Grants offered for three 'left behind' areas in Northamptonshire

Avondale Grange was named on a list of so-called Left Behind neighbourhoods

Three areas named as "left behind" places are each getting £35,000 for improvement projects.

Avondale Grange in Kettering, Kingswood and Hazel Leys in Corby and Queensway in Wellingborough have been allocated money from the Government's shared prosperity fund.

"Left behind" areas are defined as places with high levels of deprivation, lacking community facilities.

Community groups are being invited to bid for grants.

The three areas are among 225 places identified by the Oxford Consultants for Social Inclusion (OCSI) as "left behind".

The Local Trust and OCSI, who carried out the research, said that "left behind" areas had high levels of deprivation and socio-economic challenges.

They also lacked community and civic facilities and had suffered a lack of investment.

The idea of "left behind areas" has been criticised for encouraging the perception that post-industrial communities on the edge of towns are populated by people who are suspicious of multiculturalism and liberal social attitudes.

The Grange Methodist Church on Avondale Grange is awaiting demolition

Avondale Grange in Kettering was ranked the 1,952nd most deprived area in England in 2010. By 2019, it had jumped to 748th place.

In a special BBC report last year, residents talked of "drugs, crime and poverty" on Avondale, and there was a feeling it was losing out to the town centre when it came to funding.

The Queensway estate in Wellingborough has already been allocated money from the Safer Streets Fund

The Queensway estate in Wellingborough has already received some government funding for safety improvements, such as fitting secure doors and gates for alleyways.

A total of 17 anti-social behaviour crimes were recorded in the area in September 2023.

A march took place through Hazel Leys two years ago after a teenager was stabbed to death

Kingswood and Hazel Leys in Corby is ranked second in the county on the Index of Multiple Deprivation.

In an impact report earlier this year, Northamptonshire Sport said that "crime rates are higher than the East Midlands average, particularly youth-related antisocial behaviour, and there has been an increase in drugs, gang culture and knife crime."

North Northamptonshire Council has invited organisations such as parish councils, community groups and school PTAs in all three areas to apply for grants of up to £25,000.

Projects have to provide activities which encourage young people up to the age of 25 to take part in activities that divert them away from crime and antisocial behaviour.

The closing date for applications is 27 November.