Wellingborough ( ) is a large market and commuter town in the unitary authority area of North Northamptonshire in the ceremonial county of

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, 65 miles from

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

and from

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; ...

on the north side of the River Nene. Originally named "Wendelingburgh" (the stronghold of Wændel's people), the

Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons were a Cultural identity, cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo- ...

settlement is mentioned in the

Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...

of 1086 as "Wendelburie". The town was granted a royal market

charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the rec ...

in 1201 by

King John King John may refer to: Rulers * John, King of England (1166–1216) * John I of Jerusalem (c. 1170–1237) * John Balliol, King of Scotland (c. 1249–1314) * John I of France (15–20 November 1316) * John II of France (1319–1364) * John I o ...

. At the 2011 census, the town's built-up area had a population of 50,577. The Wellingborough built-up area also includes suburbs Wilby,

Great Doddington Great Doddington is a village and civil parish in Northamptonshire in the United Kingdom, close to Wellingborough and just off the A45. At the time of the 2001 census, the parish's population was 1,061 increasing to 1,123 at the 2011 census. ...

Little Irchester Little is a synonym for small size and may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Little'' (album), 1990 debut album of Vic Chesnutt * ''Little'' (film), 2019 American comedy film *The Littles, a series of children's novels by American author John P ...

and

Redhill Grange Redhill Grange or (Redhill) is a purpose-built settlement in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire. It is situated just north from the Redwell area in the market town and eleven miles from the county town Northampton, forming part of the district au ...

History

The town was established in the

Anglo-Saxon period Anglo-Saxon England or Early Medieval England, existing from the 5th to the 11th centuries from the end of Roman Britain until the Norman conquest in 1066, consisted of various Anglo-Saxon kingdoms until 927, when it was united as the Kingdom of ...

and was called "Wendelingburgh". It is surrounded by five wells: Redwell,

Hemmingwell Hemmingwell is a medium sized, densely populated council estate in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, England. The area had a population of 8,272 at the 2011 census. The estate is often known as 'Wellingborough's toughest estate'. History The ...

, Witche's Well, Lady's Well and Whytewell, which appear on its

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central ele ...

. Henrietta Maria came with her physician

Théodore de Mayerne Sir Théodore Turquet de Mayerne (28 September 1573 – 22 March 1655) was a Genevan-born physician who treated kings of France and England and advanced the theories of Paracelsus. The Young Doctor Mayerne was born in a Huguenot family in Gen ...

to take the waters on 14 July 1627. All Hallows Church Steeple, Wellingborough, Northants - geograph

The medieval town of Wellingborough housed a modest monastic grange – now the Jacobean

Croyland Abbey Crowland Abbey (also spelled Croyland Abbey, Latin: ''Croilandia'') is a Church of England parish church, formerly part of a Benedictine abbey church, in Crowland in the English county of Lincolnshire. It is a Grade I listed building. History A ...

– which was an offshoot of the monastery of Crowland (or Croyland) Abbey, near

Peterborough Peterborough () is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, east of England. It is the largest part of the City of Peterborough unitary authority district (which covers a larger area than Peterborough itself). It was part of Northamptonshire until ...

, some down-river. This part of the town is known as Croyland.The Borough Council of Wellingborough: Councillors by Wards
. Retrieved 7 July 2017 All Hallows Church is the oldest existing building in Wellingborough and dates from c. 1160. The manor of Wellingborough belonged to Crowland Abbey

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-west, Leicestershire ...

, from Saxon times and the monks probably built the original church. The earliest part of the building is the

Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norm ...

doorway opening in from the later south porch. The church was enlarged with the addition of more side chapels and by the end of the 13th century had assumed more or less its present plan. The west tower, crowned with a graceful

broach spire A broach spire is a type of spire (tall pyramidal structure), which usually sits atop a tower or turret of a church. It starts on a square base and is carried up to a tapering octagonal spire by means of triangular faces. File:Leicester Cathedral ...

rising to , was completed about 1270, after which the chancel was rebuilt and given the east window twenty years later. The church was restored in 1861 by

Edmund Francis Law Edmund Francis Law, usually referred to as 'E. F. Law', (26 April 1810 – 14 April 1882, in Northampton) FRIBA was an English architect during the 19th century, notable for a large number of projects, particularly restorations, in the ...

. The 20th-century Church of St Mary was built by

Ninian Comper Sir John Ninian Comper (10 June 1864 – 22 December 1960) was a Scottish architect; one of the last of the great Gothic Revival architects. His work almost entirely focused on the design, restoration and embellishment of churches, and the des ...

. Wellingborough was given a Market Charter dated 3 April 1201 when

granted it to the "Abbot of Croyland and the monks serving God there" continuing, "they shall have a market at Wendligburg (Wellingborough) for one day each week that is Wednesday".Wellingborough Market
. Retrieved 28 January 2010 In the Elizabethan era the

Lord of the Manor Lord of the Manor is a title that, in Anglo-Saxon England, referred to the landholder of a rural estate. The lord enjoyed manorial rights (the rights to establish and occupy a residence, known as the manor house and demesne) as well as seig ...

