Wellingborough and Rushden is a constituency in Northamptonshire represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. The seat is currently held by Labour MP Gen Kitchen, after the recall of MP Peter Bone in December 2023 which resulted in a by-election in February 2024.
Although the constituency had always, since its creation in 1918, contained the town of Rushden, it was formally known as Wellingborough up until the 2024 general election. Further to the 2023 review of Westminster constituencies, the Boundary Commission for England recommended that it be officially renamed Wellingborough and Rushden.
History This seat was created under the Representation of the People Act 1918.
Political history Wellingborough's earliest years were left-leaning. Between 1964 and 2005, the seat kept on producing examples of bellwether results and rarely showed itself to be safe for more than one government term. Departing from this are two years where the result has defied the most common result nationwide, by leaning towards the Conservative Party, in 1974 (twice). Since 2010 it became a safe seat for the Conservatives until the 2024 by-election.
In the 2016 EU referendum, Wellingborough voted 62.4% leave (25,679 votes) to 37.6% remain (15,462 votes)
Prominent frontbenchers Sir Geoffrey Shakespeare was a Lloyd-Georgist National Liberal who served in junior ministerial roles through much of the Second World War, including briefly as the Secretary for Overseas Trade in 1940.
Boundaries
Historic (Wellingborough)
1918–1950: The Borough of Higham Ferrers, the Urban Districts of Finedon, Irthlingborough, Raunds, Rushden, and Wellingborough, the Rural District of Wellingborough, and in the Rural District of Thrapston the parishes of Chelveston cum Caldecott, Hargrave, and Stanwick.
1950–1974: The Borough of Higham Ferrers, the Urban Districts of Irthlingborough, Raunds, Rushden, and Wellingborough, the Rural District of Wellingborough, and in the Rural District of Oundle and Thrapston the civil parishes of Chelveston cum Caldecott and Hargrave.
1974–1983: The Borough of Higham Ferrers, the Urban Districts of Irthlingborough, Oundle, Raunds, Rushden, and Wellingborough, and the Rural Districts of Oundle and Thrapston, and Wellingborough.
1983–2010: The Borough of Wellingborough, and the District of East Northamptonshire wards of Higham Ferrers, Rushden East, Rushden North, Rushden South, and Rushden West.
2010–2021: The Borough of Wellingborough wards of Brickhill, Castle, Croyland, Finedon, Great Doddington and Wilby, Hemmingwell, Irchester, North, Queensway, Redwell East, Redwell West, South, Swanspool, and Wollaston, and the District of East Northamptonshire wards of Higham Ferrers, Rushden East, Rushden North, Rushden South, and Rushden West.
2021–2024: With effect from 1 April 2021, the Borough of Wellingborough and the District of East Northamptonshire were abolished and absorbed into the new unitary authority of North Northamptonshire. From that date, the constituency comprised the District of North Northamptonshire wards of Brickhill and Queensway, Croyland and Swanspool; Earls Barton (part), Finedon, Hatton Park, Higham Ferrers, Irchester, Irthlingborough, Rushden Pemberton West and Rushden South.
Current (Wellingborough and Rushden) Following the 2023 review of Westminster constituencies, which came into effect for the 2024 general election, the constituency was reduced in size in order to bring it within the electoral quota by transferring the parts of the Earls Barton ward to Daventry and parts of the Irchester ward to South Northamptonshire. To partly compensate, parts of the Irthlingborough ward (including the town of Irthlingborough) were transferred in from Corby.
Further to a local government boundary review which came into effect in May 2025, the constituency now comprises the following wards of North Northamptonshire:
Brickhill and Queensway; Croyland and Swanspool; Finedon; Hatton Park (most); Higham Ferrers; Irchester (part); Irthlingborough (most); Rushden Lakes; Rushden South; Victoria.
The constituency is named after the towns of Wellingborough and Rushden. It also includes the small town of Higham Ferrers, which was itself a borough constituency also named Higham Ferrers until its abolition as one of the rotten boroughs in 1832.
Constituency profile Strengths in local industries here or in neighbouring Northampton and Kettering include in printing, logistics and distribution, automotive (assembly and design), construction, food processing and advanced engineering sectors. Despite this, a decline in the traditional local industries such as quarrying, furniture making and textiles pushes workless claimants who were registered jobseekers in November 2012 higher than the national (and regional) average of 3.8%, at 4.5% of the population based on a statistical compilation by The Guardian.Unemployment claimants by constituency The Guardian
Members of Parliament
East Northamptonshire and North Northamptonshire prior to 1918
ElectionMemberParty 1918 Walter Smith Labour 1922 Geoffrey Shakespeare National Liberal 1923 William Cove Labour 1929 George Dallas Labour 1931 Archibald James Conservative 1945 George Lindgren Labour 1959 Michael Hamilton Conservative 1964 Harry Howarth Labour 1969 by-election Peter Fry Conservative 1997 Paul Stinchcombe Labour 2005Peter Bone Conservative 2023 Independent2024 by-electionGen KitchenLabourRenamed as Wellingborough and Rushden2024Gen KitchenLabour
Elections
Elections in the 2020s
Vote share changes for the 2024 election are compared to the notional results from the 2019 election, not the 2024 by-election.
Elections in the 2010s
1: After nominations were closed, Garvie was suspended from the Labour Party after he was convicted of fraud after buying £900 of train tickets with a closed bank account. He still appeared on ballot papers as Labour.
Elections in the 2000s
Elections in the 1990s
Elections in the 1980s
Elections in the 1970s
Elections in the 1960s
Elections in the 1950s
Elections in the 1940s
Elections in the 1930s
Elections in the 1920s
Elections in the 1910s
See also List of parliamentary constituencies in Northamptonshire
References
Sources A history of Britain's parliamentary constituencies / edited by Jacques A. Arnold. The constituencies of the county of Northamptonshire..
External links Wellingborough UK Parliament constituency (boundaries April 1997 – April 2010) at MapIt UK Wellingborough UK Parliament constituency (boundaries April 2010 – May 2024) at MapIt UK Wellingborough and Rushden UK Parliament constituency (boundaries from June 2024) at MapIt UK