Arrangements for the future delivery of environmental services in Daventry district have progressed after the council approved in principle a deal with a new firm.

At a full council meeting on February 23, councillors backed the proposal to enter into a joint venture with Norse Commercial Services Ltd to deliver environmental services when the current contract with Amey/Enterprise ends on June 3 2018.

It follows the decision last year to replace the present system of waste and recycling collections with a ‘1-2-3’ scheme once the current contract ends.

The new service design will involve a weekly food waste collection, a two-weekly recycling collection using a full-size wheelie bin and a three-weekly general waste collection. A separate fortnightly garden waste collection service will be made available at an additional cost for those who want it.

Should agreement be reached with Norse Commercial Services Ltd, the new joint venture arrangement would deliver that 1-2-3 service together with street cleaning and grass-cutting.

Councillor Jo Gilford, environment portfolio holder at Daventry District Council, said: “Since agreeing plans for the new 1-2-3 waste and recycling collections, officers have done a lot of work and research to explore how we can deliver our environmental services from June 2018.

“Having considered all the options, they have concluded the proposed joint venture with Norse is the best fit for our district’s future needs to provide an affordable, quality service. Norse has a proven track record of working with councils and the joint venture arrangement would give us a greater degree of control over the service. It would also let us offer residents the simplest recycling service, with all materials going into one bin.

The deal with Norse would also allow the council to offer a fully co-mingled recycling service, with all dry recycling going into one wheelie bin. Parish councils wishing to take on litter picking and the maintenance of closed churchyards would be able to do so under the arrangement.

“Some parish councils have also expressed interest in taking on litter-picking and churchyard maintenance and we can see how local communities might reap benefits from such services being delivered at a grassroots level,” said Councillor Jo Gilford.

“Parishes have an important role to play in protecting and enhancing our district’s environment and we are keen to engage with them.”

Councillors also agreed to allocate £2.5m to enhance the depot and transfer station, to bring it up to modern standards and improve its efficiency.

A further £350,000 was allocated for new garden waste wheelie bins that will be required under the 1-2-3 system. The existing brown garden bins would become recycling bins under the new system.

Norse Commercial Services Ltd is owned by Norfolk County Council and provides services with 12 other local authorities, including Wellingborough.

Some families in Northamptonshire will soon get double the number of free childcare hours a week for three and four-year-olds.

From September, eligible parents will be able to benefit 30 hours free childcare a week, up from 15 hours a week under the current scheme.

Now Northamptonshire County Council wants to know how many families are eligible.

To qualify, both parents need to be working and earning the equivalent of 16 hours a week on National Minimum Wage, including those receiving tax credits or Universal Credit. In some circumstances, lone parents may also be eligible.

The council is asking parents to take part in a consultation to help establish how many families might be eligible for the free hours and where additional early years places will be needed.

Northamptonshire County Council has already been awarded almost £1 million capital funding from the Education Funding Agency to create additional childcare places in Kettering, Corby and Brackley.

Parents can complete the survey online by visiting www.northamptonshire.gov.uk/consultations. The consultation runs until March 31.

Further information about free childcare for eligible three and four-year-olds is available at www.northamptonshire.gov.uk/earlyyears.

Fancy getting your kit off with the aim to find true love? If you’ve exhausted every other dating option apply to be on the new series of Channel 4’s Naked Attraction.

Not for the easily offended, you’ll need to be completely confident with flashing your bum (and all the rest) on television as Naked Attraction lets daters pick a mate just using their raw primal instincts − by analyzing potential dates based on their naked body.

The open contestant call by Studio Lambert, who are the makers of BAFTA award-winning Gogglebox, Four in a Bed and Tattoo Fixers, have no limit on gender, sexuality or body type.

If you’re interested in having your birthday suit analyzed on national television email your name, phone number, a bit about yourself and a photo to: nakedattraction@studiolambert.com or call 0203 040 6873.