, Sir Christopher Hatton was a sponsor of

Sir Francis Drake Sir Francis Drake ( – 28 January 1596) was an English explorer, sea captain, privateer, slave trader, naval officer, and politician. Drake is best known for his circumnavigation of the world in a single expedition, from 1577 to 1580 (t ...

's expeditions; Drake renamed one of his ships the '' Golden Hind'' after the heraldic symbol of the Hatton family. A hotel in a Grade II listed building built in the 17th century, was known variously as the Hind Hotel and later as the Golden Hind Hotel. Croyland Abbey, Wellingborough - geograph

Croyland Abbey, Wellingborough - geograph

During the

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...

the largest substantial conflict in the area was the Battle of Naseby in 1645, although a minor skirmish in the town resulted in the killing of a parliamentarian officer Captain John Sawyer. Severe reprisals followed which included the carrying off to Northampton of the parish priest, Thomas Jones, and 40 prisoners by a group of Roundheads. However, after the Civil War Wellingborough was home to a colony of

Diggers The Diggers were a group of religious and political dissidents in England, associated with agrarian socialism. Gerrard Winstanley and William Everard, amongst many others, were known as True Levellers in 1649, in reference to their split from ...

. Little is known about this period. Wellingborough was bombed during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, on Monday 3 August 1942. Six people were killed and 55 injured; fortunately, being a bank holiday, thousands of people were away at a fair at a nearby village. Many houses and other buildings in the centre of the town were damaged in the attack. Originally the town had two railway stations: the first called , opened in 1845 and closed in 1966, linked Peterborough with Northampton. The second station, Wellingborough Midland Road, is still in operation with trains to London and the

East Midlands The East Midlands is one of nine official regions of England at the first level of ITL for statistical purposes. It comprises the eastern half of the area traditionally known as the Midlands. It consists of Leicestershire, Derbyshire, Li ...

. Since then the 'Midland Road' was dropped from the station name. The Midland Road station opened in 1857 with trains serving Kettering and a little later Corby, was linked in 1867 to London St Pancras. In 1898 in the Wellingborough rail accident six or seven people died and around 65 were injured. In the 1880s two businessmen held a public meeting to build three tram lines in Wellingborough, the group merged with a similar company in

Newport Pagnell Newport Pagnell is a town and civil parish in the City of Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. The Office for National Statistics records Newport Pagnell as part of the Milton Keynes urban area. It is separated from the rest of the urban ...

who started to lay tram tracks, but within two years the plans were abandoned due to lack of funds.

Governance

Wellingborough is part of the

unitary authority 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 ...

of North Northamptonshire. Until 2021 it was seat of Borough Council of Wellingborough The borough council covered 20 settlements including the town together with

Bozeat Bozeat is a village and civil parish in the postal district of Wellingborough, North Northamptonshire, England, about south of Wellingborough on the A509 road, near Wollaston. At the time of the 2011 census, Bozeat's population (including E ...

Earls Barton Earls Barton is a village and civil parish in Northamptonshire, notable for its Anglo-Saxon church and shoe-making heritage. The village is in North Northamptonshire and was previously in the Borough of Wellingborough until 2021. At the time of t ...

Easton Maudit Easton Maudit is a small village and civil parish in rural Northamptonshire. It takes its name from the Maudit (or Mauduit) family who purchased the estate at what was then just Easton, in 1131. There was no residential landowner in the village u ...

, Ecton, Finedon,

Great Harrowden Great Harrowden is a village and civil parish in North Northamptonshire, with a population (including Hardwick) at the 2011 census of 161. The village sits astride the busy A509 running between Kettering and Wellingborough - although a bypass ...

, Grendon, Hardwick, Irchester,

Isham Isham is a village and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England. It is on the A509 road, three miles south of Kettering and a mile to the west of Burton Latimer. The River Ise is to the east of the village. Administratively, it forms part of N ...

Little Harrowden Little Harrowden is a village and civil parish in North Northamptonshire, England. The village is nearly north-west of Wellingborough, off the A509 road. At the 2011 Census, the population of the parish was 892. The village is in one of the ...

, Mears Ashby,

Orlingbury Orlingbury is a village and civil parish in the English county of Northamptonshire. It is between the towns of Kettering and Wellingborough. Administratively it forms part of North Northamptonshire but was in the borough of Wellingborough until ...

Strixton Strixton is a small village in eastern Northamptonshire that borders the main A509 road between Wellingborough and Milton Keynes. The population of the village remained less than 100 at the 2011 Census and is included in the civil Parish of Wo ...

Sywell Sywell is a village and civil parish in North, Northamptonshire, England. At the time of the 2011 census, the population was 792. The name Sywell is thought to mean seven wells. Facilities The facilities found in the village include: *The c ...

, Wilby, and Wollaston. In April 2021 the Borough of Wellingborough was abolished and replaced by a new unitary authority called North Northamptonshire, which covers the areas of the districts of Wellingborough, Corby, East Northamptonshire and

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 ...

. 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 ...

. Concurrent with these changes, the unparished area of Wellingborough was established as a

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority ...

and gained a new

Town Council A town council, city council or municipal council is a form of local government for small municipalities. Usage of the term varies under different jurisdictions. Republic of Ireland Town Councils in the Republic of Ireland were the second ti ...

