Emergency services were called today at 1.16pm to deal with an incident at Adderley Park, in the east of Birmingham.

READ MORE: One person killed and another seriously injured after being struck on train line through Northampton

READ MORE: Train lines blocked from Northampton to Birmingham following incident

A spokesman for British Transport Police said: "Officers for British Transport Police were called at 1.16pm on Wednesday, January 16 to Adderley railway station in Birmingham following a report of a person being struck by a train.

"The person sadly died at the scene. A second person was also struck by the train and suffered serious head injuries.

"They have been taken to a local hospital for treatment. Officers are currently working to establish the full circumstances behind the incident."

West Midlands Railway has tweeted: 'All lines between #NewStreet, #Coventry & #Northampton have reopened following the earlier incident at Adderley Park.

'However, disruption is ongoing due to displaced trains/crew and Adderley Park station itself remains closed'.

Northampton Borough Council has ‘reaffirmed its commitment’ to being an ‘attractive’ place to work for staff, but opposition councillors are calling on it to do more.

A motion from the Liberal Democrat party had called on chief executive George Candler to review the departure of members of staff in the final quarter of 2018 to decide if the current policies and procedures were as strong as they should be to ensure that good staff are retained.

But the motion was watered down somewhat after an amendment from the ruling Conservative party was accepted in order to pass it through.

The new motion recognised 'the importance of retaining good members of staff over the next 15 months to ensure that skilled staff are available to transfer to a new unitary authority’.

The new unitary authority is widely accepted to be happening next year, even though there is currently a consultation out on the proposals.

A heated debate on the issue of departing staff took up a significant chunk of the full council meeting that was held on Monday (January 14) at The Guildhall.

Liberal Democrat leader Councillor Sally Beardsworth, who tabled the original motion, said: “We can’t allow bullying or bad process in our council, we have to be exemplary and make sure that the staff are well respected and treated with courtesy.

“I find it difficult that people say we have these policies but that they might not be adhered to because how can we put this right if we don’t know why people are leaving? We need to make sure that we don’t lose valuable local knowledge.”

Fellow Lib Dem Councillor Dennis Meredith added: “I have known some good, loyal, hard-working staff who have left this authority. I have often asked to speak to council staff only to be told that they have left. It gives me a warning sign that something is wrong.”

But the Liberal Democrats were criticised by their fellow Labour opposition councillors for accepting the amended motion from council leader Jonathan Nunn.

Leader Danielle Stone said the amendment was ‘nonsense’, while Councillor Gareth Eales said the amendment did not address the root causes of the problem.

He added: "There are people who are walking away without another job to go to. Why is that? We need to do better."

Speaking shortly before the motion was passed, Tory leader Jonathan Nunn said: “We want our best staff to stick around. While times have changed and people do change jobs more frequently, nevertheless if people move on for career development then we accept that. But we don’t like it if people leave because they don’t enjoy it here.

“While I do think there has been an improvement in recent years on that, staff might feel like they have been told this all before, so we do need to act.”

And although the calls for the chief executive to review the departure process was removed from the motion, Councillor Beardsworth urged the leader to reconsider.

The blue Vauxhall Zafira has reportedly been left at the junction of Osbourne Road and Kingsthorpe Road since the beginning of October.

The car - which has picked up four parking tickets during its stay - is parked just metres from the left-hand turn into the street off the busy Kingsthorpe Road - but has not moved in months.

One resident whose windows face the stationary car said: "It's only a matter of time until someone hits it.

"It seems like the wardens come to look at it, scratch their heads and then walk off."

Northamptonshire Police's ELVIS team is tasked with removing abandoned vehicles - but can only do so if it is two months past its tax liability date or is unfit to drive on a highway.

However, the DVLA website shows the Vauxhall is fully taxed and is up to date on its MOT.

Northamptonshire Police say they are aware of the car and are making investigations.

Meanwhile, it is outside the responsibility of the county council's highways teams and Northampton Borough Council's neighbourhood wardens.

Speaking in December, chair of Queens Park Residents Association Brian Burnett said: "t's a hazard. I've seen vans and vehicles have to stop in their tracks when they come around the corner and see the car before they can navigate around it.

