Seven councillors have called in the Cabinet decision to close Southfields House and Obelisk House. Scrutiny will hear it at One Angel Square on Monday 23 November.

The decision to close Northampton’s two council-run care homes has been called in by seven councillors. It cannot be put into effect until the call-in is dealt with.

West Northamptonshire Council’s Cabinet approved the closure of Southfields House and Obelisk House on 10 November, along with changes to day services in Daventry and Towcester and the decommissioning of Eleanor Lodge. We reported the decision the next day.

The call-in is now on the agenda of the Adult Social Care, Health and Communities Overview and Scrutiny Committee. It meets at 6pm on Monday 23 November at One Angel Square, Angel Street. (Agenda, 23 November 2026)

What the councillors want

The call-in notice asks the committee to send the decisions back to Cabinet. It covers four parts of the decision:

  • the new day opportunities model, including closing the social and leisure services at Longlands in Daventry and The Forum in Towcester
  • the community specialist support model, including decommissioning Eleanor Lodge
  • the phased closure of Southfields House and Obelisk House over up to 24 months
  • handing the detailed transition plans to a senior officer

The originator is Councillor Daniel Lister. The other six signatories are Councillors Cecile Irving-Swift, Jonathan Harris, Rosie Humphreys, Keith Holland-Delamere, Sally Keeble and David Tarbun. A valid call-in needs at least seven councillors who are not in the Cabinet, under the council’s constitution.

The reasons they give

The notice sets out seven grounds. The main ones are about the residents.

It says the people affected are 81 care home residents, 16 residents of Eleanor Lodge and around 131 people who use the day services. It points out that the officer report accepts the plan is not a response to poor care. Southfields House was rated Good by the Care Quality Commission after an inspection in September 2023, and the specialist support service that includes Eleanor Lodge is also rated Good.

The councillors also say:

  • the council’s own equality screening forms record a risk of death after a move between care homes, but that risk is not in the Cabinet report or its risk table
  • Southfields residents may be offered a place at Obelisk House, which itself closes in the second phase, so some could face two moves
  • the report does not say how many residents live with dementia, lack capacity or are funded by the council
  • there is no costed comparison with refurbishing the homes
  • closing Longlands and The Forum leaves no council day service in Daventry or Towcester, and the report gives no journey times for people who would have to travel further

On the money, the notice says the saving that reaches the budget is £1,464,120 a year, not the larger £2,028,120 cut in service costs. It also says £2.3m of one-off redundancy and pension costs has no identified source of funding.

What they are asking for instead

The councillors want the closures deferred until the committee has a set of extra evidence in front of it. That includes:

  • full equality impact assessments for each service
  • a profile of residents, including how many have dementia and how many have moved before
  • a costed options appraisal that includes refurbishment
  • named providers and places in each area, with journey times for people now using Longlands and The Forum
  • an assessment of the risk of harm from moving, with no Southfields resident sent to Obelisk House unless it is their informed choice or in their best interests
  • a return to Cabinet before any decision to close Obelisk House

What happens next

The committee has three choices under the constitution:

  • send the decision back to Cabinet with its concerns, normally in time for Cabinet’s next meeting
  • refer it to full Council, if it decides the decision falls outside the budget and policy framework
  • take no further action, in which case the decision takes effect immediately

If the decision goes back to Cabinet, Cabinet still makes the final call. It can change the decision or confirm it, and must give its reasons.

What it means for you

If a relative lives at Southfields House or Obelisk House, nothing changes before 23 November. The decision cannot be carried out while the call-in is open.

Scrutiny meetings are held in public. You can attend at One Angel Square or follow the committee’s work on the council’s meetings site. We will report the outcome.