, eliminating the need for

charter trustees In England and Wales, charter trustees are set up to maintain the continuity of a town charter or city charter after a district with the status of a borough or city has been abolished, until such time as a parish council is established. Duties are ...

. Wellingborough is part of the Wellingborough Constituency which includes the town, surrounding villages and other urban areas. The current MP is Peter Bone. Most wards in the (former) Borough Council of Wellingborough are covered by the constituency and also include the wards in the (former) East Northamptonshire district, the wards are:

Brickhill Brickhill is a civil parish and electoral ward within northern Bedford in Bedfordshire, England. The boundaries of Brickhill are approximately Kimbolton Road to the east, Bedford Park and the old Bedford cemetery to the south, with Cemetery Hi ...

, Croyland, Finedon,

and Wilby, Harrowden &

(excluding Ecton, Mears Ashby, and

which all appear in the Daventry constituency due to overlapping parliamentary and local government boundary reviews), Hatton,

Higham Ferrers Higham Ferrers is a market town and civil parish in the Nene Valley in North Northamptonshire, England, close to the Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire borders. It forms a single built-up area with Rushden to the south and has an estimated populati ...

Lancaster, Higham Ferrers Chichele, Irchester, Isebrook, Queensway, Redwell, Rixon,

Rushden Rushden is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in North Northamptonshire, England, around east of Northampton. The parish is on the border with Bedfordshire, north of Bedford. The parish of Rushden covers an area of some ...

Hayden, Rushden Spencer, Rushden Bates, Rushden Sartoris, Rushden Pemberton, Swanspool, Victoria, and Wollaston.Wellingborough Conservatives
. Retrieved 28 January 2010 Wellingborough is currently represented in the House of Commons by the Conservative MP Peter Bone. In the 1918 general election it became the first constituency in

southern England Southern England, or the South of England, also known as the South, is an area of England consisting of its southernmost part, with cultural, economic and political differences from the Midlands and the North. Officially, the area includes G ...

outside

to be represented by the Labour Party. Prior to

Brexit Brexit (; a portmanteau of "British exit") was the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU) at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February 2020 CET).The UK also left the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC or ...

in 2020, Wellingborough was represented by the East Midlands constituency in the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...

Geography

Geology

The town is sited on the hills adjoining the flood plain of the River Nene.Northamptonshire flood plains
. Retrieved 28 January 2010 In the predominantly agrarian

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

, this combination of access to fertile, if flood-prone, valley bottom soils and drier (but heavier and more clay-rich) hillside/ hilltop soils seems to have been good for a mixed agricultural base. The clay-rich hilltop soils are primarily a consequence of blanketing of the area with boulder clay or glacial till during the recent glaciations. On the valley sides and valley floor however, these deposits have been largely washed away in the late glacial period, and in the valley bottom extensive deposits of gravels were laid down, which have largely been exploited for building aggregate in the last century.

Iron ore

The most economically important aspect of the geology of the area is the

Northampton Sand The Northampton Sand Formation, sometimes called the Northamptonshire Sand, is a Middle Jurassic geological formation which is placed within the Inferior Oolite Group. It was formerly worked extensively in Northamptonshire for its ironstone. Th ...

s ironstone formation. This is a marine sand of

Jurassic The Jurassic ( ) is a Geological period, geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system that spanned from the end of the Triassic Period million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period, approximately Mya. The J ...

age ( Bajocian stage), deposited as part of an estuary sequence and overlain by a sequence of limestones and mudrocks. Significant amounts of the sand have been replaced or displaced by iron minerals, giving an average ore grade of around 25 wt% iron. To the west the iron ores have been moderately exploited for a very long time, but their high phosphorus content made them difficult to smelt and produced iron of poor quality until the development of the Bessemer steel-making process and the "

basic slag Slag is a by-product of smelting (pyrometallurgical) ores and used metals. Broadly, it can be classified as ferrous (by-products of processing iron and steel), ferroalloy (by-product of ferroalloy production) or non-ferrous/base metals (by-produ ...

" smelting chemistry, which combine to make high-quality steelmaking possible from these unprepossessing ores. The Northampton Sands were a strategic resource for the United Kingdom in the run-up to

, being the best-developed bulk iron-producing processes wholly free from dependence on imported materials. However, because the Northampton Sands share in the regional dip of all the sediments of this part of Britain to the east-south-east, they become increasingly difficult to work as one progresses east across the county. Iron ore quarrying was a major industry in and around Wellingborough from the 1860s until the 1960s. James Rixon and Wiliam Ashwell opened a major ironworks on the north side of the town in 1870, supplied by the extensive ironstone quarries around Finedon to the east of the town. Three narrow gauge tramways served the iron ore industry, the

Wellingborough Tramway The Wellingborough Tramway was an industrial narrow-gauge railway that connected a series of ironstone mines and quarries with the Midland Railway and later with the ironworks on the north side of Wellingborough. In various forms, the tramway ...