Two CCTV images have been released by police after people took items from the shop without paying

Police investigating the incident at the Co-op store in Long Buckby have released images of people they believe may know something about the theft.

The incident happened just after 11am on Thursday, February 2.

Police say four people entered the shop and helped themselves to items from the shelves. They then left without paying.

Anyone with information can contact Northamptonshire Police on 101. Alternatively, they can call the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111

Disturbing videos show 22-year-old Northamptonshire woman ‘clicking’ herself back together due to a rare condition which sees her joints dislocate up to 60 times a day.

Danielle Shield, of Kettering, suffers from Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome - an inherited condition which leaves her joints ‘loose’ and susceptible to ‘stick out at odd angles’.

She has 60 breaks or dislocations a day and has given up sport, is often reliant on a wheelchair and has to avoid extreme temperatures.

Her hip dislocates when gets out of bed, her shoulder pops out as she brushes her hair and her jaw disconnects as she brushes her teeth.

Danielle regularly has to re-insert her joints back into place in public and has to endure the embarrassment of people staring at her.

So she is releasing videos of her clicking her thumb, knee and shoulder into place to remove the stigma.

Danielle and her fiance Chris Harris, 22, are so accustomed to the condition that popping her joints back into place is ‘second nature’.

She said: “I’m sharing these videos to reveal the reality of living with a condition like mine.

“My day is punctuated with dislocations, even playing on a games console or using cutlery can push my fingers out of joint.

“I’m used to seeing my body at strange angles and Chris has learned not to get freaked out when he sees it, now I just calmly push myself back together, as these videos show.”

Danielle says she was ‘always’ susceptible to breaks, bumps and bruises as a child, but believed this was because she played football every week.

At 13 years old she started getting agonising stomach cramps called ‘abdominal migraines’ - and, unbeknown to her, the undiagnosed syndrome was causing this.

She started going for tests at 16 and, with her symptoms getting worse and causing more regular dislocations, breaks and pains, spent her school prom bare foot because high heels hurt her.

Three years later, at 19, she was diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome - a hereditary condition which meant her connective tissues, skin and joints are fragile - and told her body would dislocate numerous times a day.

Danielle, recalls: “It was heartbreaking.

“I’d always been such a sporty, active person and now I was going to be told I’d be disabled, unable to move long distances and forced to live in pain, in constant fear of breaks and dislocations.

“I was told that the condition was likely to get worse and I’d spend the rest of my life on pain-management medication.”

She was also told that, if she had children in the future, she would need a C-section as giving birth naturally could shatter her pelvis.

“That was the worst part of all,” she explained. “I had always seen myself carrying a pregnancy and giving birth one day, but to know that I had to rethink my whole future was really hard.”

Danielle underwent three operations over the next two years and regularly had her bones encased in splints and metal and fabric braces to strengthen them.

She gave up sport, which she loves, and joined a support group to cope with her life change.

Danielle said: “There was so much I had to adapt to make my life easier as the dislocations became more frequent, eventually totting up around 60 a day.

“On a standard day, my hip dislocates overnight while I’m asleep, then again when I roll out of bed.

“My arm and shoulder dislocate when I get dressed and brush my hair. Then my jaw dislocates when I brush my teeth.

“On my way downstairs, a number of leg and hip dislocations can occur.”

Playing on a games console, using cutlery, bending over and walking down the street can cause dislocations, leaving Danielle reluctant to go out without a wheelchair.

She added: “Even when my bones don’t pop out I am constantly afraid they might as there are so many things that could trigger it.

“I see potential hazards in things other people wouldn’t look twice at.”

Danielle tells how she is admitted to hospital if she has a particularly bad fall or break, but usually she massages her joints into submission herself.

“I spend my life clicking myself back in place,” she said.

Danielle worries her partner of seven years Chris, who works in an office, might be ‘put off’ by the ‘odd’ angles her limbs stick out at but says he is her ‘rock’.

