To mark National Apprenticeship Week campaigners and businesses across Northamptonshire have joined together to make the case for apprenticeships to young people looking to take their first steps into the world of work.

From engineering and accounting to hair dressing or software developing, the range of apprenticeships currently on offer is extremely varied, yet many businesses struggle to fill vacancies.

The Northamptonshire Enterprise Partnership (NEP) has launched its Bright Futures public relations campaign to raise awareness about the variety of opportunities available. It has also published a survey which indicated a high level of support for apprentices among the county’s businesses.

Jo Lappin, chief executive of NEP, said: “Our Bright Futures campaign is about making sure young people understand the open availability of apprenticeships to them and are informed about making the decision right for them.

“For some young people, university is the right choice. For others apprenticeships are one other.

“I think the challenge we face uniquely in the county is the burgeoning labour market. We have very high levels of jobs and employment. But I think businesses stand to gain their future work force.”

One Daventry firm which is supporting the initiative is High-force, a manufacturer of hydraulic tools. Kevin Brown, group managing director, said his firm was keen to take on new apprentices because the investment in training was well worth the reward. He said: “Working with the University Technical College we are looking at doing some summer work here.

“If we can harness them at the right age they will be a invaluable part of the business. We are a pretty international company and we have many people working overseas who once worked in Daventry. Some of them have been in this company for 20 to 30 years, even if it is not in the same role or location.

“What we can offer is a complete sweep here from product design to packaging. Apprentices could see every step to getting our products out there.”

Northampton College is also keen to fill more than 40 vacancies for apprenticeships in business administration and customer service with places also available in engineering, warehousing, hospitality, hairdressing and childcare.

James Whybrow, assistant principal at Northampton College said: “There has never been a better time to start an apprenticeship. Employers have never been more receptive to the concept of growing their own talent by developing a motivated, skilled and qualified workforce.

“We currently have more vacancies than we can fill with new opportunities coming in every day. Significant numbers of jobs are available in administration and customer services across a range of sectors. The skills that young people will acquire through an apprenticeship in these areas are highly transferable.”

Eighteen-year-old Amber Sutherland completed her GCSEs at Parker E-Act Academy and started a apprenticeship in business administration at Daventry District Council in January.

She said:“I found the vacancy on the National Apprenticeship website and applied. I came in for an interview and got a phone call to say I had been successful. Northampton College gave me work to complete during the apprenticeship so I can gain the Business Administration qualification, but it’s mostly on-the-job training. I’m really enjoying it. It’s a very interesting and varied role and I’m not just tied to a desk. I’ve been out on site inspections and carried out parking surveys. I’m also compiling a business directory for companies across Daventry district.

“Most of my friends are at college but I much prefer to learn through doing the job, rather than by sitting in a classroom. I’m getting paid, which helps too of course!

“I’m still not exactly sure what I want to do in my career but this is giving me a great introduction to work with the added bonus of a qualification at the end of it.”

Geoff Bratt is managing director of Atlantechs Ltd, a family-owned business based in Weedon which specialises in manufacturing seats for commercial vehicles and classic car restorations.

He said many of his best workers are past pensionable age: “We need people here that are able to work from the beginning to the finish of production, and those skills are disappearing. The problem is that young people generally don’t have the wherewithal to carry out these tasks without a lot of training.

“We are looking for people that are good sewers, trimmers and car body builders, but finding people these days who can saw in a straight line is a challenge.”

The firm is training up two apprentices with another due to start in September. Mr Bratt said: “Our two guys are really, really, good, but it took us a long time to find them.”

Today (Thursday) two events are taking place to showcase the opportunities available. There will be job fair at Daventry Leisure Centre in Lodge Road from 1pm to 4pm and an Apprenticeship Roadshow at the iCon centre from 6pm with presentations from 7pm to 8.15pm and refreshments and networking from 8.15pm to 9pm

An engineering firm in Daventry has visited a secondary school to help students with a project.

Workers from Cummins went to Guilsborough School for a visit connected to the Big Bang and UK Scientists and Engineer Fair at the NEC in Birmingham.

Ahead of the Big Bang, which runs from yesterday (Wednesday) until Saturday, the firm worked with students promoting science, technology, English and maths (STEM).

The activity was titled When Natural Disaster Strikes.

Sally Childs, a corporate responsibility coordinator, said: “We asked the students to get into teams to simulate a response to a natural disaster.

“The pupils took the place of a team of International Emergency Specialists. Predicting and reacting to complex and severe natural events is an extreme example of just how important STEM professionals are to society.”

In their teams the students were asked to plan and build a model aid centre for one of two disasters, either a volcano or tsunami.

