Council responds to complaints over 'terrible' roads in Northampton's 'forgotten estate'

The council has responded to complaints over ‘terrible’ road surfaces on a ‘forgotten estate’ in Northampton.

A large portion of Kings Heath’s roads are full of potholes, as are many of the other roads in town, but Kings Heath seems to be up there with the very worst.

This newspaper recently drove the estate and found Park Drive, South, East and West Oval all to be full of dangerous potholes and poor road surfaces.

Residents have been raising concerns on social media following multiple stories by this newspaper highlighting some of the worst affected areas in the town.

Resident Marc-Ross Jelley said: “Kings Heath, the forgotten estate, is terrible, Park drive especially.”

Cal Peter John said: “The whole of Kings Heath needs resurfacing, forget patching.”

Charlotte Barnes added: “Park Drive is by far the worst I've seen.”

West Northants Council (WNC) was asked when it plans on fixing the state of the roads in Kings Heath and if this would be allowed to happen in a more affluent area.

The man in charge of the roads at WNC, councillor Phil Larratt, said ‘in-depth repairs are to be carried out in this area in the near future’ but failed to give a specific date.

Councillor Larratt said: “I understand people’s frustration with the current condition of the roads. Maintaining our road network is a significant task, especially following the wet and cold winter months. That’s why we undertake most of the necessary repair work each year from spring through to autumn, in warmer weather to prevent repairs from failing.

“In-depth repairs are due be addressed in this area as part of our pre-scheduled programme of works which is to be carried out in the near future. This work includes resurfacing with the thermal road repairer at Park Drive, South Oval, West Oval and East Oval. These works will be done in order of severity which may mean they may not be completed together. However, where possible we will combine works to reduce inconvenience to public transport and other road users.

“Nationally there is a real challenge for all councils to balance competing priorities with our limited budgets. We allocate £26m annually across our road and transport services, but this only stretches so far. Works are carried out across West Northamptonshire in order of urgency and priority, and the location of areas has no weighting on the programme of works.”

A WNC spokeswoman explained why the thermal road repairer will be used and not the controversial JCB Pothole Pro.

The spokeswoman said: “Its main characteristic is that it uses heat to reuse the existing material as well as additional new material to create an improved surface without the need for the planning out of a large area and the additional resource and space a machine such as the pothole pro might require. It is therefore best utilised in residential areas and area where space and manoeuvrability is at a premium.”

This newspaper recently submitted a Freedom of Information request to WNC regarding the amount of potholes reported in the last few years and the amount paid out to those who claimed.

Here’s the data:

Reported potholes:

2022: 1,638

2023: 7,920

2024: 4,518

Claims for pothole-related damages:

2022: 393

2023: 942

2024: 428

Payouts for damages:

2022: £9,420.26

2023: Kier (Council’s contractor) claims still open

2024: Kier (Council’s contractor) claims still open