“We’ve been together since we were at school so he has seen me go from being active and outgoing to less mobile and cautious, with all the breaks in between,” she explained.

“Some people might be freaked out to see a person clicking their body into place but he takes it in his stride and never made me feel anything less than beautiful.”

She and Chris ‘choose their holidays carefully’ due to Danielle’s condition.

“We usually stick to European countries and go when the weather is neutral.

“If the weather’s too hot my joints are looser and more susceptible to breaks and my bones become painful when it’s cold.”

Fed up with strangers staring when she is forced to click her joints back into place in public, brave Danielle had released videos of herself popping her thumb, shoulder, and knee cap into place.

“These were just three of the dislocations I experienced in one afternoon,” she explained.

“They might make some people uncomfortable, but that discomfort is nowhere near what I go through on a daily basis.

“I want everyone to understand the reality of living with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome.”

Danielle and Chris got engaged in September and she admits she could dislocate when walking down the aisle next year - but says with just her loved-ones there she won’t be embarrassed.

She adds: “Knowing my condition will get worse and thinking of the challenges ahead is scary but I just have to keep putting myself back together and getting on with it.

“This condition may weaken my body physically but inside I’m strong.”

Specialist officers have led to a six-fold increase in the number of people in Northamptonshire arrested for downloading child abuse images, according to new figures.

A Freedom of Information request put in by the BBC revealed that the number of suspects arrested in 2016 was 210. The figure in 2014 was just 33.

The figures have been welcomed by the NSPCC, which has called on other forces to follow Northamptonshire Police's example of creating a team of expert officers to track offenders.

An NSPCC spokesperson said: “Downloading and distributing child abuse images is an abhorrent crime. Each picture is a crime scene involving a young victim who has been abused and whose suffering is compounded every time that image is passed around online.

“The proliferation of these appalling images is a major – and growing – problem which needs industry, government and law enforcement to tackle in unison.

“The NSPCC wants to see a specialist digital child abuse unit in every police force, trained to deal with sexual and other online offences against children.”

DI Andy Rogers, head of the POLIT team at Northamptonshire Police, said the number of officers specialising in catching these kind of offenders had increased in the police force.

"Offenders are increasingly using the internet and technology to harm children and it is vitally important we have a team of experts dedicated to catching those committing these types of crime and bringing them to justice," DI Rogers said.

"We have poured resources into this complex area of business and unsurprisingly there has been a corresponding increase in conviction rates in relation to the possession and distribution of indecent images of children (IIOC). This trend is reflected nationally.

"The force has a team of ten officers who work tirelessly to safeguard children by detecting abuse and prosecuting offenders, called POLIT (Paedophile Online Investigation Team). This specialist team work cohesively to deal with specialist lines of investigation, enabling them to quickly identify those who pose the greatest risk to children within our communities.

"Their work is to investigate allegations of online child abuse and offences relating to IIOC in accordance with current statutory, procedural and local management guidelines and provide guidance to officers across the force in respect of IIOC/ online grooming offences," he added.

The Northamptonshire Police website contains useful help and advice – please go to www.northants.police.uk for help and support.

Anyone with any information about people viewing and sharing indecent images of children to report it immediately by calling 101 or 999 in an emergency to ensure we continue to protect people from harm.

Pets at Home is recalling four of its food products after a number of cats were taken ill.

The pets “exhibited symptoms of sudden collapse, fitting, widespread twitching and general unsteadiness” the firm said, after consuming the biscuits from their range aimed at senior and neutered cats.

Pets at Home is recalling four lines of its AVA dry cat food products because there are lower levels of thiamine (Vitamin B1) present than specified in the recipe.

The firm said: “Your cat should not eat affected product batches. The FSA is issuing this product recall notice because we are responsible for animal feed regulations and enforcement of pet food labelling through local authorities in England and Wales.”

Pets at Home said customers would be given a full refund.

