Here are the changes coming to Northampton and the town centre next year

On Monday (December 5), an event was held to share the changes and improvements coming to Northampton and the town centre, which are set to begin next year.

The event, held at the Northampton Filmhouse by the Northampton Forward group who are heading the regeneration works, saw a room full of business owners and West Northamptonshire Councillors gathered to hear about the plans.

Among the eagle-eared ready to learn more was Vice Lord Lieutenant Morcea Walker MBE.

Hosted by Martin Mason, chair of Northampton Forward and managing director of Tricker’s shoe factory, the town was praised for its “rich heritage and bright future” – as well as its long-standing, successful shoe industry and prevalence in motorsport.

One of the main aims of the improvements is to create a “re-energised town centre”, which will see an extension of 78 Derngate, a restoration of The Old Lion, enhancements to Abington and Fish Street, opening Vulcan Works as a creative, community hub, new residential space on Abington Street, and improvements to the Market Square.

This is in addition to the £4.7 million plans for a major transformation in the Cultural Quarter, announced by NN Contemporary in late November.

Northampton has undergone a rebrand, which will see ‘independent spirit’ at the heart of what the town is all about.

Heritage and culture, craft and industry, and community were the “most special things” about the town, revealed by research by the design team behind this rebrand – who believed these need to be “amplified more”.

“Northampton is washed with great stories of individuals and groups that live and breathe values of being innovative, spirited, bold and resilient,” said David Wood and Brendan Moffett from the branding team. “This town is forever moving and changing, and doesn’t stand still.”

One of the individuals who shared their story was Rebecca Gill, founder of VR Therapies – who is considered a “wonderful example of the town’s independent spirit”. In a video played at the event, she said: “The community here is amazing and I couldn’t have set up my social enterprise without them.”

Next, the operations manager of Northampton Town Centre’s Business Improvement District (BID) spoke on how this rebrand and regeneration was going to make the town centre the best it could be.

“Making these changes is a necessity,” he said. “It gives us the opportunity to reinvest and revisit, but also to redefine spaces based on what our current trends and habits are – and as we know, these have significantly changed during the pandemic.”

Mark added that when we look at some spaces in the town centre, there is “no longer the demand for these allocations from businesses”. Identifying these spaces will give BID the chance to develop them and ensure they are used effectively.

Talking about the Market Square, Mark said: “It is outdated and no longer the focal point it has been before – and we obviously need to do something about it.”

The operations manager praised the 660 businesses that the Town Centre BID looks after, saying “independent spirit is embedded in their values” and they have “developed an immense level of resilience during the pandemic that they can continue building on”.

BID took the opportunity to share the recent events they have collaborated on with others – from the 60s celebration in the town centre when they worked with over 60 businesses and partners, to Small Business Saturday which happened on December 3.

“Collectively we can make events and opportunities like this possible,” said Mark. “Seeing this new brand for Northampton shows we all have a shared goal and the ability to raise the profile of the town together.”

Another addition to the town is the renovation of Vulcan Works in Guildhall Road, which is being led by Oxford Innovation Space.

Elaine McKechnie from their team joined the event and announced the new creative and community hub will be open from February 1, 2023.

The £14 million refurbishment project will provide high quality workspaces, a community that creative businesses want to play an active part in, business support, and work and skills development opportunities with their partners.

“This sounds like a really exciting time for Northampton,” said Elaine.

Finally, West Northamptonshire Council’s cultural services manager, Nick Gordon, shared the success of the Northampton Museum and Art Gallery 18 months on from opening post its refurbishment.

The museum has won a number of prizes for how it has linked the old and the new buildings to celebrate the town’s history and culture.

With most museums only reaching 60 to 70 percent of the visitor figures they were achieving pre-pandemic, Northampton’s museum is bucking trends as it is two percent over the projected visitor figures for the year.

Not only has the museum shone a light on Northamptonshire artists and creatives, but it has been determined to offer events suitable to their most frequent audiences – which has included a charity fashion event, mum and toddler groups, immersive yoga, and the highly successful Star Wars toy exhibition this summer.

Looking to the future, they will also be hosting an exhibition which represents the history of Northampton in 100 objects.

To mark their progress, Northampton Museum and Art Gallery is now a fully accredited museum again under the Arts Council, which Nick said was a “show of faith”.

There is more to come on the museum regaining its Arts Council Accreditation from the Chronicle & Echo in due course.