Opened as a Borstal in 1963, Wellingborough continued to hold Young Offenders until 1990, when it was converted to a Category C Training Prison for male adults.

[1] In July 2004, a missionary from Wellingborough Prison was imprisoned for trying to smuggle heroin and cannabis into the jail.

He had attempted to smuggle the drugs into the prison by hiding them in an airmail letter and envelope.

[5] However, in December 2013 the Ministry of Justice instructed a commercial property consultant to make initial assessments of the site for redevelopment in to housing.

The name of the prison reflects the five wells in the area, which feature in Wellingborough's coat of arms.