An open letter to Northamptonshire: What should our future look like?

The following is an open letter from the University of Northampton’s Interim Vice Chancellor, Becky Bradshaw, to the people of Northamptonshire following the ‘Future Communities’ event held on Tuesday 15 September 2026:

Dear Northamptonshire,

What do we want our communities to look like in 20 years?

It is a big question, but one we believe is one worth asking – and, importantly, one that should not be answered by any one organisation alone.

That is why we brought together people from across Northamptonshire to have an open conversation about our shared future.

Today, we invited civic leaders, businesses, public services, educators, community organisations, students and residents to tell us what they value about Northamptonshire, what they want to see change and what they need from the organisations that serve their communities.

We did not come with a finished vision for the future – we came to listen, and this is what we heard.

As a result of the conversations, the following themes were identified:

• Community: The people are at the heart of Northampton, and we need to be better at shouting more about our successes and exactly what makes us such a great place to live and work.

• Connection: We need to connect people with more opportunity through employment, volunteering, study and business.

• Collaboration: We need to explore more potential to unite the county’s siloed individual and group collaborations into a bigger display of success.

These conversations reinforced something we already know: Northamptonshire is a county with enormous strengths, but also challenges that cannot be solved by individual organisations working in isolation.

The University of Northampton is fortunate to be part of this community.

Every year, our students, academics and professional staff contribute their time, expertise, research and energy to Northamptonshire.

That work includes ongoing research by Professor Dr Declan Ryan, on community engagement and physical activity which welcomed £2.3million of national funding in 2026; the Orchard Project at the Autumn Care in Corby, which is working with partners to strengthen dementia awareness, support and care; and Headsets for Hope, which uses immersive reality to help children with developmental or learning disabilities build confidence around everyday travel.

Alongside this, our student midwives support around 2,500 births annually and students conduct 600,000 hours a year to local health services. Through Move Northamptonshire, we are also supporting partners to use evidence, evaluation and training to enable more people to be physically active and reduce inequalities across the county.

These are just some examples of what can happen when the University works alongside the community rather than simply within it.

But our conversation has also made us ask where we can do more.

And so, we are committing to three things.

First, we will keep listening.

Today’s conversation will not be a one-off. We will create further opportunities for people across Northamptonshire to tell us what matters to them and what they need from their local university.

Second, we will be clearer about what we can contribute towards helping to solve local problems.[KT1]

We will look at the themes that have emerged and consider where the University’s teaching, research, students, staff, facilities and partnerships can make a meaningful contribution towards solving issues raised by members of our community.

Third, we will work with others.

The challenges facing Northamptonshire do not belong to one organisation. Neither do its opportunities.

We will continue to work with our civic partners, businesses, public services, schools and colleges, voluntary organisations, cultural and sporting organisations and, most importantly, the communities themselves.

We commit to opening ourselves up, with a new Community Day at our Waterside Community next Summer, allowing members of the public to come together, celebrate our town and see both what we offer but also what more we can do.

As a final reminder, this event has kickstarted a conversation, not a conclusion.

Universities are sometimes described in terms of economic contribution – the graduates they produce, businesses supported, jobs they create and investment they attract.

Those things matter – but our contribution to Northamptonshire is about more than economic impact.

We asked Northamptonshire what it wants its future to look like. Now we have a responsibility to listen and act.

We are a university that listens, and we want to play a full part in building the future of our community and a place we are proud to call home.

The conversation starts here.