Neilson's Tramway Neilson's Tramway was a British industrial narrow-gauge railway which operated from 1881 to 1929. History Walter Neilson was a farmer who owned land on the south west edge of Finedon, Northants, England. The land around Finedon has many rich, ...

and the

Finedonhill Tramway The Finedonhill Tramway was a British industrial narrow-gauge railway which operated under various ownership between 1875 and 1926. History In 1869, the Stanton Ironworks took a lease on ironstone-rich land to the east of Wellingborough, ne ...

. The Wellingborough Tramway served Rixon's ironworks until 1966.

Climate

Wellingborough experiences an

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ( ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

) which is similar to most of the

British Isles The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isles, ...

Compass

Wellingborough's nearest towns are

and Irthlingborough.

Demography

Wellingborough's population expanded rapidly from the 1960s and 1970s as agreements were signed between the

Urban District Council In England and Wales, Northern Ireland, and the Republic of Ireland, an urban district was a type of local government district that covered an urbanised area. Urban districts had an elected urban district council (UDC), which shared local gove ...

and

London County Council London County Council (LCC) was the principal local government body for the County of London throughout its existence from 1889 to 1965, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today kno ...

and the

Greater London Council The Greater London Council (GLC) was the top-tier local government administrative body for Greater London from 1965 to 1986. It replaced the earlier London County Council (LCC) which had covered a much smaller area. The GLC was dissolved in 198 ...

for the town to re-house over-spill population from London. Following the post World War II arrival of immigrants from the

Commonwealth of Nations The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the Co ...

into Britain, a sizeable

Black Caribbean Afro-Caribbean people or African Caribbean are Caribbean people who trace their full or partial ancestry to Sub-Saharan Africa. The majority of the modern African-Caribbeans descend from Africans taken as slaves to colonial Caribbean via the t ...

and

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

/ Pakistani community grew up in the market town, and now represents 11% of the town.The Borough Council of Wellingborough: Population
. Retrieved 23 August 2009

Housing

Housing estates

Wellingborough is home to three medium-sized public

housing estate A housing estate (or sometimes housing complex or housing development) is a group of homes and other buildings built together as a single development. The exact form may vary from country to country. Popular throughout the United States a ...

, Queensway and Kingsway. Hemmingwell and Kingsway as well as a large portion of Queensway were built to re-house over-spill population from London. There are also smaller estates such as Spring Gardens and Knights Court. These estates account for a large part of the Wellingborough residence.

Economy

Wellingborough has approximately 2,500 registered businesses within its boundaries. Much of the town centre was redeveloped during the 1970s, when it grew rapidly from London overspill. The Borough Council has adopted a 'Town Centre Action Plan'. The former traditional economic structure based on footwear and engineering is gradually diversifying with wholesale, logistics, and service sectors providing new opportunities for employment. As a market town, Wellingborough has major high street chains mainly located in the town centre. The only shopping centre,

Swansgate The Swansgate Shopping Centre is a shopping centre in the town centre of Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, England. It is the second largest shopping centre in Northamptonshire after the Grosvenor Centre in Northampton. It was built in the early 19 ...

, previously known as the Arndale Centre, was built in the 1970s. Since 2009 the Borough Council has been looking at rebuilding the centreThe Borough Council of Wellingborough: Rebuilding Swansgate
. Retrieved 20 April 2010 and major stores want bigger floor-spaces. Supplementing the town centre shops are several out-of-town retail parks and supermarkets including a

Sainsbury's J Sainsbury plc, trading as Sainsbury's, is the second largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom, with a 14.6% share of UK supermarket sales. Founded in 1869 by John James Sainsbury with a shop in Drury Lane, London, the company wa ...

, four

Tesco Tesco plc () is a British multinational groceries and general merchandise retailer headquartered in Welwyn Garden City, England. In 2011 it was the third-largest retailer in the world measured by gross revenues and the ninth-largest in th ...

stores, an

Aldi Aldi (stylised as ALDI) is the common company brand name of two German multinational family-owned discount supermarket chains operating over 10,000 stores in 20 countries. The chain was founded by brothers Karl and Theo Albrecht in 1946, when t ...

store and a

Morrisons Wm Morrison Supermarkets, trading as Morrisons, is the fifth largest supermarket chain in the United Kingdom. As of 2021, the company had 497 supermarkets across England, Wales and Scotland, as well as one in Gibraltar. The company is headqua ...

store in the town centre. The town has a market three times a week and a weekly privately organised market. Other businesses operating within the town include motorsport, high performance engineering, distribution, engineering, environmental technology and renewable energy, digital and creative media, financial and business services, and global brands, once such brand being

Cummins UK Cummins UK is a diesel engine manufacturer and the Cummins US distributor for the UK and Ireland. Cummins Inc. is a corporation of complementary business units that design, manufacture, distribute and service engines and related technologies, inclu ...

at Park Farm, major

park home A mobile home (also known as a house trailer, park home, trailer, or trailer home) is a prefabricated structure, built in a factory on a permanently attached chassis before being transported to site (either by being towed or on a trailer). Us ...

