Theatre of Hate headline the Northampton venue on May 18.

In 1980, Kirk Brandon formed Theatre Of Hate from the ashes of heralded punk band The Pack. Joining Kirk on vocals were Stan Stammers and Luke Rendall, along with old school friend, Steve Guthrie and Canadian born John Lennard, who revolutionised the band’s sound with his haunting sax lines.

Theatre Of Hate’s debut double-A-side single, Legion / Original Sin, topped the independent chart in 1980, and Westworld, their debut album, produced by Mick Jones from The Clash and released in 1982, held the number one position for 21 weeks.

Theatre Of Hate imploded in 1982, with Kirk taking Stan forward to form Spear Of Destiny, but the band have resurfaced over the years to play some very special shows.

Theatre of Hate headline on Saturday, May 18. Doors open at 7pm, tickets cost £17.50 before fees.

Y&T will headline the Roadmender on Tuesday, November 5.

Before the likes of Mötley Crüe, RATT and Metallica, Y&T was slogging away in sweaty rock clubs around America.

When the band formed in the early 1970s, little did they know they would set the standard for hard rock bands that trailed.

Many of the biggest acts of the 1980s became popular opening for headliners Y&T who are one of the San Francisco Bay Area’s own innovators of the hard rock sound.

Originally formed as Yesterday and Today, shortened their name to Y&T and released eight albums on A&M in the 1980s.

With a discography of 18 albums, three greatest hits collections, and a boxed set, Y&T has sold more than four million albums since their 1974 inception.

They continue to tour the world, featuring original frontman Dave Meniketti, John Nymann, Aaron Leigh and Mike Vanderhule.

Doors open at 7pm, tickets cost £18.50 in advance.

Canadian folk-bluegrass quartet The Dead South headline on Wednesday, June 26.

The band released latest album Illusion & Doubt in 2016 which followed their 2014 debut Good Company.

“We are definitely closer to the Pogues than to Alison Krauss,” explains singer and guitarist Nate Hilts.

“Unfortunately, we do not possess much of the delicate elegance so we try and bring more energy and entertainment to our side.

“You could say we are a mix of nu-folk with a few different styles mixed in between.

“We tend to add elements of classical, punk, rock, alternative, bluegrass, folk and everything in between.”

Doors open at 7pm, tickets cost £20 before fees.

Tickets for all forthcoming gigs at the venue are available from www.roadmender.com

A trial started today at Northampton Crown Court over a couple's treatment of their children, where they face multiple counts of child cruelty.

It includes allegedly subjected their children to regular beatings, holding one boy against a wall by his throat and leaving another to sleep on bare, dirty mattresses with springs poking out.

But the court heard how one boy was subject to 'differential treatment' - where he was allegedly locked in a filthy, dark room that the prosecutor called 'unfit for human habitation'.

Prosecutor Grace Hale QC told the court: "Both the mother and father beat him. He wasn't fed properly, or cleaned, and lived in a room not fit for a human.

"That was his life in that house."

The couple denies mistreating any child in the house.

Meanwhile, the mother in the case is charged with multiple counts of failing to protect the children from the cruelty of her partner.

The jury heard how the boy's door - which had holes in it - was locked from the outside and fitted with an alarm.

There was no bed, mattress or any furniture inside this upstairs bedroom. Instead, the walls and floor were covered in the child's excrement.

Police found there was no light bulb fitted, and the blinds over the only window were tacked down in place.

The boy was reportedly only given discarded burgers and leftovers from takeaways.

He was also reportedly left naked in the room.

Miss Hale QC said: "It got so bad that faeces and urine were coming through the roof of their bedroom.

"That was his life in that house. He always had the worst food. And the other children say they were made to hit him as well."

The boy was made to stand in the hallway or run up and down the stairs 'for hours'.

Social services were alerted to the household after one of the children told a member of staff at school in late 2016 that 'my brother is badly treated at home'. The police went to the house that same evening.

The boy was taken into social services that night. Meanwhile, the other children were taken away and interviewed some two months later.

The couple deny any neglect, and that the boy had a 'problem' with 'deliberately' going to the toilet around the house. He denied keeping him in the room and say they had plans to move him into another room with his siblings.

The prosecutor asked the jury: "Who is telling the truth? Are these children lying? Have they cooked up lies? Or are they telling the truth about what happened in that house?"

The trial continues.

A music gig that’s been three years in the making will be coming to Northampton’s Roadmender venue this month.

Students on the University of Northampton’s Popular Music course spend their three years of study performing at various venues across the town, before graduating to the Roadmender’s main stage for their final concert.

