The Borough of Kettering was from 1974 to 2021 a

local government district The districts of England (also known as local authority districts or local government districts to distinguish from unofficial city districts) are a level of subnational division of England used for the purposes of local government. As the st ...

and

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle Ag ...

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. It was named after its main town

Kettering Kettering is a market and industrial town in North Northamptonshire, England. It is located north of London and north-east of Northampton, west of the River Ise, a tributary of the River Nene. The name means "the place (or territory) of Ket ...

where the council was based. It bordered onto the district of

Harborough Market Harborough is a market town in the Harborough district of Leicestershire, England, in the far southeast of the county, forming part of the border with Northamptonshire. Market Harborough's population was 25,143 in 2020. It is the ad ...

in the neighbouring county of Leicestershire, the borough of

Corby Corby is a town in North Northamptonshire, England, located north-east of Northampton. From 1974 to 2021, the town served as the administrative headquarters of the Borough of Corby. At the 2011 Census, the built-up area had a population of 5 ...

, the district of

East Northamptonshire East Northamptonshire was from 1974 to 2021 a local government district in Northamptonshire, England. Its council was based in Thrapston and Rushden. Other towns include Oundle, Raunds, Irthlingborough and Higham Ferrers. The town of Rushden wa ...

, the district of

Daventry Daventry ( , historically ) is a market town and civil parish in the West Northamptonshire unitary authority in Northamptonshire, England, close to the border with Warwickshire. At the 2021 Census Daventry had a population of 28,123, making ...

and the

borough of Wellingborough The Borough of Wellingborough was from 1974 to 2021 a non-metropolitan district and borough in Northamptonshire, England. It was named after Wellingborough, its main town, but also included surrounding rural areas. The local council preferred ...

Abolition and replacement

In March 2018, following suspension of the County Council arising from its becoming insolvent, due to financial and cultural mismanagement by the cabinet and officers, the then Secretary of State for Local Government,

Sajid Javid Sajid Javid (; born 5 December 1969) is a British politician who served as Secretary of State for Health and Social Care from June 2021 to July 2022, having previously served as Home Secretary from 2018 to 2019 and Chancellor of the Exchequer f ...

, sent

commissioner A commissioner (commonly abbreviated as Comm'r) is, in principle, a member of a commission or an individual who has been given a commission (official charge or authority to do something). In practice, the title of commissioner has evolved to in ...

Max Caller into the council, who recommended the county council and all district and borough councils in the county be abolished, and replaced by two

unitary authorities A unitary authority is a local authority responsible for all local government functions within its area or performing additional functions that elsewhere are usually performed by a higher level of sub-national government or the national governmen ...

, one covering the West, and one the North of the county. These proposals were approved in April 2019. It meant that the districts of

Northampton Northampton () is a market town and civil parish in the East Midlands of England, on the River Nene, north-west of London and south-east of Birmingham. The county town of Northamptonshire, Northampton is one of the largest towns in England; ...

and

South Northamptonshire South Northamptonshire was, from 1974 to 2021, a district in Northamptonshire, England. Its council was based in the town of Towcester, first established as a settlement in Roman Britain. The population of the Local Authority District Council in ...

were merged to form a new unitary authority called

West Northamptonshire West Northamptonshire is a unitary authority area covering part of the ceremonial county of Northamptonshire, England, created in 2021. By far the largest settlement in West Northamptonshire is the county town of Northampton. Its other signif ...

, whilst the second unitary authority

North Northamptonshire North Northamptonshire is one of two local authority areas in Northamptonshire, England. It is a unitary authority area forming about one half of the ceremonial county of Northamptonshire. It was created in 2021. Its notable towns are Ketterin ...

consists of

, Kettering and

Wellingborough Wellingborough ( ) is a large market and commuter town in the unitary authority area of North Northamptonshire in the ceremonial county of Northamptonshire, England, 65 miles from London and from Northampton on the north side of the River Nen ...

districts. These new authorities came into being on 1 April 2021. Elections for the new authorities were due to be held on 7 May 2020, but were delayed due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

Settlements and parishes

Other than Kettering itself, the borough included: *

Ashley Ashley is a place name derived from the Old English words '' æsc'' (“ash”) and '' lēah'' (“meadow”). It may refer to: People and fictional characters * Ashley (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name ...