The recall added: “Thiamine deficiency in cats may impact a cat’s health. Three cats have so far been identified which became seriously unwell after switching to one of the affected products and exhibited symptoms ranging from sudden collapse, fitting, widespread twitching and general unsteadiness which are not the classic symptoms of thiamine deficiency.”

If you have bought any of the listed products with the specified product codes, please return it to where you bought it for a full refund or call 0800 328 4204.

Young adults are facing a bowel cancer “time bomb” because of their unhealthy diets and lack of exercise, scientists warn.

‘Millennials’ - those born around 1990 - are four times more likely to develop rectal tumours, which begin in the large intestine, compared to those born in about 1950.

They are also at twice the risk of colon tumours, which start growing lower down.

An alarming three in ten rectal cancer diagnoses are now in patients below the age of 55.

The study suggests people who reached adulthood early in the 21st century, are facing an epidemic - and suggests they may need screening from their early 20s.

The outlook is so bad that experts say the situation compares with the late 1800s - more than a century ago.

Epidemiologist Dr Rebecca Siegel, of the American Cancer Society, Atlanta, said: “Trends in young people are a bellwether for the future disease burden.

“Our finding that colorectal (bowel) cancer risk for millennials has escalated back to the level of those born in the late 1800s is very sobering.

“Educational campaigns are needed to alert clinicians and the general public about this increase to help reduce delays in diagnosis, which are so prevalent in young people, but also to encourage healthier eating and more active lifestyles to try to reverse this trend.”

In addition, her research team suggests the age to initiate screening people at average risk may need to be reconsidered.

They point out in 2013 in the US, 10,400 new cases of colorectal cancer (CRC) were diagnosed in people in their 40s, with an additional 12,800 cases diagnosed in people in their early 50s.

Added Dr Siegel: “These numbers are similar to the total number of cervical cancers diagnosed, for which we recommend screening for the 95 million women aged 21 to 65 years.”

In the UK, screening for bowel cancer is available to those over the age of 60.

Until now, bowel cancer - called colorectal cancer as it starts in the colon or the rectum - has been mainly a disease of the elderly. In Britain, almost nine out of 10 people with the disease are over 60 years old.

Previous research has found snacking on chocolate, biscuits and cakes could increase the risk of the disease - as could drinking fizzy drinks.

A diet high in red or processed meats, like bacon and sausages, and low in fibre increases the risk, as is being overweight or obese or being inactive. A high alcohol intake and smoking has also been linked with the disease.

The study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute said the number of cases are rising in young and middle aged adults, including people in their early 50s, with rectal cancer rates increasing particularly fast.

Overall, bowel cancer has been declining in the US since the mid 1980s, with steeper drops in the most recent decade driven by screening.

Recently though, studies have reported increasing CRC incidence in adults under 50, for whom screening is not recommended for those at average risk.

But these did not examine incidence rates by five year age group or year of birth, so the scope of the increasing trend had not been fully assessed.

So Dr Siegel and colleagues used a computer programme known as “age-period-cohort modelling” to disentangle factors that influence all ages, such as changes in medical practice, from those that vary by generation, typically due to changes in behaviour.

They analysed 490,305 cases among patients aged 20 and older across the US who were diagnosed with invasive bowel cancer from 1974 through 2013.

The study found after decreasing since 1974, colon cancer incidence rates increased by 1% to 2% per year from the mid-1980s in adults aged 20 to 39. In those 40 to 54, rates rose by 0.5% to 1% per year from the mid-1990s.

Rectal cancer incidence rates have been increasing even longer and faster, rising about 3% per year from 1974 to 2013 among 20 to 29 year olds and from 1980 in those aged 30 to 39.

In 40 to 54 year olds, rectal cancer rates increased by 2% per year from the 1990s. In contrast, rectal cancer rates in adults age 55 and older have generally been declining for at least 40 years, well before widespread screening.

Opposing trends in young and older adults over two decades have closed a previously wide gap in disease risk for people in their early 50s, compared to those in their late 50s.