manufacturer Tingdene Homes Ltd at Finedon Road Industrial Estate and Lok'nStore Plc. There are several industrial estates in the town, these include Park Farm, Denington, Leyland and Finedon Road. ;Future developments As part of its Milton Keynes South Midlands (MKSM) study, the government has identified Wellingborough as one of several towns in Northamptonshire into which growth will be directed over the next thirty years. It allocates 12,800 additional homes to Wellingborough, and will also create additional facilities, further improve the town centre, improve infrastructure and increase employment opportunities. A jobs growth target of 12,400 jobs has been set to accompany the large scale housing growth.North Northants Development Company
. Retrieved 28 January 2010 A plan for 3,000 homes north of the town has been accepted by the British Government after an appeal b
Bee Bee Developments
The plan was first refused b
Wellingborough Borough Council
As a result, plans have been made for a major urban extension in the town, mainly to the east of the railway station. When finished, the town would be around 30% larger and 3,200 new homes would be built on 'Stanton Cross' site, with new schools, bus stops, community centres, shops, a doctor's surgery and new open spaces. The

railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

would be developed into an 'interchange' with local buses and trains. The upgrade would provide a new platform, footbridge and new station buildings.The Borough Council of Wellingborough: Growth Area Development May 2009
. Retrieved 20 April 2010 Outside the station a new road bridge from Midland Road over the railway line is also planned with a new footbridge to reach the new development. Other plans to include the development of the High Street, Shelley Road and the north of the town areas are also being considered. In November 2021 development on two fields between Park Farm and the Queensway estate was underway with a mix of one to four-bedroom properties and much needed social housing for the town. The development will comprise 600 properties, including 180 affordable homes, education, health and sports facilities and dedicated open space. Developer contributions to the town also include money towards the expansion of All Saints Primary School and a new secondary school at Stanton Cross. ECL was appointed as Principal Contractors for th
Park Farm’s infrastructure and groundworks

Transport

The A45 dual carriageway skirting to the south, links the town with the A14, and M1 which also allows links to the east and west of the country. The A45 links Wellingborough with

, Raunds,

Thrapston Thrapston is a market town in North Northamptonshire, England. It was the headquarters of the former East Northamptonshire district, and at the time of the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011 census, had a population of 6,239. The town's name mea ...

, Oundle and

The town is served by a bus network provided by

Stagecoach in Northants A stagecoach is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by four horses although some versions are draw ...

Centrebus Centrebus is a bus company based in Leicester operating services in Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire and Rutland. Centrebus have a 51% shareholding in High Peak Buses and since December 2019 through c ...

with local Wellingborough buses the W1, W2 and W8 links the town centre (Church Street) with local suburbs and villages. orthamptonshire County Council: Buses in Wellingborough & East Northants Map Retrieved 26 July 2013 Departing every 30 minutes the X4 service also links the town with

Milton Keynes Milton Keynes ( ) is a city and the largest settlement in Buckinghamshire, England, about north-west of London. At the 2021 Census, the population of its urban area was over . The River Great Ouse forms its northern boundary; a tributary ...

, Northampton, Kettering, Corby, Oundle and Peterborough. Other routes include 44/45, X46 and X47.

East Midlands Railway Abellio East Midlands Limited, trading as East Midlands Railway (EMR), is a train operating company in England, owned by Abellio, and is the current operator of the East Midlands franchise. History In March 2017, the Department for Transport a ...

operate direct trains to

London St Pancras International St Pancras railway station (), also known as London St Pancras or St Pancras International and officially since 2007 as London St Pancras International, is a central London railway terminus on Euston Road in the London Borough of Camden. It is ...

from Wellingborough railway station, departing every 30 minutes, with an average journey time of around 55 minutes.Trains: Midland Main Line Timetable
Retrieved 26 July 2013 The railway line also connects Wellingborough with

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst ...

Luton Luton () is a town and unitary authority with borough status, in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 census, the Luton built-up area subdivision had a population of 211,228 and its built-up area, including the adjacent towns of Dunstable an ...

, Corby,

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city l ...

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east ...

Derby Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby gai ...

Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...

and

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

. Just north of the railway station is a

GB Railfreight GB Railfreight (GBRf) is a rail freight company in the United Kingdom. As of 2022, it is owned by the global investment company Infracapital. GB Railfreight was established in April 1999 as the rail freight operating subsidiary of the train o ...

location, usage is for

London Underground The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or by its nickname the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent ceremonial counties of England, counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and He ...

maintenance and other freight services. Several UK airports are within two hours' drive of the town, including London Luton,

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

and London Stansted. Luton can be reached directly by train while East Midlands and Stansted can be reached by one change at Leicester.

Sywell Aerodrome Sywell Aerodrome is the local aerodrome serving the towns of Northampton, Wellingborough, Kettering and Rushden, as well as wider Northamptonshire. The aerodrome is located northeast of Northampton and was originally opened in 1928 on the edg ...

, located 5 miles northwest of Wellingborough, caters for private flying,

flight training Flight training is a course of study used when learning to pilot an aircraft. The overall purpose of primary and intermediate flight training is the acquisition and honing of basic airmanship skills. Flight training can be conducted under a str ...

and corporate flights.