"I feel someone needs to take responsibility for it. Why can't someone just come and lift it away?"I would have thought the highways team or the police would have been interested. Surely it's an obstruction?"

Healthwatch Northamptonshire visited the St Andrew's Healthcare facilities in Northampton last week to meet with its chief executive Katie Fisher, senior managers and to take a tour of some of the facilities and the grounds.

The visit included a tour of the new carers centre as well as meetings with access to support groups. Healthwatch also visited the Child and Adolescent Mental Health (CAMHS) services in FitzRoy House, Billing Road.

However, the watchdog says it will be conducting a 'more formal' visit later in the year to talk to patients, families and carers.

As part of that, it is calling on anyone wishing to raise anything about St Andrew’s to call Healthwatch on 0300 002 0010 or email enquiries@healthwatchnorthamptonshire.co.uk.

Chief executive of Healthwatch Northamptonshire, Kate Holt, said: "It was a really useful and informative visit for Healthwatch. The new carers centre helps put families and carers at the heart of care at what can often be a very difficult time for families. We were also particularly impressed with the school facilities in FitzRoy House, which enable young people to continue with their studies, learn new skills and socialise as part of their recovery process."

Katie Fisher, chief executive of St Andrew’s Healthcare added: "We are delighted to be working with Healthwatch Northamptonshire, and look forward to their more formal visit later in the year. We highly value their support and appreciate the opportunity to learn from their work, both here and further afield.”

There are ‘aspirations’ to have another park and ride scheme for university students on the east side of Northampton, according to council leader Jonathan Nunn.

The current University of Northampton park and ride runs from Sixfields to the new Waterside Campus for students and staff, but concerns have been raised that students making their way from the east of the county will not be using the scheme.

Instead, residents have raised concerns that they are parking in the town centre near to the campus, instead of driving past the campus to Sixfields.

Speaking at Monday’s full council meeting of Northampton Borough Council, the authority’s leader Councillor Nunn was speaking about a Christmas trial period where the park and ride was opened up to members of the public.

But he dropped in a line that the council would be exploring ‘anything they could do’ to implement a park and ride for the east side of town.

He told fellow councillors: “Students come from Kettering, and we shouldn't expect them to drive all the way across town."

Speaking later in the week to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, Councillor Nunn said: “There’s nothing firm, but previously I think the county council had some sort of plan for the Bedford Road that may have potentially included a park and ride, but that seems to have fallen by the wayside.

“We think it would be great to have in mind something on the other side of town. It’s just an aspiration at the moment.”

The idea has been welcomed by Patrick Cross, who is a former chairman of the Whitehills and Springs Park Residents Association (WASPRA).

Back in May last year, while he was chairman of WASPRA, he told councillors that there would be a need for a park and ride on the east side of town ahead of the Waterside campus opening in September.

Eight months down the line, and with the campus now open, his view remains the same.

He said: “To me, for a park and ride system to work in any town you need it on corners of the towns on the outskirts so that it attracts people from the north, south, east and west. You have to attract people on the way to where they are going.

“Currently students drive past the university to get to Sixfields for them to then come back on themselves.

“I’m glad they have listened because it will save a lot of traffic in the town centre. But they hadn’t done their homework - it was almost suck it and see. When you open a campus with no parking facilities for students you question why. An extra park and ride is much needed.”

But Councillor Nunn admitted there was an element of playing ‘a waiting game’ for the right site to become available.

He added: “There would be a few issues to juggle, but we are in active dialogue with the University on all transport issues.”

The latest large fly-tipping incident was reportedly dumped in the layby near Upton days before Christmas, according to one resident, who went out to take pictures.

The eyesore pile contains two chairs, a clothes horse, tyres and bags of rubbish.

Duston resident John Wright said: "How has this got into this state and why has this not been cleaned up?

"It was bad before Christmas but it's getting worse. There's cans, bottles and fast food boxes and they gather there every month.

"It's such a shame. I used to be proud of this town."