The three final year student bands set to play the Lady’s Lane venue on Thursday, March 28, are 5 degrees, Eclectic Vibe and Tres Amigos.

5 degrees band member, Beth Amber-Leigh Puddephatt, said: “It’s really exciting to be playing the main stage, especially knowing that there have been some really big artists play the same stage.

“I saw Ward Thomas at the Roadmender last year and it was amazing. I love them and it feels really exciting to know we’ll be performing on the same stage.

“It’s a great venue and feels perfect for the students on the course, especially due to the music we’ll be playing.

“It’s scary to think this is the result of three years of hard work at the uni, however, the fact we have been given freedom in what we do and play makes it so much more exciting because it’s a chance to show who we all are as individuals and really go out with a bang.

“I have loved my time at the uni, it’s given me the chance to explore parts of the music industry I never thought I would have, such as producing in a professional working recording studio and also given me the chance to have a song released on Spotify, and iTunes, something that I can keep forever to remind me of the work I’ve done with my band during my time here.”

Doors open at 7.30pm. Entry is free.

Last year was one of relative underachievement at the County Ground, following a five-year spell which had included two Vitality Blast titles and a further appearance in finals day.

There was also a Specsavers County Championship promotion in 2013 and the team were a whisker away from a second in 2017.

Having been at the helm during the successful years, Ripley was understandably disappointed by the 2018 campaign.

But he says it has given everyone at the club a massive amount of motivation for their hard work in the Lyn Wilson Indoor Cricket Centre and Matrix Fitness gym.

"It's been a really good winter of hard work," Ripley said.

"The pre-Christmas period was about recovery, but since the turn of the year we've been concentrating on our cricket and making sure that the players are physically ready for the season.

"We're happy with what we've seen from the group.

"The training and intensity has been really good, and I believe we're in good shape for the various competitions this year."

Training has been balanced between conditioning work, cricket skills and taking the players to new environments such as a dual coaching session with Northampton Saints.

And Ripley has been pleased by the positive attitude shown by the squad to what has been asked of them.

"We've looked to bring variety into the schedule, which keeps everyone fresh and on their toes," he said.

"But you need the players to buy into it, and that has been good to see.

"(Head of strength and conditioning) Chris Lorkin has worked really hard as well and there isn't a player who isn't fitter or leaner than last year."

There has been a relatively high turnaround of players at the County Ground this winter, with Ben Duckett, Richard Gleeson and Rory Kleinveldt having departed and Steven Crook retiring.

But with internationals Jason Holder, Temba Bavuma and Faheem Ashraaf all arriving as overseas players at various stages, Zimbabwean international fast bowler Blessing Muzarabani having signed a full-time contract and youngsters Ben Curran, Tom Sole and Charlie Thurston all progressing into the senior squad, Ripley says there is plenty of potential for success in 2019.

"We've invested our overseas budget on some quality players like Jason Holder and Temba Bavuma and will be tapping into their experience," Ripley said.

"Meanwhile Ben Curran finished last season in the first team, Charlie Thurston contributed to our white ball teams and Tom Sole broke into the Scotland international team.

"With Alex Wakely, Nathan Buck and Rob Newton all having signed new contracts as well we think we've got a good mix of overseas internationals, experience and exciting youngsters this year and are looking forward to the season."

The Northampton Concert Band is celebrating its centenary with a gala concert this weekend.

Formed in 1919 by a group of ex-servicemen who wanted to continue their musical interests in civilian life, they were originally called the Northamptonshire Comrades of the Great War and also known as the Merry Comrades Band.

In 1976, the name was changed to the Northampton Concert Band to reflect the increase in membership of younger musicians and the wider repertoire of music played.

Today, the band is stronger than ever with more than 50 members under the baton of local maestro Graham Tear.

Mr Tear said: “The band has so much music in its library it was difficult to decide which items to include.

“We've all had a say in what we should play. Some choices reflect the eras of the band under different conductors and their favourite pieces.

“My personal choice is Thames Journey by Nigel Hess, which was one of the first items I purchased for the band when I took over the baton in 2015.”

As well as performing famous band pieces, like the Dam Busters March, the band has also commissioned composer Daniel Basford to write a new piece entitled A Northampton Prelude which will preview at the performance.

The evening will be compered by BBC Radio Northampton's Anna Murby at the Abington Avenue United Reformed Church at 7.30 pm on Saturday, March 23.

Tickets cost £10 for adults and £5 for children and students.

They are available online at www.northamptonconcertband.org.uk or by calling the box-office on 07561 390099.

Ahsee Tuala says Rob Horne will be on the minds of the Saints players when they return to Welford Road on Friday night.

