Northampton housing provider’s community bus back on the road again after more than a year

After several months of being parked in the garage, a community bus associated with a Northampton housing provider is back out on the road again.

Northampton Partnership Homes (NPH) owns a community bus which visits different neighbourhoods around the town and provides support to tenants.

During the pandemic, the bus has been parked in a garage, but as restrictions have been lifted the team is heading back out again.

The bus will be visiting 19 different locations across Northampton on a regular basis over the next three months.

Nicky McKenzie, NPH’s assistant director for housing said: “I’m so proud of my team, who have been providing support to residents throughout the pandemic.

“To be able to get out to neighbourhoods in a less restricted way is such a big thing for us and couldn’t have come soon enough.

“We understand that there are mixed views around restrictions being lifted and we want to reassure residents who visit our bus that we will listen to their concerns, respect their space and make sure that sanitiser is available at all times.”

The housing provider has been unable to use their mobile community hub since the start of the pandemic, but it was able to make a return in June.

While on board residents can access online services, talk to officers about their tenancy, neighbourhood and how they can get more involved with NPH.

The community bus (nicknamed Daphne) is driven by Roy, who is proud to have lived in Northampton his whole life.

He has quickly become a valuable member of the team, and he wants the best for his home-town and its residents.

Roy added: “I’ve lived in Duston my whole life, brought my kids up there and I love Northampton.

“I hate to hear people talking the place down. There’s so much to appreciate about Northampton.”

All event locations can be found via the NPH Facebook page, NPH Connect or on the NPH website.