Northampton Borough Council said the fly tip was not previously reported to them but it's now on their radar.

Councillor Mike Hallam, cabinet member for environment, said: “Fly-tipping is unacceptable and we take all reports very seriously.

“Fly tips reported directly to us via our report it tool or our customer services team, are logged and cleared within three working days.

"Each fly tip is different however and some may take slightly longer to clear, if for example there are items of concern, such as suspected asbestos, that need to be investigated further or specialist services contracted in."

Before clearing, every fly tip is searched and where evidence allows a Fixed Penalty Notice of £400 will be issued.

In some cases, offenders can also be prosecuted, which can result in an unlimited fine or up to six months imprisonment.

Councillor Mike Hallam added: “In 2018, we issued a record number of Fixed Penalty Notices for littering and fly-tipping offences therefore, we encourage people to continue reporting instances so that we can keep the town clean and inform our enforcement activities.”

To report a fly tip please visit https://mycouncil.northampton.digital/reportIt.html or call 0300 330 7000.

“The county health profile isn’t where I would want it to be” says Northamptonshire’s director of public health Lucy Wightman.

“There are lots of areas where we perform significantly worse than the England average.

“We have road safety issues; we have got above average self harm hospital admissions; alcohol related hospital admissions; excess weight in adults and children can be a challenge, smoking status at the time of delivery, GCSE attainment and violent crime at county level are all a challenge. Those are areas where we are trying to prioritise our spend going forward.”

There is an annual budget of £35m (in the form of the public health grant) that Mrs Wightman has control of to try to tackle the problems. She says this is a drop in the ocean compared to what is spent across the health sector but will use this to commission new services that address local needs.

Working from the county council headquarters at One Angel Square, with her team of 30, who range from specialist health consultants to data analysts, she is leading a way forward that will provide a tailored rather than one size fits all approach.

She said: “We are now looking at all of the public health spend and making sure that the current expenditure is aligned with priority areas.”

One area where more cash will be spent is on weight management programmes.

“We are looking to enhance our budget for weight management because I don’t think it proportionate to the disease burden currently,” she says.

“We only have a couple of  services available for weight management so we need to invest more money into that to address it.”

This will involve co-designing schemes with specialists and asking people what they want, rather than running programmes and workshops that nobody attends.

And new services will be tailored to each geographical area as health problems vary widely across the county according to the level of affluence.

The director of health says: “For example, in Northampton  hospital stays for self harm is an area where they underperform. That is not the same for South Northamptonshire which has more diabetes or dementia diagnoses.  We have to be careful when we look at Northamptonshire as a whole, which is why we are trying to make sure the offer is tailored to borough and district level.”

As well as commissioning services a large part of the director of public health role is advocacy.  Her team works alongside partners such as the police and social services to try to influence where they spend their budget in a way that will provide the best health outcomes.

And the role of public health has changed in recent years. Mrs Wightman says there is more emphasis on how well people are living rather than how long they live.

She said: “Life expectancy has flatlined. In Northamptonshire it is stable, not increasing, whereas nationally there has been a decline in a number of areas.

“The emphasis has moved from making people live longer to helping people live better. What became apparent was there a number of people who were living into their 90s but from the age of 70 they were experiencing significant disease and disability, making the last 20 years of their life not enjoyable. So the shift of focus of both the NHS and public health has very much been about the quality of life. So life lived in health as opposed to life expectancy overall.”

As a former district nurse she knows well what ill health in later years looks like.

She says: “I spent years looking after people who were either immobile and homebound or they were dying and most of those people did not realise that a lot of things that they did when they were younger caused their condition. They would have had control over it at some point. It made me think I need to work upstream rather than look after people when they are really very unwell.”

Her recently-launched A Change Could Do You Good campaign hopes to get people thinking about how they can improve their own health.

“In an ideal world everybody would be eating at least five fruit and vegetables a day, taking at least 30 minutes of vigorous activity at least three times a week, not smoking, drinking in moderation, if at all, and having protected sex. But people do not live like that. In the most part because there is not a return on that investment immediately. People don’t do all of those things when they are younger and they don’t feel the impact of it at that time. They feel the impact of it later.