The youngsters had tasks to complete which included planning a camp, creating a model of a power generation system and delivering a presentation to a series of judges.

Each team nominated one person to take roles including project manager, building surveyor, finance office, communication director and lead engineer.

The students then made model wind turbines or solar field panels from items such as paper and straws bottles.

The winning teams are due to be VIPs at the Big Bang Event.

They will also be invited to have a tour of Cummins’ facilities and have lunch.

Officers from Northamptonshire Police will be at Long Buckby Fire Station today as part of the force’s month-long knife amnesty.

Officers will be at Long Buckby Fire Station from 2pm to 4pm with a designated blade bin. The campaign will run throughout March and anyone can drop knives off without the fear of prosecution. The aim is to take hundreds of dangerous weapons off the streets.

Knifes can be dropped into one of these bins, or a scheduled appointment can be made by calling 101 and arranging for a police officer to come to take the knife away.

The campaign is part of Operation Limit, the force’s crackdown on violent crime, and also forms part of the national ‘Save a life’ campaign being run nationally.

Superintendent Mick Stamper, head of Northampton operational command unit, said: “The knife amnesty is intended to make our streets safer. In the wrong hands a knife is a deadly weapon.”

Similar drop off events have already been held outside Tesco in Daventry yesterday (Wednesday) and in the High Street in Bugbrooke.

A probe into the suspected failings of a 2002 murder investigation has revealed Northamptonshire Chief Constable Adrian Lee has ‘no case to answer’, according to his boss.

Over the past four years the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) has been conducting an inquiry into the handling of the murder of Kevin Nunes in 2002 by Staffordshire Police.

Mr Nunes, a 20-year-old who had been on the books of Tottenham Hotspur, was found dead in a country lane in Staffordshire on September 19, 2002.

Five men were found guilty of an alleged ‘execution-style’ murder, but in 2012 they were cleared at the Court of Appeal in 2012 after a damning report exposed errors by Staffordshire Police, where Adrian Lee held a senior position at the time.

The successful appeal prompted an IPCC investigation into the handling of the case called Operation Kalmia.

Today his current boss, Police and Crime Commissioner Adam Simmonds, confirmed via a video message that, having reviewed the final IPCC report on Operation Kalmia and having taken ‘expert legal advice’, Mr Lee has ‘no case to answer’.

Mr Simmonds said: “As far as I am concerned this matter is now closed.

“Adrian Lee has faced three years of investigations where his entire career and integrity has been held up to the microscope.

“He has had to live his life, reassure his wife, colleagues, friends and families of his innocence, while all the time knowing there were people investigating him and around the community making judgements about him.”

In total, 14 past and serving Staffordshire Police officers were questioned by the IPCC as part of Operation Kalmia.

Following the successful appeal of the convicted men, complaints had been made in connection with the handling of the Kevin Nunes murder inquiry.

It was alleged that Staffordshire Police had received a complaint from the ‘main witness’ relating to a senior officer of the Sensitive Policing Unit there in November 2006.

The second matter was the force’s alleged failure to disclose the results of an internal review of the sensitive policing unit.

The Crown Prosecution dropped criminal charges against Mr Lee in November.

Following the news that he will face no further action in relation to Operation Kalmia today, Mr Lee, said: “This has been a difficult time for me personally, coming as it did during a highly challenging period for Northamptonshire Police, in which we have seen enormous transformational change against a background of continuing austerity.

“Throughout this long investigation, however, I have received nothing but support from colleagues the length and breadth of the Force – not least a concern for my welfare from the Police and Crime Commissioner Adam Simmonds.

“You have placed your trust in me since the allegations first became public.”

And he added: “Today we have reached a point where it is now clear that there was no substance to the allegations made against me.

“I have always known this - it is regrettable that it has taken others over three years to reach the same conclusion.”

A new initiative to support parents of dyslexic children, launched at Daventry and District Welfare Foundation on New Street, is already providing help and advice.

The Northamptonshire Dyslexic Association (NDA)launched the first of a series of workshops in February as part of its Dyslexia Parent Support Initiative (DyPSI) which was attended by 15 parents from Daventry.

The session was delivered by specialist dyslexia teacher Jacky Swift, and supported by Pam Tomalin, chairman of the NDA (both themselves affected by dyslexia). It detailed the range of difficulties and challenges affecting dyslexic children.

The parents were also able to look at a range of resources, and share information and experiences with each other, and each were given a copy of the Dyslexia Handbook produced by the British Dyslexia Association, containing advice and information about dyslexia.