Horne suffered a career-ending injury just 13 seconds into the previous east midlands derby at the home of Leicester Tigers.

The Australian ace was involved in an unfortunate collision with Tigers No.8 Sione Kalmafoni and suffered full paralysis of his right arm in the game last April.

He was forced to retire at the age of just 28 and has since returned home to Australia, where he has been working with the national sevens team.

Saints paid tribute to Horne back in October, moving their home match against Leicester to Twickenham to raise funds for their former player.

And he will be in their thoughts again this week as they go back to Welford Road for the first time since winning 27-21 there last year.

"Obviously with what happened to Rob last year, it's a game the boys hold close to their hearts," said Samoan ace Tuala.

"I think we'll think about that this week and I've got it in the back of my mind.

"I grew close with Rob and his family and we got to know them pretty well. We still keep in touch with them.

"This derby game is certainly close to me because of what happened last season."

Tuala scored a superb try in the win against Tigers last season as Saints ended an 11-year wait for a win at Welford Road.

And he said: "Coby (Reinach) set me up and I managed to duck and weave through a couple of players.

"It was about perseverance last season and an 80-minute performance.

"We can't slip off any time against the Tigers because they will punish us.

"We've got to stick to our guns and our game plan.

"We really want to put ourselves up where the big boys are in the table and we want to play some good rugby."

So can Saints, who are currently nine points adrift of fourth-placed Gloucester, still finish in the Gallagher Premiership top four this season?

"I think so," Tuala said.

"We're still in contention for the top four and this game will be a massive part of where we end up.

"We're really looking forward to this week and both teams are really relying on this match."

A former nursing home shut down twice in the last three years after being slammed by inspectors will find a new lease of life as a supported living centre for vulnerable adults.

The former Kingsley Nursing Home, on Kingsley Road, will now convert to apartments for 15 adults with learning disabilities and offer them an independent place to live.

The change of use was approved by Northampton Borough Council’s planning committee on Tuesday evening (March 19).

The home has a chequered recent past, having shut down twice under different operators in the last three years alone after successive ‘inadequate’ ratings from the Care Quality Commission.

It first shut down when known as Kingsley Nursing Home in 2016, before relaunching under new owners as Trinity House Nursing Home in 2017. But the new home was short-lived, and closed after its poor CQC report was published in March 2018.

It’s hoped then that a change in use for the building under new operators could be third time lucky for the building.

Adam Renn, from applicants Supported Living Homes Ltd, told councillors that he had started the company with his wife to offer ‘bespoke homes’ that allowed vulnerable people to live independently.

And Shaun Bennett, service manager for commissioning at Northamptonshire County Council, spoke in favour of the scheme.

He said: “We have a list of about 75 adults who require supported living and the purpose of the scheme is to enable them to have greater independence.

“The people who move in will be vulnerable people with learning disabilities. Some live with elderly parents who can no longer keep up with their needs.

“We will be housing 15 people from the list of 75. We will be ensuring that the design and layout is suitable and we will also be selecting a care provider. We will also be responsible for placing people in the scheme and we will work very closely with NBC in doing so.

“We have a housing association who will be managing the property itself for maintenance, and the care provider will be managing things for the needs of the patient.”

But the plans have not gone down well with some immediate neighbours to the site at 18-20 Kingsley Road, which looks onto the Racecourse.

Two letters of objection were submitted to the council, mostly complaining about potential noise concerns.

Councillor Jane Birch had originally called the application in regarding these concerns, but ended up voting for the scheme after concerns were addressed by the applicants, who have proposed to soundproof the building.

She said: “I would like to say a big thank you, as there has been a huge number of concerns from neighbours, but they have been dealt with professionally by the applicants. So I’m delighted this will be going ahead, as it is something that is greatly needed.”

Planning chairman Councillor Brian Oldham added: “With the applicants sorting out the noise insulation, I’m happy to support this proposal.”

And Councillor Arthur McCutcheon said: “This is a very good use of the building.”

The change of use will see the number of occupants drop. The previous care homes supported 23 people, but the new supported living centre will only accommodate 15 people, plus staff.

Work has begun to build a new two-storey McDonald's in the car park of a Northampton supermarket.

Construction crews have dug up a section of the Morrisons car park off Kettering Road in the first steps of building the new restaurant.

It comes after Northampton Borough Council approved plans to also build a Starbucks drive-thru in the same car park.
Northampton Borough Council gave the fast-food giant the green light in July 2018 despite 85 letters of objection from residents.

Nearby residents raised concerns the restaurant would put pressure on traffic and the ability of existing highways to cope.