“Our campaign says there are little things you can do to make a difference. We recognise that not everybody is going to start running 5k three times a week but if you start using the stairs instead of the lift, if you made sure you get up in lunch hour and spend 20 minutes walking around the block, spend less time on your tablet and talked to people, that will make a difference.

“It is unrealistic to ask people to stop all of those things they enjoy. It is about making healthier choices, easier choices.”

Areas where the county is doing better than the national average

72% of mothers start breastfeeding at birth

79% of people are employed

95% of babies are vaccinated at birth

14% of children live in low income families

Areas where the county is doing worse than the national average

14 % of mothers are smoking at birth.

485 hospital admissions of 15-19 year olds for self harming

54 % of people eat five portions of fruit and vegetables a day

66% of adults are overweight

Back in May nearly 40 rooms - including classrooms, offices and 'multi-use' rooms - at the secondary phase of Caroline Chisholm School in Wooldale Road were hit by flash floods from a nearby brook.

All classrooms on the lower level of blocks B, C, D and E were left waterlogged, including the sixth form centre.

READ MORE: Northampton school and sixth form centre might not open after half term due to floods

Now, 20 classrooms are back up and running eight months on after a full revamp, and children are making good use of 'break-out' spaces, between corridors, for their IT lessons.

Head teacher David James said: "Students and staff coped really well in the initial stages as it was all about working together to get things sorted.

"I think students saw it as a bit of an adventure – being taught in different places across the school. Staff likewise – just got on with it. Staff in areas that were not affected helped staff in areas where there had been floods."

For three months the school library had been used as a staff room and a significant amount of text books and exercise books were damaged in the water and all of the wooden furniture has been replaced.

Mr James added: "Although it was difficult seeing work and resources damaged, I think at the time everyone was too busy to really let it play on them.

"Soon after the flood – the affected areas were closed off to the staff and students so, in a way, most staff could not see the devastation.

"We are getting there as a school – we now have two completed refurbished blocks that are as good as new. We can see that the work in the remaining blocks is proceeding and everyone is really focused on getting on with their work."

In an email to parents last year Mr James said the flood water was not contaminated with sewage water and there was no direct health and safety risk from using the upper floors and all of A block, whilst the lower floors were being fixed.

The art department and design and technology block are expected to be fully functioning in May after refurbishment is complete and the sixth form centre should be operational by January 24 for an open evening.

Hundreds of homes and businesses in the town were also flooded when localised flash floods hit on Sunday, May 27. More than a month’s rain fell in one hour as 62mm of rain was recorded.

READ MORE: A dozen flooding probes to be launched after bank holiday devastation in Northampton

READ MORE: Looking back at the floods that hit Northampton in 2018

The A428 southbound into Northampton is partially closed this morning following reports of a severe accident.

All emergency services and the air ambulance are reportedly at the scene of the crash on Harlestone Road near to the Hopping Hare pub.

Traffic is moving slowly both ways between Barn Way and Mill Lane.

The road remains partially blocked following the accident just after 7.30am.

There are also long delays on the A45 heading into Northampton as well as queueing traffic between on Mereway and A5076.

The premises licence of a Northampton shop is being reviewed after an altercation involving an alleged shoplifter.

It comes after what Northamptonshire Police say were two incidents within an hour of each other at the Crescent Off Licence in Wellingborough Road.

Police were called at just after 10pm after a bystander saw a large fight - which police later linked to the Crescent Off Licence- taking place and involving a metal pole being used as a weapon. It left one of the parties needing hospital treatment,

Just over an hour later, police were called to the Crescent itself after reports that two men had emerged from the shop and were seen to be throwing bottles of alcohol at people. Five people were arrested on suspicion of affray.

In evidence to be put before councillors next Tuesday (January 23), PC Chris Stevens said CCTV pictures had later showed the majority of what had taken place that evening, November 19, 2018.

He said: "Upon viewing the CCTV footage of the incident, it is apparent that it took place following a shoplifting by one of the people later involved.