Barton Seagrave Barton Seagrave is a large village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in the North Northamptonshire, England. The village is about south-east of Kettering, town centre. The older part of the village is known for its Norman architecture ...

Brampton Ash Brampton Ash is a civil parish and village in Northamptonshire, England. It lies in the extreme north-west of Northamptonshire and the nearest urban settlements are the nearby towns of Corby, Kettering, Desborough and Market Harborough. Running ...

, Braybrooke, Broughton,

Burton Latimer Burton, Burtons, or Burton's may refer to: Companies * Burton (retailer), a clothing retailer ** Burton's, Abergavenny, a shop built for the company in 1937 **The Montague Burton Building, Dublin a shop built for the company between 1929 and ...

* Cranford,

Cransley Cransley is a civil parish in Northamptonshire, England. It contains the village of Great Cransley but Little Cransley is in the adjacent parish of Broughton. At the time of the 2001 census, Cransley parish had 283 inhabitants, increasing to ...

Desborough Desborough is a town in Northamptonshire, England, lying in the Ise Valley between Market Harborough and Kettering. It was an industrial centre for weaving and shoe-making in the 19th century and had a long association with the Co-operative mo ...

, Dingley *

Geddington Geddington is a village and civil parish on the A4300, previously A43, in North Northamptonshire between Kettering and Corby. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 census was 1,503, virtually unchanged from 1,504 at the 2001 census. ...

, Grafton Underwood * Harrington * Loddington *

Mawsley Mawsley is a newly built village and civil parish in North Northamptonshire, England. At the time of the 2011 census, the parish had a population of 2,320. History The village’s name means 'Gravel ridge wood/clearing'. The Domesday hundred ...

Village * Newton and Little Oakley *

Orton Orton may refer to: Places England * Orton, Eden, Cumbria, a village and civil parish * Orton, Carlisle, Cumbria, a parish * Orton, Northamptonshire, a village and civil parish *Orton, Peterborough, Cambridgeshire * Orton, Staffordshire, a hamlet ...

Pytchley Pytchley is a village and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England, three miles south-west of Kettering and near the A14 road. At the time of the 2011 census, the parish's population was 489 people. The village has a Church of England Primar ...

* Rothwell, Rushton *

Stoke Albany Stoke Albany is a village and civil parish in North Northamptonshire. It is off the A427 road between Market Harborough and Corby, about halfway between the two. At the time of the 2001 census, the parish's population was 330 people, increasin ...

, Sutton Bassett *

Thorpe Malsor Thorpe Malsor is a village and civil parish west of Kettering, Northamptonshire, England. The population at the 2011 Census was 145. History The village's name means 'outlying farm/settlement'. The village was held by Fucher Malesoures ( M ...

Warkton Warkton is a small nucleated village and civil parish in the English county of Northamptonshire. It is approximately three miles northeast of the town of Kettering and seven miles west-northwest of Thrapston, and forms part of North Northamptons ...

Weekley Weekley is a small village and civil parish in the English county of Northamptonshire, on the outskirts of Kettering. The village's name probably means, 'wood/clearing by the Romano-British vicus', a trading settlement. There are two known Rom ...

Weston by Welland Weston by Welland is a village and civil parish in the north of the English county of Northamptonshire administered as part of North Northamptonshire. As its name suggests, it is near to the River Welland that, thereabouts, forms the boundary wi ...

Wilbarston Wilbarston is a village and civil parish in the English county of Northamptonshire in the Welland valley. It is administered as part of North Northamptonshire and is five miles east of the Leicestershire town of Market Harborough, via the A427. ...

Political control

It composed of 36 local councillors and most recently controlled by the

Conservatives Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

, who controlled the Council since the 2003 local elections, where they gained control from

Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

with a majority of 15.

History

2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...

-Present:

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

controlled * 2001-

controlled (due to a by-election gain in St. Michael's Ward) *

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...

-2001: No Overall Control (

minority administration) * 1995-

controlled * 1987-1995: No Overall Control * 1983-1987:

controlled * 1973-1983: No Overall Control

Arms

References