Both colon and rectal cancer incidence rates in 50 to 54 year olds were half those of 55 to 59 year olds in the early 1990s.

But in 2012 to 2013, they were just 12.4% lower for colon and were equal for rectal cancer.

The findings follow another US study published in 2014 that predicted bowel cancer cases in 20 to 34 year olds will rocket by up to 90 per cent by 2030.

Having a close relative who developed the disease below 50 years of age puts you at a greater lifetime risk of developing the condition

The three main symptoms are blood in the stools, changes in bowel habit such as to more frequent, looser stools and abdominal pain.

A Tesco customer has criticised​ the supermarket for showing a “complete lack of common sense” after they refused to complete​ t​he sale of £150 ​of goods because his partner could not provide any ​identification​.

Dr Mike Gore, 30, was shopping with his partner, who turns 24 next month, at the Daventry Tesco Superstore on New Street when the incident happened.

“I was quite smartly dressed on a Saturday afternoon​,​ going shopping,” said Dr Gore. “I wasn’t there with a bunch of 16-year-olds buying Stella. There was one alcoholic item in the whole of the​ trolley​, which was a cooking wine.”

While at the check out, the cashier asked Dr Gore to produce​ identification​ ​because the couple were purchasing Marsala wine as an ingredient in a tiramisu they were intending ​to make.

Dr Gore, an engineering director, explained: “I pulled out my ID showing I’m 30-years-old and then she turned and asked my partner, who said that she didn’t have her handbag with her so didn’t have any ID.

“The cashier said​,​ ‘we cannot sell you any alcohol whatsoever because somebody in your party is under age.’”

Because Tesco operate a Think 25 policy, the manager refused to allow Dr Gore and his partner to complete their shop because his partner looked under 25 and could no provide a proof of age.

“I explained it was for a tiramisu,” said Dr Gore, “we had the manager there ​but​ they said that they had made their decision. We were talking for a good five minutes​,​ at which point I said ‘I’m fed up with this’ and just walked out and abandoned the shopping at the desk.”

He added: “She’s 24 next month and I can understand that they say if someone looks under 25 they need to ID them.

“But if she hasn’t got her handbag, isn’t paying for the shopping, and doesn’t have any ID, yet the person paying for the shop is providing you with ID and is over the age of 30, then what on ​earth is the problem?

“It’s a complete lack of common sense and a massive overreaction.”

Tesco were approached for a comment and responded: “We take our responsibility as a retailer of alcohol very seriously. This includes operating a strict Think 25 policy.”

The Mayor of Daventry will host a coffee morning this month in aid of her chosen charity.

Councillor Glenda Simmonds’s event will support the Macmillan Daventry charity and will take place on Friday March 10.

The afternoon will include coffee, tea, cakes, a second-hand toy sale and a charity raffle with many prizes to be won.

The coffee afternoon will take place from 2.00-4.00pm at the New Street Day Centre, NN11 4BU.

All are welcome to come along to the event, with all donations going to support the Mayor’s chosen charity.

Glasses are being raised at Warner Edwards Distillery in Harrington after they won a prestigious award.

The business, run by Tom Warner, received a Rural Oscar from the Countryside Alliance for Midlands Champion in the Local Food & Drink category.

Tom said he was delighted to be recognised.

The awards are the alliance’s annual celebration of rural produce, skills, enterprise and heritage through our small hard-working businesses.

They are now in their 12th year and have become the definitive rural business award to win. The awards are public-nomination led across five categories - Local Food & Drink; Village Shop/Post Office; Tourism Enterprise; Farm Enterprise and Butcher.

Judge Jill Grieve said: “Tom Warner is a force of nature who won’t let anything stop him when a good idea takes root.

