenarios to ensure they are ready to act should a real-life incident present itself.”

The spokeswoman added: “The training was designed to replicate a real deployment so there was no prior warning.

“The neighbourhood policing teams were informed before the event should any queries be raised through community channels.”