The remaining sessions will be running each month through to July at the Daventry and District Welfare Foundation Building in New Street and will be covering topics such as supporting children with reading, spelling, writing, memory and organisation, as well as help with homework, building confidence and self esteem, and looking at the range of helpful technology that is available.

Jamie and Sally Bird attended the session. Their daughter Daisy was diagnosed with dyslexia at the age of seven. Mrs Bird said: “It was a relief really.

“We knew there was something wrong but we didn’t know what. It’s is very difficult to know what to do next to try to get help. It was really nice to meet other parents and listen to their stories about what their children are going through. It was also good to be able to pick the brains of experts.”

Mr Bird added: “At the end of the day dyslexia is not something you can cure. She will always be dyslexic but there are coping mechanisms.”

Ms Tomalin added: “As the NDA receives no funding whatsoever for the charity which has been in existence for 30 years, we would like to extend our thanks to Daventry District Council and Northamptonshire Community Foundation for the grants that enabled these workshops to be possible.

“It is worth remembering that dyslexia is a lifelong condition and there is no cure; however with help and support many dyslexics can go on to lead rewarding and successful lives such as two famous dyslexics, Jamie Oliver and Richard Branson.”

There are still places available on the remaining workshops. booking forms can be obtained from Amanda Eaton at amanda.eaton1@ntlworld.com.

The 4th Daventry Scout Group raised £230 for Comic Relief by selling cakes and red noses at Daventry Farmers’ Market on Saturday, February 28. They also managed to sell 80 red noses.

The scout group has also been showing its support 
for the Bwaise Project, a school for young people in Uganda which helps them to attain the skills needed for adult life.

If you would like to know more information about scouting in Daventry you can contact Jennie Curtis on 07775 758580 or email jenniecurtis@
daventryscouts.co.uk.

An alliance has been formed between a livery company in London and Northamptonshire County Council (NCC) to help schools, business and charities in the area.

The council is working with the London-based Worshipful Company of Information Technologists (WCIT) on a range of initiatives targeted at optimising digital technology in businesses, schools, charities and residents across the county.

In education, the WCIT will initially focus on providing technical and professional support and mentoring to support NCC’s Race to the Top schools initiative, developed in collaboration with the Government and also involving Northamptonshire Enterprise Partnership (NEP). The broad programme concentrates on raising educational standards in Northamptonshire schools through innovation. Paul Blantern, the chief executive officer for NCC said: “We are focused on transforming digital services across Northamptonshire.

“The end objective is to make digital as simple, easy-to-use and accessible as possible to businesses, schools, charities and citizens across the county.

“We are confident that working with the WCIT and drawing on its experience and expertise in working with these kinds of audiences, and in delivering entrepreneurship and mentoring support to drive IT transformation programmes, will help ensure this project is a big success.”

The alliance will also help new businesses and boostthe digital economy.

Nicholas Birtles, master of the WCIT said: “We are excited to have the opportunity to work with them to help bring the benefits of digital technology to stakeholders across the county.”

Some of Daventry’s most talented photographers were honoured at the annual general meeting of the town’s photographic society on Tuesday, March 3.

Linda Wilson from Hellidon was awarded for her consistency throughout the year with shields for the best projected photographer; best print photographer and The Walker Trophy for the best overall photographer.

The awards are based on results from the group’s in-house monthly photo competitions, and it is highly unusual for one photographer to win all three awards in the same year.

Daventry Photographic Society are based at Mayfield Park Club on the Timken estate and meet every Tuesday at 7.30pm.

Photographers of all skill levels are welcome to attend.

The head of the Parker E-ACT academy has given his support to the Gusher’s new Daventry Schools Matter campaign.

Launched last week, Daventry Schools Matter aims to highlight the good work being done by schools in the community and to promote the town’s competitive educational offering.

Earlier this year, the Daventry Express revealed that one third of primary students were leaving town for their education due to a lack of confidence among some parents in the educational offering at town secondaries.

Andrew Mackereth said: “First of all I think it is a valuable piece of work. I met a parent earlier this week that said she had seen the campaign in the paper the previous week and– rather than listen to the some of the more negative comments from some parents in the playground – she wanted to come to take a look at the school. She was very pleased with what she saw.

“There is so much going on across Daventry schools and I am very fortunate to have a close relationship with primary schools. It is great to be able to show the community the fabulous things our schools are doing.”

In particular, Mr Mackereth raised the Book Buddies programme launched at the school last week in which children from Falconer’s Hill Academy, Falconer’s Hill Infants and Parker Academy came together, with older students reading to the youngest from a range of storybooks. It is now set to become annual event.

“It was inspirational,” Mr Mackereth said. “There was one adult present in the room who was moved to tears.”