“Having considered many different ways to diversify his family’s Northamptonshire farm, he hit upon making gin as a way of using many of the products grown on the farm, from elderflowers to sloes and other botanicals, and making something rather special. The distillery now enhances the farm and vice versa, and a newly planted botanicals garden in memory of Tom’s late mother is a touch that reminds you that the business is rooted in a close farming family. The gin itself is multi-award winning, but it’s the enthusiasm of Tom and his team as they work that is truly inspiring. The gin has ensured the farm’s future, but is so much more than that and has really put Warner Edwards on the map, enabling them to support other local businesses as they draw tourists into their beautiful little village.”

With lambing season well under way across Northamptonshire, Weedon Vets is urging dog owners to ensure their pooch is kept on a lead around livestock.

Even if your dog is generally docile they can cause extreme distress to sheep when off the lead and statistics show they can cause severe injury and event fatalities.

Unfortunately, it is all too often that we see sheep that have been attacked and even ewes that have aborted lambs because of stress and exhaustion. Recent statistics show that these incidents are on the rise and make for grim reading.

Under UK law, dog owners can be prosecuted under the Dangerous Dogs Act if their animal is found to have attacked livestock. The courts can order that the dog be put down, while the owner can face fines, be prohibited from owning animals in the future, and can even face prison time.

Farmers also have the right to shoot a dog if it’s worrying their livestock and in previous years we have unfortunately had to deal with this extremely sad situation.

This devastation can be prevented so please keep dogs on leads near livestock – even if they are in a separate field.

Please also stick to designated footpaths and make sure you are shutting gates. We don’t want anyone else to lose livestock or a loved family pet.

Parents who applied for a secondary school place by the deadline of October 31, 2016, were meant to be able to log onto an online portal this morning (March 1) to view their child's school allocation.

But just over 8,000 households are being left with an anxious wait after the site - run by the firm Capita - displayed an error message this morning

It is now back online after the problem was fixed.

A spokesman for Northamptonshire County Council, said this morning before the problem was rectified: “We apologise unreservedly for the problems parents are facing while trying to log on to the school admissions web pages today. We are deeply frustrated that this has happened.

“While this is of no comfort to parents right now, we are pleased to say the number of children getting their first preference school has increased to 82 per cent this year while 96 per cent have got one of their three preferences.”

A Macmillan Cancer Support team based in Northampton has received a fundraising gift of £1,700 in memory of a caring mother.

The money was raised in memory of physiotherapist Fiona Hoey, who worked at Danetre Hospital and died in November aged 45.

Her friends and family contributed to the fundraising appeal set up to acknowledge the support that Fiona, her husband Michael and their three children received from the Macmillan specialist palliative care team at Northampton General Hospital.

Michael said: “Fiona was a caring compassionate woman who loved her family.

“She balanced her professional physiotherapy role with raising and nurturing a family.”

He said Fiona had an inner strength that cannot be quantified and she never let her illness define her.

“She worked as a physio at the Danetre Hospital throughout this time and across the Northampton trust which reflects her love for her profession and her caring nature for her patients.

“We selected the Macmillan charity based on the quality of care and support received in Northampton General Hospital over the last month of Fiona’s life. Kerry and Hannah were focused on ensuring that Fiona was comfortable and not in any pain. They did this in a caring and compassionate way. Based on this support we as a family decided to ask for donations rather than flowers at the funeral services.”

Kerry Messam, Macmillan specialist palliative care nurse at Northampton General Hospital said: “Fiona was a very gentle, selfless and inspirational lady.

“Despite her illness, her priorities were her friends and family, but most importantly the wellbeing of Michael, Conor, Cormac and Aisling whom she loved very much and was extremely proud of.

“The monies that have been raised in memory of Fiona are a true testament to how much she was loved and respected.

“We’re hoping to use the funds for resources that will help parents and carers to support children who are preparing for, or experiencing, bereavement.”

A village shop in Napton that was once set to close down has gone on to blossom and win a rural ‘Oscar’ award.