Construction was due to start in January 2019, but the proposal was held up by a raft of minor changes to the plans.

When finished, the restaurant will feature a bike lock up, outdoor playground and will not open between midnight and 6am.

During the planning stages, nearby residents raised concerns the restaurant would put pressure on traffic and the ability of existing highways to cope.

Completion is scheduled for early in the second half of 2019.

Northampton School for Boys' Under-15 rugby team are ready for their big day at Twickenham.

NSB will be in action in the England Rugby Under-15 Schools Cup final on Thursday afternoon (kick-off 12.30pm).

They will face Wellington College in the showpiece.

The NSB players enjoyed a shirt presentation with Saints star and former NSB pupil Courtney Lawes in the build-up to the game.

And NSB director of sport Jamie Wilcock said: “There are students in this Under-15 age group who hope to one day emulate the achievements of their sporting heroes.

"Several of them have the talent to do so and for 22 that prospect will feel all the more achievable when they run out onto the pitch at Twickenham on Thursday."

A councillor is urging Northamptonshire County Council to take steps to tackle the current situation in which a third of the county’s secondary schools are under par.

Labour’s Julie Brookfield is putting forward the motion at tomorrow’s (March 21) full council and will ask the authority to put the issue of school quality front and centre of plans going forward.

According to the council’s latest performance report only 64 per cent of secondary schools are graded as good or outstanding by Ofsted. The remaining 36 per cent are ranked by school inspectors as requires improvement or inadequate.

This compares to 82 per cent of Northamptonshire primaries being graded as good or better.

The council acts as the local education authority, although the majority of schools are now within self governing academy trusts.

Cllr Brookfield’s motion, which will be voted on by all councillors, says: “This council is concerned that there is a widening gap in performance, as judged by Ofsted assessment, in Northamptonshire secondary schools and academies.

“The council recognises that, while there are exceptions, too many of our secondary schools and academies are inadequate or require improvement and that there should be a concerted effort to improve the quality of educational provision for all children and young people in Northamptonshire.

“While the council has limited influence over academies, there remains a duty to ensure pupils make good and sustainable progress in their education.”

The long-standing councillor who represents the Corby West ward wants the council to intervene more quickly in academy trusts when one of its schools is identified as being at risk of underachieving and she wants the council to write to the Regional Schools Commissioner Martin Post to request his intervention when a schools is given a requires improvement or worse grading.

A Northampton mother joined a march on No 10 yesterday to hand over a 570,000 strong petition to loosen the restrictions on medical cannabis.

Julie young, from Brixworth, was thinking of her epileptic son Lloyd every step of the way from Parliament to Downing Street as part of the End Our Pain march.

She joined the families of 16 other children who have been denied access to the treatment in a bid to lobby parliament on the NHS' tight restrictions to THC-active cannabis oil - which was legalised in November but so far has only been prescribed to one child in four months.

The march even saw Secretary of State for Health Matt Hancock personally address the families about why their children had not been able to access the drug.

Julie told the Chronicle and Echo: "It was a brilliant day. We have raised the profile on how to get the blockers to this treatment unblocked.

"It won't happen immediately. It could take another six months or longer. But we had a great turn out and handed in hundreds of thousands of signatures to Number 10."

For Julie, she wanted to know why her 16-year-old son Lloyd is one of many children turned down from even trying the treatment when it could be the answer they're looking for.

Lloyd is at risk of a life-threatening seizure every hour of the day and must be watched constantly. He takes up to 30 pills a day to manage his epilepsy - and because was born non-verbal and autistic, he cannot even tell his parents and doctors what he's going through.

Julie said: "He's still a child. To have a child on so many drugs is as damaging as having a hundred seizures a day.

"We've got to try. Cannabis oil might not even work for Lloyd. But when will it become an option?"

Cannabis oil available under a NHS prescription has THC as an active ingredient. It is the same substance found in high doses in marijuana and is not available commercially.

But although cannabis oil was legalised in November, it is still unlicensed, meaning it is only available on the NHS is their needs 'can't be met' by all other licensed medicines.

A prison reform charity says the issues highlighted in an inspection of HMP Onley are typical of the 'dislocation and disorder' in the country's jail system

Inspectors visited the prison in November last year and found that it remained fundamentally unsafe.

Of the 18 safety recommendations made by the watchdog following the prison’s last inspection in 2016, only five had been achieved.

One in six prisoners had acquired a drug habit since entering the prison, and almost half said it was easy to get drugs.

Almost 40 per cent of the men were locked in their cells during the working day.

Responding to the Inspectorate of Prisons’ report on Onley prison, published today (March 21), Frances Crook, chief executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform, said: “Onley’s story typifies the dislocation and disorder that exists within our troubled prison system.

