It was named after its main town, Kettering, where the council was based.

It bordered onto the district of Harborough in the neighbouring county of Leicestershire, the borough of Corby, the district of East Northamptonshire, the district of Daventry and the borough of Wellingborough.

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, sent commissioner 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, one covering the West, and one the North of the county.

It meant that the districts of Daventry, Northampton and South Northamptonshire were merged to form a new unitary authority called West Northamptonshire, whilst the second unitary authority North Northamptonshire consists of Corby, East Northamptonshire, Kettering and Wellingborough districts.

[3] Other than Kettering itself, the borough included: It composed of 36 local councillors and most recently controlled by the Conservatives, who controlled the Council since the 2003 local elections, where they gained control from Labour with a majority of 15.