Rushden Youth Group Roundtable

In 2024 after many reports of anti-social behaviour in Rushden, I knew that something needed to be done on a larger scale. I convened the first meeting of the Rushden Youth Group Roundtable in October 2024. The group includes local youth groups, councillors, the police, the Police Fire and Crime Commisioner, as well as concerned residents.

From the roundtable there have been multiple projects started including the drafting of a youth safety strategy, ‘Paint the Town, plans for a youth day, and others. A recent article in the Northants Telegraph confirmed that shop owners on the high street have seen an improvement however I am committed to ensuring that the difference is felt by everyone in Rushden.

Youth Safety Strategy

The main project that my team are working on relating to the Youth Group Roundtable is the Youth Safety Strategy. This is something that I had helped develop previously for a different area when I was a councillor. My team has met with Islington Council who have a successful youth safety strategy and were able share a review of their strategy which was carried out by the University of London.

There are 6 priorities included in the Youth Safety Strategy including:
– Education
– Place and Space
– Community Organisations
– Institutions (covering the council and the police)
– Inclusion
– Young voices

It is a priority that young people are included in the decision making. For the final few months of 2025 I ran 2 surveys alongside each other, one for young people and the other for adults. Both surveys concluded at the beginning of January 2026. The results will also be published on this website.

Paint the Town

One of the comments that is often raised is that if young people are proud of their area, they are less likely to commit anti-social behaviour crimes. I think we can learn from local authorities that have painted hot-spot areas in bright colours or with murals to deter young people from hanging around and causing trouble.

Following discussions at the roundtable, Rushden Town Council has decided to take on a similar project, where alongside Rush 2 the Den and Rushden Sea Cadets they will create some murals to help young people be proud of their area, as well as being able to take ownership of the artwork.

The group is also calling for better lighting in certain parts of the town.