“Here is a prison that was itself dislocated, under misguided reforms led by Chris Grayling, now holding men who have been dislocated from their families and often placed far from home. Many are then exposed to drugs and violence.

“Ministers have rightly identified that we must ease pressure on prisons like Onley. Ultimately, reducing the number of prisoners is the key to saving lives, protecting staff and making the public safer.”

Although Onley is in rural Warwickshire, it was designated as a resettlement prison for Greater London in 2013 – during Chris Grayling’s tenure as Secretary of State for Justice.

The prison has since been moved administratively from the London to the Midlands group of prisons, but inspectors found that 80 per cent of the men it was holding were from the London area.

Many men felt disorientated by being held so far from home, with some rarely receiving visits from friends or family.

Onley is supposed to be a training prison, but inspectors found that only half of prisoners were engaged in purposeful activity at any one time.

The following people have been sentenced at magistrates courts in the county:

Ronald Maddix

Nest Farm Crescent, Wellingborough. Age: 66

On 17/01/2019 in Wellingborough assaulted PC Morris.

Plea: Guilty. Fined £100, surcharge to fund victim services of £30, costs of £85.

Kamal Paul

Clarence Road, Kettering. Age: 40

On 22/09/2018 in Kettering wilfully obstructed PC Tracy Maltby in the execution of her duty.

Verdict: Guilty. Fined £101, surcharge to fund victim services of £30, costs of £620.

Peter William Rielly

Station Road, Desborough. Age: 55

On 19/01/2019 at The Ritz, Desborough, you used threatening or abusive words or behaviour or disorderly behaviour within the hearing or sight of a person likely to be caused harassment, alarm or distress.

Plea: Guilty. Fined £40, surcharge to fund victim services of £30, costs of £85.

Jaroslaw Stanislaw Gustaw

Bachelor Street, Kettering. Age: 53

On 06/04/2018 drove a motor vehicle in Wellingborough Road, Broughton, after consuming so much alcohol that the proportion of it in your breath, namely 108mcg of alcohol in 100ml of breath, exceeded the prescribed limit; on 23/04/2018 failed without reasonable cause to surrender to custody at Northampton Magistrates’ Court, having been released on bail.

Plea: Guilty.

On 06/04/2018 in Wellingborough Road, Broughton, drove a motor vehicle without insurance; without a licence.

Verdict: Guilty.

Jailed for eight weeks, banne from driving for 52 months.

Alexander Peter David Ross

Binbrook Walk, Corby. Age: 26

On 20/01/2019 in Corby assaulted a female by beating her.

Plea: Guilty. To carry out unpaid work for 150 hours, pay a surcharge to fund victim services of £85, costs of £85.

Daniel Ashby

Nest Farm Crescent, Wellingborough. Age: 35

On 04/02/2019 stole food stuffs, to the value of £4.82, from Bargain Booze, Wellingborough; stole two bottles of wine, to the value of £13.70, from Tesco Express, Cannon Street, Wellingborough.

Plea: Guilty. Jailed for 14 days suspended for six months, to pay compensation of £4.82, surcharge to fund victim services of £115, costs of £85.

Terence Bolton

Grafton Road, Rushden. Age: 62

On 22/01/2019 drove a motor vehicle in Oxford Street, Wellingborough, after consuming so much alcohol that the proportion of it in your breath, namely 77mcg of alcohol in 100ml of breath, exceeded the prescribed limit.

Plea: Guilty. Fined £230, surcharge to fund victim services of £30, costs of £85, banned from driving for 20 months.

The ANPR camera fault is penalising people who drive into the Tesco Mereway car park from the East Hunsbury end and leave at the Mereway roundabout, then pass through the site in the opposite direction later the same day.

It has resulted in numerous residents of East Hunsbury receiving payment demands through their letterboxes from either Tesco or parking company Highview Parking that wrongly allege customers have overstayed by several hours. The letters urge people to pay a fine quickly or the amount will rise to £70.

One victim of the errors, Katie Ball, said she was particularly annoyed as she had spent more than £200 at Tesco on the day she clocked up the fine.

She said: "I was furious. The first journey was to get £50 of petrol and the one later that day was to get my weekly shop, which was more than £150.

"They said I'd been there eight hours. I was gobsmacked. I live in East Hunsbury so why would I park there all day?

"There's a lot of people talking about a boycott."

Katie said she knows of at least nine others who have been fined in error for the same reason, with several people also posting about similar injustices at the supermarket on the East Hunsbury Facebook group.