"The police believe that the actions [of those who attacked the shoplifter] were completely disproportionate to the nature of the theft and certainly the value of it.

"The police believe that as a result of the actions, numerous people were affected by the subsequent serious violence that took place."

PC Stephens said this significantly undermined the licensing objective and called on councillors to consider all options, including a revocation of the premises licence.

A representative for the shop told the Chronicle & Echo they would be disputing the evidence being presented to the councillors.

All five people who were arrested have been released under investigation.

The A14 heading into Kettering is partially blocked this morning after an accident involving a car and a lorry.

There are queues of up to four miles long on the A14 eastbound at starting at J2 of Harborough Road.

A lorry has reportedly been involved in a crash with a car. Emergency services are on the scene.

Severe delays of up to 50 minutes and an average speed of 5mph have been reported.

House prices in Northampton decreased by 1.5% in November, despite witnessing a 1.6% rise over the last 12 months.

The figures - the latest data from the Office of National Statistics - show that the average property in the area sold for £210,252, below the UK average of £230,630.

Across the East Midlands, property prices have risen by 4.4% in the last year, to £192,061. The region outperformed the UK as a whole, which saw the average property value increase by 2.8%.

The data comes from the House Price Index, which the ONS compiles using house sale information from the Land Registry, and the equivalent bodies in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

The average homeowner in Northampton will have seen their property jump in value by around £61,000 in the last five years.

The figures also showed that buyers who made their first step onto the property ladder in Northampton in November spent an average of £186,473 – around £54,000 more than it would have cost them five years ago.

Lawrence Bowles, research analyst at estate agents Savills, said: “We saw a slight growth in UK house prices in the year to November, but that’s slower growth than we saw saw a couple of months ago, in September. Last month aside, it is the slowest growth in over five years, since July 2013.

“We are still seeing house price growth in real terms, but very limited.

“The fastest growth is in the regions, particularly in Wales and the Midlands. Growth in London, where affordability is most stretched, is slower.

“We expect to see that ripple effect from London continue, with our forecast showing the fastest house price growth to come in the North.”

Between October 2017 and September last year, the most recent 12 months for which sales volume data is available, 3,668 homes were sold in Northampton, 6% fewer than in the previous year.

The highest house prices in the country in November were found in London’s Kensington and Chelsea, where properties sold for an average of £1.29 million – 16 times the cost of a home in Burnley, where the average property cost just £82,800.

A stretch of one of Northamptonshire’s busiest roads will close for eight months for major rail works.

The westbound section of the A45 Higham Road, between Rushden and Wellingborough, will close to traffic on February 4.

All traffic will use the eastbound section in a contraflow system until the A45 fully re-opens on October 16.

The railway bridge on the westbound section - which is lower than the eastbound bridge - needs to be demolished and rebuilt at a higher height to allow for the safe clearance of overhead line equipment in anticipation of electrification of the route between London to Kettering and Corby via Bedford.

Network Rail sponsor, Wendy Bell, said: “We understand that closing a lane of the dual carriageway can be disruptive and we thank road users in advance for their patience.

“This work is part of the Midland Main Line upgrade and is vital for the electrification of the route from London to Bedford.

“We are working closely with Highways England to keep disruption to a minimum and we apologise for any inconvenience which this work causes.”

Residents and businesses wishing to find out more about the work to the bridge and the traffic management arrangements are invited to attend the information event being held on Friday, January 25, at Swansgate Shopping Centre, Wellingborough, between 9am and 5pm.

A drop-in will also be held at Rushden Lakes between 9am and 3pm on Saturday, January 26.

Network Rail workers will be on hand to answer any questions which residents may have.

Ms Bell added: “I would encourage anyone wishing to find out more to attend one of the drop-in events, where we will be happy to answer any questions.”

Motorists are reminded that the Irthlingborough Road bridge in Wellingborough also remains closed as part of further upgrades to the Midland Main Line.

For further information contact the Network Rail National Helpline on 03457 41 41.

More than 2,000 babies and small children in Northmapton and other parts of the county are not registered with a doctor, and could potentially be missing life-saving health checks.