Education

Fourteen government controlled primary schools feed the secondary schools that include:

Wellingborough School Wellingborough School is a co-educational day independent school in the market town of Wellingborough in Northamptonshire. It was established in 1595 and is one of the oldest schools in the country. The school today consists of a Prep school ...

, an independent, fee-paying school with a cadet force, and the state secondary schools of

Sir Christopher Hatton Academy Sir Christopher Hatton Academy (formerly Sir Christopher Hatton School) is an 11–18 mixed, secondary school and sixth form with academy status in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, England. It was established in 1983 and is part of the Hatto ...

Weavers Academy Weavers Academy (Weavers School) is a co-educational secondary school and sixth form with academy status, located in Wellingborough in the English county of Northamptonshire. Formerly a Technical Grammar School, it went on to become Weavers S ...

(formerly the Technical Grammar School & then Weavers School),

Wrenn School Wrenn School is a coeducational secondary comprehensive school and Sixth form with academy status, located in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, England. History The school's origins lie in Wellingborough County High School for girls (1907) an ...

(formerly the Wellingborough Grammar School) and also gives home to the local Sea Cadet Unit, and Friars School.Northampton County Council: Map of Schools
. Retrieved 28 January 2010 The

Tresham College of Further and Higher Education Tresham College of Further and Higher Education (formerly Tresham Institute of Further and Higher Education) is a further education college in the East Midlands of England. Specifically located within Northamptonshire, the main campus is locate ...

has a campus in Wellingborough, as well as locations in

and Corby. It provides

further education Further education (often abbreviated FE) in the United Kingdom and Ireland is education in addition to that received at secondary school, that is distinct from the higher education (HE) offered in universities and other academic institutions. I ...

and offers vocational courses. In collaboration with several universities the college also offers Higher Education options. The

University of Northampton , mottoeng = Let us not be ignorant , established = 2005 (gained University status) 1975 (Nene College established) , type = Public , endowment = £0.95 m (2015) , chancellor = Richard Coles , vice_chancellor = ...

, with around 10,000 students on two campuses, offers courses from foundation and undergraduate levels to postgraduate, professional and doctoral qualifications. Subjects include traditional arts, humanities and sciences subjects, as well as entrepreneurship, product design and advertising.

Culture

'' The Castle Theatre'' was opened in 1995 on the site of Wellingborough's old Cattle Market. It brings not only a theatre to the area but other facilities for local people. Most rooms are used on a daily basis by the local community, users include the Castle Youth Theatre and Youth Dance. Wellingborough has a public library in the corner of the market square. The Wellingborough Museum, an independent museum run by the Winifred Wharton Trust, located next door to ''The Castle Theatre'', has exhibitions which show the past of Wellingborough and the surrounding villages. The museum is housed in a Victorian swimming pool ("Dulley's Baths") built in 1892, from 1918 to 1995 it was Cox's shoe factory. Accompanying the exhibitions and articles is a souvenir shop and café.

Sport

Wellingborough is home to two football clubs: Wellingborough Town and Wellingborough Whitworth. From 14 April 1928 a short lived, small independent (not affiliated to the sports governing body)

greyhound racing Greyhound racing is an organized, competitive sport in which greyhounds are raced around a track. There are two forms of greyhound racing, track racing (normally around an oval track) and coursing; the latter is now banned in most countries. Tra ...

track was opened around the football pitch at the Dog and Duck Ground. In 2009 the town's rugby club was the first club to be awarded the RFU Whole Club Seal of Approval in the

. Harrowden Hall, a 17th-century building in

village just on the outskirts of the town, is the clubhouse of a privately owned golf course. The four leisure centres and health clubs in Wellingborough include

Bannatyne's Bannatyne's (full name Bannatyne Fitness Ltd) is a United Kingdom-based chain of health clubs founded by Scottish businessman Duncan Bannatyne. History The Bannatyne Health Clubs chain began in 1997 with the first club built in Ingleby Barwick, No ...

, Redwell, Waendel and Weavers (which is part of Weavers school). Wellingborough was also served for many years by Club Diana. Club Diana was closed by administrators on 1 June 2011. However it has now been reopened and is available once again. It has a swimming pool, 5 squash courts and a bar and restaurant. The Waendel Leisure Centre is the main council-owned leisure centre in Wellingborough. The facility includes a six-lane 25-metre competition pool, varying in depth from 1 to 2 metres, and used for many purposes including the main training pool for Wellingborough Amateur Swimming Club. The pool is regularly used for small competitions, as other than Corby Pool it is the only other aptly equipped facility – boasting new starting blocks, as well as an integrated timing system and time board. The pool also has a small, shallow, 'teaching' pool, more suitable for non-swimmers. Waendel also operates a newly refurbished gym on the upper level. Waendel and Redwell Leisure Centres are both owned by

Wellingborough Borough Council 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 ...

, however are operated on their behalf by

Places for People Places for People (PfP) is a property management, development, regeneration company and leisure company based in the UK. History Places for People was founded by North British Housing Association in 1965. Bristol Churches Housing Association j ...