Katie had her own fine cancelled after complaining directly to store bosses.

But management of the car park has since been handed over to Highview Parking, which has been less generous.

It is understood that several customers have had to pay up after being unable to convince Highview of its mistake.

Some customers have been told that trees obscuring the cameras were to blame, but Tesco told the Chron it was still investigating.

A Tesco spokesman said: “We operate parking controls at our Northampton South Extra store to ensure adequate parking for all our customers.

"We are looking into these reports and will get in touch directly with the customers who have raised concerns.”

A trial has begun over the alleged mistreatment of children at a Northampton household in late 2016.

Northampton Crown Court heard yesterday (March 20) how the parents in the case are accused of regularly beating the children and leaving them to sleep on bare, dirty mattresses with springs poking out.

But the most serious allegations surrounds how one boy was allegedly kept locked in a filthy, dark room with no bed or mattress, where he was forced to go to the toilet on the floor.

However, one of the children in the case took the stand yesterday to say he and his siblings were 'treated good' and had a 'loving, strong' relationship with the parents.

Prosecutor Grace Hale QC asked the boy about the evidence he gave in his police interview around a year ago.

"I was lying," he told the jury. "I had people around me mollycoddling me to attention seek [sic.] and tell lies.

"I love my dad. We had a really strong relationship."

When police attended the Northampton house, they saw one of the rooms was locked and had an alarm on it. Inside, the room was covered in excrement, had no lightbulb, no bed, no mattress and the only window had a blind tacked over it.

This is allegedly where one of the children was locked up on a daily basis.

The boy in court said: "No one was allowed in there. It was alarmed to stop [others] going in there.

"I don't know what the stains on the walls were. It was like that when we moved in."

He also denied it was anyone's bedroom.

In the opening of her case yesterday, Miss Hale said the children in the case had individually reported in their police interviews that they were beaten by the parents.

The boy told the court: "None of us were beaten.

"If we were naughty, we would have to sit on the stairs or have no telly or Xbox."

The trial continues.

Sam Hoskins has put the Cobblers’ upturn in fortune simply down to the growing self-belief and confidence among the squad.

The Cobblers travel to Cheltenham Town on Saturday aiming to extend their unbeaten run in Sky Bet League Two to nine games.

They are also targeting a fifth win in six matches, with last weekend’s 0-0 draw at Grimsby Town calling a halt to the team’s best winning run since the title success of 2016.

It has been a remarkable turnaround for the Cobblers, whose players were looking over their shoulders at relegation just a few weeks ago, but are now dreaming of an unlikely late-season charge into the promotion play-offs.

With eight games of the campaign remaining, Town are 11th in league two - their highest position of the season - and just six points off the top seven, so what has been the secret to the turnaround?

“I don’t know what’s changed really,” said Hoskins, whose double strike in the 2-1 win at Tranmere Rovers on February 5 kick-started the current run.

“I think we are believing in ourselves more, and the more that comes out the more we feel we can put these performances together against any team in the league.

“We have always backed ourselves, but sometimes it doesn’t come off.

“Whether we dropped our heads before I’m not sure, but now we are more confident and we are seeing the performances coming in and the points coming in.

“I can’t really put my finger on anything in particular that has changed, but it just confidence and belief coming into play.”

Town’s unbeaten run has certainly been no fluke, and Hoskins believes the team is finally starting to show the club’s supporters, and themselves, what they are truly capable of.

“It is always nice when you are winning games, but we are playing really good football at the minute as well,” said the former Yeovil Town man.

“We are showing the fans what we can do, and maybe earlier on in the season we weren’t putting those performances together.

“Recently we have been on a good run of form and winning games, although obviously Saturday was a bit disappointing.

“It was a good point away from home when you look at it, but we came away from the game thinking we could have taken all three points.”

It certainly seems to be a happy camp at the PTS Academy Stadium at the moment, and that is not something that can have been said too often since Chris Wilder left the club in May, 2016.

Hoskins is one of only three survivors from that team, with David Buchanan and John-Joe O’Toole the others, and he says a football club is always a better place to work when the results are going the right way.

“It does make a massive difference when you are winning games,” said the 25-year-old. “It is a nice place to be around.

“When the team is losing it is not so nice, even though you know you have the next game to make it right, but at the minute we are eight games unbeaten, and hopefully we can keep that run going.”

Police closed a stretch of carriageway between the A5 near Towcester and the A422 near Brackley from about 10.45pm on Wednesday to 4.45am.

It followed a single-vehicle accident involving a motorbike on the southbound carriageway, near the Towcester BP petrol station.

A police spokeswoman said a man was taken to John Radcliffe Hospital with serious injuries.

