West Northamptonshire is one of two places to win a Bronze Sustainable Food Places award this month, alongside Camden. Residents can join the network behind it.

West Northamptonshire has won a Bronze award from Sustainable Food Places, the national programme for local food partnerships. It is one of four places recognised in the programme’s November round. (Sustainable Food Places, 5 November 2026)

The four were:

  • Bronze: West Northamptonshire and the London Borough of Camden
  • Silver: Cumberland and Devon

What Bronze means

To reach Bronze, a food partnership has to show it brings different sectors together to make decisions. It must also have mapped and engaged with the local food system, and have a food strategy that represents its population. Sustainable Food Places describes it as a foundation for bigger change.

The award went to the West Northants Sustainable Food Network. It brings together organisations from the public, voluntary, health, education and business sectors. Northampton Hope Centre runs the network for the council’s public health team. (West Northamptonshire Council, 4 November 2026)

What the network does

The council lists the work behind the award:

  • local food conversations and events to set priorities
  • community food projects to make healthy food easier to get and afford
  • food growing, cooking and skills programmes
  • links between food producers, schools, health services and community groups
  • action on food poverty and food waste

Joanne Pritchard, chief executive of Northampton Hope Centre, said the charity was “delighted with what has been achieved”.

Nicola Toms, chief executive of Northamptonshire ACRE, said the award “belongs to everyone who has helped build a better local food system”, from farms to volunteers.

What it means for you

The network’s website, Good Food West Northants, posts tips on eating well for less, growing your own and cutting food waste. Anyone can sign up there to join the network or make a pledge.