DH Painter & Decorator takes on commercial painting in Headlands, NN3, roughly 2.2 miles north-east of Northampton town centre. The non-domestic buildings here are mostly educational, plus the Headland pub and a few takeaways, so the work is planned around term times and opening hours.
Non-domestic buildings in a residential suburb
Headlands has no high street, office park or industrial estate. The commercial premises are a short list, and most of them are large buildings serving the wider town:
- Northampton College, Booth Lane: the main campus, rebuilt in two phases and completed in December 2012, about 27,000 m2.
- Weston Favell Academy, Booth Lane South: an 11-18 academy of around 1,476 pupils that replaced Weston Favell School in 2012.
- Headlands Primary School, Bushland Road: a primary academy with a nursery and the Woodlands autism unit.
- The Headland pub, 16 Longland Road: a brick-built 1960s estate pub on the corner of Broadway East.
- Takeaway units: small premises on Longland Road and Bushland Road.
St Gregory’s Catholic Primary School and The Arbours Primary Academy are also close by. Our main commercial painting page explains how we plan and run business jobs generally. This page is about what the buildings in Headlands ask for.
Working to the academic calendar
Schools and colleges cannot have a classroom out of use or a corridor full of wet paint during term. The realistic windows are the summer holiday, half-terms and the shorter Christmas and Easter breaks, and those dates fill up quickly with every other trade a school needs. Planning a few months ahead lets us survey the rooms during term, agree colours and products with the site manager, then work straight through once the pupils leave.
On the scale of the job, we are a small operation run by Dean. A whole campus repaint at the size of the college is a contract for a large firm. Defined areas suit us: a staff room, a run of classrooms, a reception, a stairwell, a sports changing area, or a nursery room. For a school with a specialist unit such as Woodlands, we would ask about sensory needs first and suggest low-odour, low-VOC paints and calm, matt colours, then agree working times when the unit is closed.
The pub and the takeaways
The Headland is a 1960s brick pub, and its freehold is owned by Wells & Co. Where a brewery owns a building it may have its own preferences for exterior colours and signage, so a tenant planning a repaint should check those before we quote. Inside, bars and toilets take heavy wear and need washable, durable finishes laid on in sections so the pub can keep trading.
The takeaways on Longland Road and Bushland Road have a different problem. Fryers and extraction leave a film of grease on fascias, frames and walls, and paint will not hold on it. Every surface is degreased and rinsed before any primer goes on, inside and out. Many takeaways open later in the day, so we can often work in the morning before service. Frontages are covered on our shopfront painting page.
Getting in and out on Booth Lane South
Booth Lane South runs along the northern edge of Headlands and carries buses as well as school and college traffic. At the start and end of the school day it is slow, and parking a van or unloading next to Weston Favell Academy or the college is awkward. We plan arrivals for mid-morning where we can, and during holidays the problem largely disappears. The residential streets behind, such as Bushland Road, are quieter but still busy at drop-off for Headlands Primary. Our Headlands area page covers the rest of the district.
Last updated by Dean, DH Painter & Decorator.