Northampton primary school children were joined by Saints centre Fraser Dingwall yesterday as part of an effort to encourage youngsters to report abuse.

The Northampton and England Under-20s star joined the NSPCC’s Schools Service to teach youngsters at Kislingbury Church of England Primary School how to recognise the signs of abuse.

The visit was part of the children’s charity’s ‘Speak Out Stay Safe’ scheme which is delivered to primary schools across the country and marked the start of a fundraising effort for the service in Northamptonshire.

The scheme sees NSPCC staff and volunteers teach children as young as four how to spot abuse and educates them about the trusted adults they can talk to, as well as teaching young people the Childline number, 0800 1111.

To celebrate turning 125, NSPCC Northamptonshire is looking for 125 individuals, groups and businesses to each raise £125, which could help pay for specially-trained NSPCC volunteers to deliver ‘Speak Out Stay Safe’ to a class of primary school children.

This would help the service reach more pupils with the vital messages and encourage them to speak to a trusted adult or Childline with any concerns they may have, big or small.

The older year five and six pupils also take part in follow-up workshops where subjects are covered in more depth and issues such as online safety are discussed.

In the last school year, ‘Speak Out Stay Safe’ reached more than 23,600 children at 92 schools across Northamptonshire.

Fraser Dingwall said: “I was thrilled to be able to take part in today's 'Speak Out Stay Safe' assemblies.

“This is a really important message to be delivering to children of all ages and the number of kids the NSPCC have already reached in Northamptonshire schools is amazing, so it was great to be involved.”

Adele Hartley, NSPCC Schools Service Organiser for Northamptonshire, said: “It was really rewarding to see the pupils take in such an important message with the help of Fraser, which has reached thousands of primary school children across Northampton.

“’Speak Out Stay Safe’ really is about preventing abuse by giving children the tools to recognise it for what it is from an early age and importantly highlighting who they can talk to safely.

“It’s fantastic to have the support of Northampton Saints, and if anyone can help us reach another class of primary school children by raising £125, that could make a huge difference to a young person’s life.”

Children can contact Childline confidentially, 24 hours a day, on 0800 1111 or via www.childline.org.uk.

For more information on Speak Out Stay Safe and how to volunteer for the NSPCC Schools Service is available at www.nspcc.org.uk

Cobblers boss Keith Curle has spoken of his delight at teenager Morgan Roberts’ call up to the Wales Under-21s squad for a training camp, and praised the youngster’s ‘exemplary’ attitude.

The 18-year-old is training with former Cobblers boss Rob Page’s squad in Monmouthsire this week, before returning to Town duty on Friday ahead of Saturday’s trip to Cheltenham Town.

Academy graduate Roberts was handed a three-year contract by then boss Dean Austin last summer having impressed in the youth team and in senior training, and he has been on the fringes of the first team this season.

Since Curle took charge in October, Roberts has continued to impress and has made four substitute appearances for the first team, including three in league two, and Curle says his Wales call up is a sign of the player’s development.

“His selection shows progression, and with Robert Page being the manager there he will have had a brief insight into Morgan,” said Curle.

“We have had Morgan in training with us from day one since I came into the football club, and he perhaps hasn’t had as much game time as I would have liked.

“He has gone through peaks and troughs with his training, and adapting to a new style and a new philosophy, but ultimately he has been one of the younger players that stood out when I first came in.

“He is able to manipulate the ball, he is able to go past players, and the lad has an eye for goal.

“Physically he needed to go on a strengthening programme which he is adhering to, and if you look at him now he is filling out, he is maturing, and he has a better understanding of what is required in the number of positions he can play.

“He is naturally left-footed, but he can play left, right, and he can play in behind the striker as well.

“Morgan just needs to come out of himself a little bit more, and to be a little bit more expressive on the ball, because I think the lad has more ability.

“When he goes down a level and goes back to playing with the youth team, then he grows an inch, and it is about getting that confidence in him, and getting him comfortable in the environment.

“That has been part of his development this season, and I think he is doing very well. He will get more and more game time, not only this season but probably next season as well.”

As well as being involved in the first team, Roberts also played a key role in the Cobblers Under-18s winning their league title before Christmas, and still features regularly for Jon Brady’s team when he is not required by the first team.

And Roberts’ attitude when he drops back down to youth football has impressed Curle, as has the attitude of other youngsters who have tasted first-team action this season.

“I think the pleasing thing about Morgan is how he has integrated into the first-team group, but also then when he has been asked to step back down to get game time, and even training time sometimes with the youth team, his attitude has been exemplary,” said Curle.

“He has gone in there and maintained first team standards, and I think that is important.