He hoped that through stronger partnerships with local schools Daventry secondaries would be able to improve their offering by providing a “consistently good” standard of education from foundation and primary level through to secondary school.

He said: “It is about making sure children have a level of support to ensure they make progress in the ways they best learn.

“I think I am conscious since I arrived in the town that the health of our schools is important to the health of our community.

“It is vital children know when they go to Daventry schools they will receive the education they need to thrive.”

Mr Mackereth said Parker had recently received a visit from a representative of the Department for Education who said there has been a “significant change” in the school’s fortunes since November.

The Canal & River Trust is calling for people in the Daventry district to feed the ducks responsibly.

Every year 6 million loaves of bread are being thrown into canals and rivers in England and Wales - potentially polluting the water and damaging hundreds of thousands of ducks’ homes.

Last year 80 per cent of people in the Midlands fed the ducks with 84 per cent of them admitting to feeding our feathered friends with bread.

Uneaten soggy bread can cause a build-up of bad nutrients which can lead to greater algae growth, spread disease and encourage pests such as rats.

Today, ahead of the official start of spring and duckling hatching season, the Canal & River Trust is calling on people in the area to make a few simple changes to how they feed the ducks

Richard Bennett, environment manager for the Canal & River Trust, said: “Please come and feed the ducks but do it sensibly so your children and future generations can enjoy it too. The charity is asking the public to make a few simple changes. Bread’s not great for a duck’s health as it’s nothing like their natural diet so don’t over feed them with large quantities of it. Try to vary what you give them and swap it for healthier more natural treats like oats, corn, or defrosted frozen peas. And exercise portion control!

“Don’t follow the crowds, spread the love, and visit a new family of ducks to prevent large quantities of the starchy duck ‘junk food’ from clogging up the same places and potentially damaging the environment.”

For more information on the campaign visit www.canalrivertrust.org.uk/duck

Supporters of UKIP gathered at the Cross Roads Hotel in Weedon on Saturday to mark the launch of the election campaign of its Daventry branch.

The event was attended by several councillors affiliated with the party, as well as branch chairman Peter Conquest and prospective parliamentary Daventry candidate Michael Gerard. Ian Dexter, who made headlines last year with his strategy for winning over Labour voters for the party, was also present.

Mr Gerard said: “It is a privilege to be standing as UKIP’s candidate for Daventry, and for a party that has common sense politics at its heart and allows me to put local interests before party loyalty.

“MPs in every other main party can only ever ‘toe the party line’ yet any elected UKIP MP will be able to vote truly with his constituents’ interests in mind.” Mr Conquest underlined the party’s main policies, which include exiting the European Union, reducing overseas aid and scrapping HS2. He said: “[We] are Britain’s party of hope. Other parties can only offer more cuts, more austerity.

Cllr Adam Collyer added: “It was great to see our campaign get off to such a flying start. Finally the Tories have some real opposition in Daventry!”.

Ian Dexter added: “Michael Gerard makes a strong appeal to all voters – the country desperately needs change and a realistic alternative to the old failed parties.”

Other speakers included Cllr Sean Connors and Northamptonshire South parliamentary candidate, Tim Wilson. Campaigning began in earnest two weeks ago and a second awareness stall is due to be held on Saturday, March 21 in Daventry.

Mr Gerard will be standing for parliament against confirmed candidates Abigail Campbell (Labour), Chris Heaton Harris (Conservative) and Steve Whiffen (Greens).

The Warwickshire and Northamptonshire Air Ambulance (WNAA) is seeking to recruit more volunteers to help promote the organisation.

The charity say current volunteers are in poor health and need help to carry out their current roles.

Jo Payne, national volunteering manager for the service, said: “We desperately need to take the burden of responsibility off their shoulders so they can enjoy their volunteering with us, without worrying about the sheer volume of tins needing emptying.”

Anyone who can help can call the WNAA on 024 7663 9043.

Vandals have slashed the tyres of a car parked on a Daventry street twice in the space of three days.

A Renault Clio parked in Trinity Close first had all four of its tyres slashed on Friday, March 13.

One of the vehicle’s tyres was then slashed again on Sunday, March 15, sometime between 2.15pm and 3.30pm.

Anyone with information about this incident can call police on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

A sheep was mutilated and killed by a vandal who broke into a field near a village close to Northampton.

Police are investigating after a sheep was stabbed to death and cut up in a field off Bugbrooke Road in Nether Heyford sometime between 11.30am on Wednesday, March 11 and 7am on Thursday, March 12.

It is believed a number of lambs may also have died as a result of the attack but a police spokesman said only one sheep death had been reported.