. Waendel pool is currently in need of urgent repairs due to tiles coming away from the pool floor. Wellingborough Phoenix is one of the United Kingdom's largest basketball clubs; the men's first team currently play in EBL Division 3 and the women play in EBL Division 2. Youth teams also play in the EBL; ages ranging from u13 to u16. On the second weekend in May, the annual non-competitive ''Waendel Walk'' is held in Wellingborough, with a variety of routes through the local countryside. The walk is affiliated to the

International Marching League The IML Walking Association, until 2006 the International Marching League (IML), is a non-profit organization which promotes recreational walking in the form of international non-competitive multi-day walking events ("marches") in its member count ...

Services

Several NHS centres provide health care facilities, with Isebrook Hospital being equipped for procedures such as large X-Rays and neurological investigations, and long-term care, that are not catered for by primary care surgeries. Accident & Emergency (A&E), maternity, and surgical issues are mainly covered by

Kettering General Hospital Kettering General Hospital is an NHS hospital in Kettering, Northamptonshire, England. It is managed by the Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. History The hospital, which replaced a small local dispensary, was opened after a fund- ...

. The

Air Ambulance Air medical services is a comprehensive term covering the use of air transportation, aeroplane or helicopter, to move patients to and from healthcare facilities and accident scenes. Personnel provide comprehensive prehospital and emergency and cri ...

is provided by Warkshire and Northamptonshire Air Ambulance service. A petition signed by thousands of local residents in the towns of Wellingborough and Rushden for a new A&E to be built in Wellingborough has been handed to

10 Downing Street 10 Downing Street in London, also known colloquially in the United Kingdom as Number 10, is the official residence and executive office of the first lord of the treasury, usually, by convention, the prime minister of the United Kingdom. Along wi ...

(when Prime Minister

Gordon Brown James Gordon Brown (born 20 February 1951) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 to 2010. He previously served as Chance ...

was in power), by local MP Peter Bone on 10 February 2010. Other emergency services are provided by the

Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service The Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service (NFRS) is a fire and rescue service covering the county of Northamptonshire, United Kingdom. NFRS covers an area of area with a population of around 750,000. History Northamptonshire Fire and Resc ...

and the

Northamptonshire Police Northamptonshire Police (colloquially known as Northants Police) is the territorial police force responsible for policing the county of Northamptonshire in the East Midlands of England, in the United Kingdom. The Northampton Police area includ ...

. Wellingborough Prison was located just outside the town, but closed in 2012.

HMP Five Wells HMP Five Wells, also referred to as Wellingborough Prison or HMP Wellingborough, due to it being built on same site as the latter, is a Category C men's prison, located in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, England. With a maximum capacity of 1 ...

is being built in its place.

Landmarks

The railway station is a Grade II Listed building, and among the many unusual and other listed buildings in Wellingborough is the 600-year-old Grade I listed steeple that forms part of All Hallows Church. ''The Three Silver Ladies'' is one of two identical sculptures installed on the Harrowden Road, They depict local Roman history, the river, and the townspeople working together. To the west of the town centre is the

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Church which according to Historic England has "highly original details," and a "lavishly finished interior." Historic England
Wellingborough - Our Lady and the Sacred Heart
''Taking Stock'', retrieved 14 May 2022

Notable people

* Sir

David Frost Sir David Paradine Frost (7 April 1939 – 31 August 2013) was a British television host, journalist, comedian and writer. He rose to prominence during the satire boom in the United Kingdom when he was chosen to host the satirical programme ' ...

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

, BroadcasterTall, David & Graham (2006) ''Memories of Wellingborough Grammar School'
Foreword by Sir David Frost
. *

Marc Iliffe Marc Iliffe (27 June 1972 – 11 February 2003) was a British strongman famous for being the winner of Britain's Strongest Man contest in 2002. Career Iliffe was acknowledged as being extremely dedicated to the sport of strength athletics. His ...

, Strongman *

Thom Yorke Thomas Edward Yorke (born 7 October 1968) is an English musician and the main vocalist and songwriter of the rock band Radiohead. A multi-instrumentalist, he mainly plays guitar and keyboards and is noted for his falsetto. He has been describe ...

, Lead singer and songwriter of the rock band

Radiohead Radiohead are an English rock band formed in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards); brothers Jonny Greenwood (lead guitar, keyboards, other instruments) and Colin Greenwood (bass) ...

. *

Anita Neil Doris "Anita" Neil (born 5 April 1950) is a retired British international sprinter. In 1968, she became the first black British woman Olympian. From an impoverished family Neil was forced to rely on charity to travel to meets and obtain equip ...

, First Black British female Olympian. * Peter Ebdon, Snooker Player. * Peter Murphy, Lead vocalist of

Goth rock Gothic rock (also called goth rock or simply goth) is a style of rock music that emerged from post-punk in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s. The first post-punk bands which shifted toward dark music with gothic overtones include Siouxsie an ...

band

Bauhaus The Staatliches Bauhaus (), commonly known as the Bauhaus (), was a German art school operational from 1919 to 1933 that combined crafts and the fine arts.Oxford Dictionary of Art and Artists (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 4th edn., 200 ...

. * Kenneth Mees, Scientist and photographic researcher. *

Frederic Henry Gravely Frederic Henry Gravely (7 December 1885 – 1965) was an eminent British arachnologist, entomologist, botanist, zoologist and student of archaeology, who conducted pioneering research and wrote extensively on various subjects during his tenure a ...