Doctors have warned children could be at risk of missing out on key vaccinations and checkups because their parents haven’t signed them up with a surgery.

NHS figures show there are 39,398 newborns and children under five registered with GP practices in the NHS Nene Clinical Commissioning Group area - which includes Northampton, Kettering, and Wellingborough.

However, the latest ONS figures put the number of children aged four and under in the CCG’s area at 41,709.

This means around 2,310 children are not on a GP’s register.

Across England, more than 123,000 children - 4% of the population - are not registered with a doctors’ surgery, the figures suggest.

Professor Russell Viner, president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, has urged parents to ensure their children are registered.

He said: “I find it deeply concerning that so many children appear to be unregistered with a GP, at a time where we are seeing an emergence of preventable and deadly diseases such as the measles, record levels of childhood obesity and its associated conditions, and with 34% of all child deaths in the UK considered avoidable – the vast majority of which are in infancy.”

The NHS offers regular health checks for babies until they are two years old, to monitor their development.

They are also given a personal child health record, known as a red book, in which parents and health professionals keep a log of their vaccinations and measurements.

In 2017-18, just 87% of children in England had received both the recommended MMR jabs - which protects against measles, mumps and rubella - by the time they turned five.

At least 95% coverage is needed to lower the risk of an outbreak, according to the World Health Organisation.

A monthly snapshot of GP patients was taken on January 1, while the most recent population estimates are for mid-2017.

This means the number of children not on a GP register is an estimate.

However, the number of GP patients is generally higher than the actual population, as many patients are on multiple registers as a result of moving house, or are not removed after they die.

Professor Viner continued: “Registering a child with a doctor can be life saving or at the very least, life changing.

“It will mean parents get important vaccination and health check reminders, their child’s weight and development monitored and concerns acted upon quickly.

“If required, access to specialist NHS healthcare can be arranged.

“I urge all parents to register their child with their local GP and, if unsure, visit nhs.uk to find out more.”

Plainclothes officers from Northampton's Proactive Team made the arrests in Northampton after stopping a car following suspicions of criminal behaviour.

According to unit's Twitter account, the officers uncovered 92 wraps of class A drugs following a search under the Misuse of Drugs Act.

One Apple watch was also seized along with £400 in cash.

All three occupants were arrested for intent to supply Class A drugs. Additionally, the driver had no licence and no insurance

The Cobblers and Northampton Borough Council have today issued a joint statement reiterating their commitment to ensuring the much-delayed east stand redevelopment at the PTS Academy Stadium will be completed.

Although short on specific details, the statement makes it clear that discussions between the two parties are ongoing and ‘positive’, and that the outcome ‘will be to everyone’s benefit, including both supporters of the club and the wider public’.

Due to the ‘complicated and technical discussions’, representatives from neither the Cobblers or the council will be making any further comment, but there was also a reassurance that the priority is ensuring the east stand is completed first before development of any other land.

The statement reads: “Northampton Borough Council and Northampton Town Football Club (NTFC) have today jointly confirmed that positive discussions are continuing to be had on a range of topics including the development of the east stand at the PTS Academy Stadium.

“The Borough Council and NTFC are not able, at this stage, to provide detailed information or a time frame for these discussions to be completed, but they have both confirmed the outcomes will be to everyone’s benefit including both supporters of the club and the wider public and be deliverable within a realistic timeframe.

“Whilst discussions have included nearby land under the control of CDNL (County Development Northampton Limited) both parties are clear that the completion of the east stand will come first.

“Further information will be provided as and when possible, but this is a complicated and technical discussion with both the Borough Council and NTFC very anxious to avoid creating any further difficulties or delays, and it is now important to allow these discussions to complete to ensure a positive conclusion is reached.”

Work to redevelop the east stand began in the summer of 2015, but stalled early the following year due to the well-publicised financial crisis that engulfed the football club.

Seats were put into the structure to at least make it usable in March, 2016, but nothing has happened since, with the club and council still striving to come to an agreement.

The councillor in charge of children’s services at Northamptonshire County Council has been asked to step down.

