There is a street called Druids Way in Parklands, Northampton which has been there for over 40 years. However, earlier this year Daventry District Council named a brand new street Druids Way, in Moulton less than two miles away. Both streets are also in the same NN3 postcode!
This absurdity was already causing deliveries to be misdirected and a midwife went to the wrong address. Considerable inconvenience was being caused to my constituents in Parklands who were getting frequent deliveries for the wrong houses- and I was asked by residents to intervene.
Daventry Council initially refused to consider my request to change the name of the new Druids Way, despite it being so new that their street is not yet on satnavs and is only partially occupied.
I then heard last week that the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government Eric Pickles MP happened to be passing through Northampton on his way to another event and I invited him to stop briefly and meet residents in Parklands.
In typically robust fashion Eric Pickles said: “This is clearly a ludicrous decision- and the only way to fix it is to rename the street”. He later asked “Why become a national laughing stock?”
This weekend, in a victory for common sense, Daventry reversed its decision and has now agreed to consult its residents on a new name. I am pleased to say they are looking at naming the street after a local hero of World War One, which would be very fitting in this centenary year of the start of that dreadful conflict.
Many taxpayers will join me in finding these mistakes by local councils very frustrating but I am delighted that I was able to help the residents of those houses in my constituency in this case.
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