Adam and Hannah Slade, who run Napton Village Stores, have shown that a mix of fresh produce, everyday items and little luxuries at competitive prices can make a shop successful.

It took months of negotiations with their bank and the Post Office to show their business plan could work.

They have now walked away with a Countryside Alliance award for Midlands Champion in the Village Shop/Post Office category.

Hannah said: “We are genuinely thrilled at the recognition as this award is by nomination and support of our customers as opposed to self nomination.”

National winners will be announced at an awards ceremony later this month.

“It is very difficult to keep a small rural business running, indeed our shop was going to be closed before we took it on,” Hannah added.

Judge Sarah Lee said: “Hannah and Adam have not been running Napton for very long, but as long standing villagers they knew exactly what was needed, and they have provided it in spades.

“Here is a community hub that has been extended to include a huge amount of essential produce as well as gifts and local artisan produce.

“It has a friendly café area at the front where there is a small kitchen providing delicious sandwiches and home-made meals for local people and passing trade alike.

“The shop also continues to run a Post Office.

“This is a vital local service which is an increasingly 
rare and complicated endeavour.”

The store has a Facebook page and people can visit their website at www.naptonvillagestores.co.uk

Daventry Town Football Club’s chairman and secretary have opened their doors to Gusher readers this Saturday.

Steve Tubb and Brian Porter have invited fans to come along and support the team this weekend as the club continue their push for promotion from the United Counties League Division One when they play Stewarts & Lloyds AFC.

Mr Porter, the club secretary, hopes that supporters will spend the whole day at Communications Park.

He said: “Our message to the fans is ‘Come up and get behind the club!’

“Breakfast will be available from 9am, and the gate itself will be open at 1pm.

“Food and drink will be available all day, and we have Sky Sports and BT Sport in the bar. We’ll have the boxing on and a race evening also.

“It would be fantastic if people came and spent their Saturday here with us.”

With attendances at Communications Park usually around the 130 mark, Saturday’s game is a good opportunity to get more fans through the gate, and also to showcase the venue’s facilities.

“The facilities we have now are second to none,” said chairman Mr Tubb. “We’ve had clubs come here and say how impressed they are.”

Mr Porter added: “We’d love people to come and have a look around at the facilities we have here and we encourage people to use them.”

But above all the day will be about watching and enjoying the football, especially with the club playing so well of late.

“We’re a side worth watching,” said Mr Porter. “The boys have got us playing very attractive football, we try and play and keep the ball on the ground.

“One player that’s always worth the gate admission is attacking midfielder Aaron King. He had a scholarship up at Liverpool and you can see he’s got the talent.

“Adam Confue is certainly one to watch. He’s all action in midfield and never stops, and we’ve also got Adam Creaney nicknamed ‘Ginger Pele’.”

Bring the front page of this week’s Daventry Express along with you to Communications Park to gain free admission to the game on Saturday.

Daventry District Council is backing a spring clean scheme this weekend and is inviting residents in the area to take part.

The Great British Spring Clean is a national campaign to get half a million people out and about cleaning up their local communities during the spring.

It is focused on a weekend of activity from March 3-5 when residents of The Grange and Middlemore in Daventry will be tackling litter on their estates, and follows on from last year’s Clean for the Queen initiative.

Councillor Jo Gilford, environment portfolio holder on Daventry District Council, said: “Last year’s Clean for The Queen was a great success so we are pleased to support the 2017 initiative and we would encourage as many groups, individuals and organisations in Daventry district to take part.

“The national profile that these events attract encourages volunteers to help, but we do not view them in isolation.

“They are part of a wider programme of work carried on throughout the year with the support of our volunteers and partners in order to make our communities cleaner and greener.”

Residents in Kilsby, Preston Capes, Brixworth, Barby, the Bringtons, Weedon and Marston Trussell as well as Ashby Fields Primary School in Daventry are also carrying out litter picks in their communities during the spring with support from the council.