, Arachnologist. *

Paul Pindar Sir Paul Pindar (1565–1650) was a merchant and, from 1611 to 1620, was Ambassador of King James I of England to the Ottoman Empire. Born in Wellingborough and educated at Wellingborough School Pindar entered trade as the apprentice to an Itali ...

, Ambassador of King James I. * Rory McLeod, Snooker Player. *

Jamie O'Neill Jamie O'Neill (born 1 January 1962) is an Irish author. His critically acclaimed novel, ''At Swim, Two Boys'' (2001), earned him the highest advance ever paid for an Irish novel and frequent praise as the natural successor to James Joyce, Flann ...

, Snooker Player. *

Trevor Benjamin Trevor Junior Benjamin (born 8 February 1979) is a former professional footballer and manager who played as a forward. He is famed for being a prime example of a journeyman footballer, having represented 29 teams in his career, and making over ...

, Football Player. * Bill Perkins, Football Player. *

Fanny Walden Frederick Ingram Walden (1 March 1888 – 3 May 1949) was an English professional footballer who played outside right for Northampton Town, Tottenham Hotspur and at international level for England during the 1910s and 1920s. He also played crick ...

, Football Player. * Brian Hill, Football Referee. *

DanTDM Daniel Robert Middleton (born 8 November 1991), better known online as DanTDM (formerly TheDiamondMinecart), is a British YouTuber and gamer known for his video game commentaries. His online video channels have covered many video games includi ...

, YouTuber and professional gamer. *

Jeff Butterfield Jeffrey Butterfield (9 August 1929, Heckmondwike, Yorkshire – 30 April 2004, Wicken, Northamptonshire) was an England, British and Irish Lions, Yorkshire, Cleckheaton RUFC, Northampton and Barbarians Rugby player and businessman. Education ...

, Rugby Player. *

Lesley Glaister Lesley Glaister (born 4 October 1956,) is a British novelist, poet and playwright. She has written 15 novels, ''Blasted Things'' (2020) being the most recent, one play and numerous short stories and radio plays. She is a lecturer in creative writ ...

, Author. *

Edward Mannock Edward Corringham "Mick" Mannock (24 May 1887 – 26 July 1918) was a British flying ace in the Royal Flying Corps and Royal Air Force during the First World War. Mannock was a pioneer of fighter aircraft tactics in aerial warfare. At the time ...

, RAF Flying Ace. * Arthur Allen, Politician. *

Bruce Quarrie Bruce Quarrie (1947 in London – 4 September 2004) was an English writer and author on wargaming and militaria topics. Career Quarrie studied English at Peterhouse, Cambridge University and graduated in 1968. He became a journalist with the ''Fi ...

, Author and Historian. * Alfred Dobbs, Politician. *

Brian Binley Brian Arthur Roland Binley (1 April 1942 – 25 December 2020) was a British Conservative Party politician. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Northampton South from 2005 to 2015. Early life Educated at Finedon Mulso Secondary Modern Sc ...

, Politician. * Jim Murray Journalist. *

Stephen Elboz Stephen Elboz (born 1956) is the writer of the children's books ''The Byzantium Bazaar'' and ''A Land without Magic.'' Background Born in 1956 in Wellingborough, Northants, England, where he still lives, Elboz wrote his first novel in secret ...

, Author. * Cliff Lazarenko, Darts Player

Twin towns

Wellingborough is twinned with: *

Niort Niort (; Poitevin: ''Niàu''; oc, Niòrt; la, Novioritum) is a commune in the Deux-Sèvres department, western France. It is the prefecture of Deux-Sèvres. The population of Niort is 58,707 (2017) and more than 177,000 people live in the u ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

(1977)Town twinning.
. Retrieved 17 June 2010 *

Wittlich The town of Wittlich (; Moselle Franconian: ''Wittlech'') is the seat of the Bernkastel-Wittlich district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Its historic town centre and the beauty of the surrounding countryside make the town a centre for tourism in ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. and also has relations with

Willingboro Willingboro Township is a Township (New Jersey), township in Burlington County, New Jersey, Burlington County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The township is a suburb of Philadelphia and part of the state's South Jersey region. As of the 202 ...

, township in

Burlington County Burlington County is a county in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The county is the largest by area in New Jersey. Its county seat is Mount Holly.

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, United States, while Irchester and Grendon, two of the villages within the Borough of Wellingborough, have twin town partners at Coulon near Niort, and Bois-Bernard near Arras.

References

External links

Borough Council of Wellingborough

Northamptonshire county council

Northants Evening Telegraph

BBC Northamptonshire

Explore Northamptonshire
The Official Northamptonshire tourism website.

{{authority control Wellingborough, Towns in Northamptonshire Market towns in Northamptonshire Populated places established in the 6th century Civil parishes in Northamptonshire North Northamptonshire

History

Governance

Geography

Geology

Iron ore

Climate

Compass

Demography

Housing

Housing estates

Economy

Transport

Education

Culture

Sport

Services

Landmarks

Notable people

Twin towns

See also

References

External links