“It’s the same with some of the other youth-team lads that have been elevated to first team professional levels, and then have gone back down, they have gone back down with the right attitude.

“That shows a good understanding of what is required.

“They are not thinking that because they have trained with the first team they can go back down to the youth team and be loose, or a little blasé, because we don’t want that.

“The players are on a development programme, which at times they will be training with the youth team.

“They will get opportunities in the first team, and to even play for the first team, and it is about improvement and that mental development that is needed, and will give them a great platform.”

But experts say the findings by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism and the University College London show almost all could be prevented with early intervention.

Since October 2017, 16 people known to have been homeless have died in Northampton, the report shows.

The youngest was 22, the oldest, just 61.

Nationally the Bureau’s findings show that - despite the perceived wisdom - most people did not die from hypothermia or from drug overdoses as a result of street sleeping.

In fact illness, such as underlying heart conditions, tuberculosis, or pneumonia were found to be the main cause.

A third of which were conditions the Bureau says could have been treated with the right medical care.

And the findings for Northampton paint a similar picture. Only one person was known to have died from a suspected overdose.

Of the ten people in the report where the cause of death was recorded, eight lost their lives through illness.

Among them, a 37-year-old woman died of pneumonia during last year’s heatwave.

Rob Aldridge, lead academic on the University College London team that compiled the report, said councils around the land had to work harder to identify those at risk of serious illness.

“Our research highlights a failure of the health system to care for this vulnerable group in a timely and appropriate manner,” he said. “We need to identify homeless individuals at risk earlier and develop models of care that enable them to engage with interventions proven to either prevent or improve outcomes for early onset chronic disease.”

The Hope Centre, a Northampton charity that provides day services for the homeless, has logged 24 deaths since July 2017.

Chief executive of the Hope Centre Robin Burgess, believes that overdoses accounted for a greater proportion of deaths here in Northampton in slight contrast to the Bureau’s report.

But he agrees that the agencies around town involved in dealing with homelessness simply need to do more to get people into stable accommodation and into healthcare.

Referring to the 24, he said: “All had been homeless, the majority rough sleepers, and some of them were rough sleeping at the time of their deaths.

“Four died in road, car or other accidents; one was murdered, several died directly from overdoses, some from the long-term health consequences of sleeping rough or the homelessness lifestyle.

“Every single death was premature and could have been avoided had they been able to access housing earlier, or received the treatment for their health or addiction problems sooner.”

But earlier this year, outreach workers told the Chronicle and Echo how some people were simply unwilling to engage with health services, drug or alcohol counselling - though many had been offered a spot at the council’s night shelter in St Andrew’s Road.

A long-term rough sleeper told the Chronicle and Echo that more of those on the streets would be willing to do so – ironically it may seem – if there was a ‘wet’ night shelter available – a place where people could drink or take drugs in a safer environment. The council’s night shelter has a no drink and drugs policy, which some believe is restricting the number of people it can help.

“With the night shelter you’ve got be in by this time and then you are chucked out in the morning,” said Vince Coyle, a long-term alcoholic who moved to Northampton from Nottingham.

“From an alcoholic’s point of view that’s a nightmare,” the 46-year-old added.

“I don’t know why this town hasn’t got a wet house. If there was somewhere which had a room where you could go and drink that would be perfect.”

Vince is one of a number of rough sleepers to have refused the offer of the nightshelter.

“The reason we didn’t take them up on the offer is because we don’t want to be dictated to,” he said. “We have a drink and a laugh out here. As long as I’m not wet and cold I don’t mind the cold.”

The Bureau’s report comes hot off the heals of the official Government figures on homeless deaths. In February that report found seven people in unstable accommodation had died in Northampton in 2017, the highest number in the East Midlands.

Councillor Stephen Hibbert, cabinet member for housing and wellbeing at Northampton Borough Council, said: “The borough council’s staff work tirelessly to engage with rough sleepers, not all of whom are willing to confront the root causes of their situation or accept the help on offer.

“We run the Nightshelter, which aims to help rough sleepers get back on their feet, and currently offer an all-weather winter shelter, open every night from 9pm- 7am until the end of March.

The ‘Together we change lives’ strategy also sets out the multi-agency approach to proving coordinated support services for rough sleepers.

“As we regularly point out, rough sleeping, even for short periods, has a detrimental impact on life expectancy and it’s extremely important that everyone does all they can to tackle the issue.

“One of the best ways members of the public can help is by supporting the official charities and organisations in the town who work hard to help rough sleepers. They can also contact our Street Outreach Team or Streetlink if they find someone sleeping rough.”