A woman who lives near to the field where the sheep was killed said: “Someone who is capable of such a horrific crime is a danger to children and general public. Surely they need catching.”

Witnesses, or anyone who knows anything about this incident, can call Northamptonshire Police on 101.

Alternatively, they can call the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or use the anonymous online form at www.crimestoppers-uk.org.

A wedding ring and eternity ring were taken during an incident in Weedon on Monday.

Police have reported two women in a dark coloured car approached the female victim who was walking along the street.

One of the women got out and asked the victim for directions to the ‘big hospital’ in broken English.

After receiving directions, one of the assailants offered her ‘thanks’ by placing a necklace around the victim’s neck as a gift. It was only later when the victim realised a necklace she had already been wearing, which carried the wedding and eternity rings, was missing.

The wedding ring has an engraving saying ‘I Love You 3 Apr 1989.’

The theft happened at 9.50am and police are urging people who find themselves in a similar situation to walk away. Anyone with information can call police on 101.

Almost £80,000 worth of fines were handed out by Northamptonshire Police officers in the year after the new ‘careless driving’ offences were introduced two years ago, new figures show.

Data released under the Freedom of Information Act shows that 726 drivers were given £100 fines after they were caught using a mobile phone at the wheel between August 2013 and August 2014.

During the same period, a total of 40 people were fined for ‘driving without due care and attention’ and 23 were given fixed penalty notices for driving without reasonable consideration to other users, this includes ‘hogging’ the middle lane of a motorway and driving through a puddle and splashing pedestrians.

Two people in the county were fined £100 for using a mobile phone while supervising a provisional licence holder.

Nationally, 10,000 motorists have been fined for offences such as tailgating, hogging the middle lane and undertaking on the inside lane since the new £100 fines for careless driving were introduced in August 2013.

The force that handed out the highest amount of fines for careless driving during the year was the Met Police (1397), while South Wales and Essex Police did not prosecute any drivers.

Professor Stephen Glaister, director of the RAC Foundation, has backed the use of the on-the-spot fines, but said they had to be enforced consistently across the country.

He said: “As with using mobiles at the wheel and drink-driving, it is not enough to outlaw anti-social behaviour on the roads.

“People need to believe they will get caught. These figures suggest that in several areas they won’t. Ultimately you need consistent nationwide police enforcement proportionate with the level of death and injury these reckless actions cause.”

A body has been recovered from the scene of a house fire in Haverhill.

Police were called by a member of the public at around 2.30am this morning with reports that a residential property in Bellings Road was on fire.

Fire crews were called to tackle the fire which affected at least two properties and found a body inside.

The body has not yet been formally identified.

An investigation is under way to establish the cause of the fire.

A cordon is in place at the property.

Anyone with information relating to the incident is asked to contact Suffolk Police on 101.

More updates will follow throughout the day.

Northamptonshire Police have been out and about in the Daventry district with a knife bin as part of a amnesty.

The aim is allow people with weapons, including CS spray, to be able to hand them into police without facing any further action.

The bin has already been to Tesco in New Street, Daventry and at the fire station in Long Buckby.

Pictured with the bin is Sergeant Matthew Moore and PCSO Carl Barton who were at the fire station.

Our photographers and readers have been out and about taking pictures of events throughout the week.

Here is a selection of them.

The performance of Northamptonshire’s top 100 privately-owned companies will be under the spotlight again in May when the results of the third in-depth survey into the county’s business scene are announced by financial and business advisers Grant Thornton.

The survey, called Northamptonshire Ltd, is compiled using the latest accounts available for the county’s 100 largest independent firms to provide a recognised barometer of the county’s overall business performance and changing market place.

The survey uses key performance indicators such as operating profit and employment figures and also includes a breakdown of the financial data by sector.

The results of Northamptonshire Ltd 2015 will be presented at a special breakfast event on Wednesday, May 13 at Franklin’s Gardens, the home of Northampton Saints Rugby Club, attended by many of the county’s top business leaders.

John Corbishley, director at Grant Thornton, said: “The 2014 Northamptonshire Ltd analysis showed our county’s businesses were continuing to perform strongly with some really impressive, stand-out results.

“Based on our local knowledge and discussions with clients and other professionals, we expect this trend to have continued for 2015.”

This positive message is reflected in the latest ICAEW/Grant Thornton Business Confidence Monitor report which shows that optimisim amoungst companies in Northamptonshire and across the East Midlands is stronger than the UK as a whole.

To register interest in attending the Northamptonshire Ltd 2015 results event, or for more information, contact Rachel Cartwright at Grant Thornton at rachel.a.cartwright@uk.gt.com.