Cllr Victoria Perry was removed from the cabinet job by leader Matt Golby straight after the cabinet meeting on Tuesday (Jan 15).

In an interview this morning Cllr Perry said the demotion came out of the blue.

She said: “Matt said he was worried about my wellbeing and that I was taking the role too personally. He said I was taking too much on – I don’t agree with that, but that was his view.

“I do get passionate and I do go out and talk to people and bring back issues, that is what I am like. Maybe he needs someone who is going to be more strategic and less hands-on. Maybe I was too challenging.

“But I have no hard feelings, that’s politics. Matt has my full support.”

The children’s services department at Northamptonshire County Council has been in turmoil in recent months. The Government sent in experienced children’s commissioner Malcolm Newsam to oversee the department in November after a damning Ofsted report found 267 children were without an allocated social worker and that social workers were ‘drowning in work’.

Cllr Perry said: “Ofsted coming in was a good thing because it has caused changes to be made. The new children’s director Sharon Muldoon has worked fantastically and she has sorted out the ‘front door’ of the service and put in place proper procedures and protocols.

“I’m disappointed because I have been involved in all the hard work including the new social work and retention package which is due to be announced next week.

“I would have liked to have stayed on for the journey as things are getting better.”

The conservative councillor, who was appointed to the role in March and has been a county councillor representing the Kettering Ise ward since May 2017, has been active throughout recent months on social media, explaining to residents what has been going on within the council. The authority is being run by commissioners after a Government review found it was being severely mismanaged.

She said: “The new chief executive Theresa Grant has criticised me for that and the commissioners have also criticised me. But that did not stop me. I wanted to get rid of that culture of secrecy and to make myself accountable and I still think it is the right thing to do.”

Leader of the Liberal Democrats Chris Stanbra said he was shocked at Cllr Perry’s demotion.

He said: “As far as I could see Cllr Perry was doing a good job and I’m shocked that the leader has asked her to go.”

It is understood that leader Matt Golby will take over the role on an interim basis. He has been approached for comment.

Police have released CCTV images of a man they would like to speak to in connection with the theft of outdoor Christmas decorations and lights from a house in Avenue Road, Rushden.

The theft happened on Saturday, December 22, at about 1.15pm, when a white vehicle was seen parking at the front of the property. A man got out, went into the front garden and removed the lights, decorations and a power box.

Officers believe the man pictured may have information about the incident and are asking him, or anyone who recognises him, to get in touch.

Anyone with information should call Northamptonshire Police on 101. Alternatively, they can contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.

The blue Vauxhall Zafira has reportedly been left at the junction of Osbourne Road and Kingsthorpe Road since the beginning of October.

The car - which has picked up four parking tickets during its stay - is just metres from the left-hand turn into the street off the busy Kingsthorpe Road - but has not moved in months.

One resident whose windows face the stationary car said: "It's only a matter of time until someone hits it.

"It seems like the wardens come to look at it, scratch their heads and then walk off."

Northamptonshire Police's ELVIS team is tasked with removing abandoned vehicles - but can only do so if it is two months past its tax liability date or is unfit to drive on a highway.

However, the DVLA website shows the Vauxhall is fully taxed and is up to date on its MOT.

Northamptonshire Police say they are aware of the car and are making investigations.

Meanwhile, it is outside the responsibility of the county council's highways teams and Northampton Borough Council's neighbourhood wardens.

Speaking in December, chair of Queens Park Residents Association Brian Burnett said: "It's a hazard. I've seen vans and vehicles have to stop in their tracks when they come around the corner and see the car before they can navigate around it.

"I feel someone needs to take responsibility for it. Why can't someone just come and lift it away?"I would have thought the highways team or the police would have been interested. Surely it's an obstruction?"

A man from Corby has appeared in court charged with burglary in relation to break-ins at pubs across Northamptonshire.

Stephen Hill, 31, of no fixed address, pleaded not guilty to three counts of burglary at Northampton Crown Court today (January 17).

Hill's trial is scheduled to start on April 8.

He was arrested as part of Operation Trebuchet, an investigation into burglaries in the Corby and Kettering area.