Litter picking kits are being provided by the council, and they are available for loan all year round on a first-come, first-served basis. They include high-vis tabards, litter pickers, litter bags with hoops and gloves. Forms to assist with risk assessment, insurance and health and safety guidance can also be provided.

The collected rubbish will then be picked up and disposed of by the council’s contractor afterwards.

The campaign has a super heroes theme, with people urged to become litter heroes by volunteering a small amount of their time during the month.

Find out more here and check availability of litter picking equipment by calling the council on 01327 871100.

The police force covering Northamptonshire has "weaknesses across a range of areas" from tackling gangs to helping vulnerable victims, a watchdog has found.

Chief constable Simon Edens has responded to Her Majesty’s Inspector of Constabularies' (HMIC) PEEL effectiveness report by saying it "fairly reflects where we are as a force".

Each year, HMIC assesses each force in England and Wales on their effectiveness, efficiency and legitimacy with judgments of outstanding, good, requires improvement or inadequate based on their findings.

Inspectors found Northamptonshire Police requires improvement in keeping people safe and reducing crime, and have detailed areas of focus the force must address.

The report found the force has: "Weaknesses across a range of areas. Crime prevention activity, investigative standards and the safeguarding provided to vulnerable victims all need to improve.

"The force has adequate arrangements in place to fulfil its national policing responsibilities, but needs to address shortcomings in its approach to tackling serious and organised crime."

The areas of improvement highlighted included investigative standards and the safeguarding provided to vulnerable victims of crime.

The inspectorate noted progress by the force around improvements to supporting and identifying vulnerable people following the previous effectiveness report in 2016.

The force has improved its response to missing and absent children and those at risk of sexual exploitation.

Responding to HMIC’s report, commissioner Stephen Mold, said he was committed to holding the force to account.

He said: "Having worked closely with the Chief Constable and his team on the creation of the Police and Crime Plan, I know that we are on a journey to the level of service we want to provide, however, we know there needs to be improvements to make our ambitions a reality.

“Northamptonshire Police have made real strides recently, including improving from a ‘requires improvement’ rating to a ‘good’ verdict from HMIC in the area of efficiency to add to a ‘good’ rating on legitimacy.

“I recently supported the chief constable with an additional £2million of funding to create 46 new frontline roles while the force are on the verge of introducing a new service delivery model designed to fix the gaps in service identified by HMIC."

Simon Edens, chief constable of Northamptonshire Police, added: “I believe this report fairly reflects where we are as a force.

“Our job is to protect people from harm and we are committed to providing the best possible service to the people of Northamptonshire.

“We have done a huge amount of work over the past year to understand the demands we face and work out the best way to deploy our resources to meet that demand. This work allowed us to design a new operating model and we are now implementing that model."

Mr Edens said he was in a process of recruiting and training more detectives to enable the CID department to work at "full capacity".

The report found the quality of investigations by the force is "inconsistent and needs to improve".

"Investigations are not always allocated to appropriately trained staff," it goes on to say. "Investigation handovers are sometimes poor and there is a lack of supervisory oversight.

"Vacancies in the criminal investigations department have resulted in a high proportion of serious and complex crimes being dealt with by trainee detectives, which means that victims do not always receive the level of service they should."

Police are appealing for the public’s help to trace a man wanted in connection with a number of offences in Daventry.

Shane Powell, 29, of The Severn, The Grange, Daventry, is wanted in connection with theft and violence.

Anybody who knows of his whereabouts is asked to contact Northamptonshire Police on 101 or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.

People in Daventry are invited to put their grey matter to the test for a charity quiz night in Crick.

The quiz and curry night takes place at the Holiday Inn on March 31 to raise money for Greenfingers, a charity which develops gardens and outdoor spaces at children’s hospices

It costs £14.95 per person, which includes the hot buffet.

Sales office manager Julie-Anne Passey said: “We hope to raise lots of money for Greenfingers.”

For more information or to buy tickets, telephone 01788 824800.