Wellington, Telford and Wrekin, England, United Kingdom

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Wellington is a market town in Telford and Wrekin, Shropshire, England. It is situated 4 miles (6 km) north-west of central Telford and 12 miles (19 km) east of Shrewsbury. The summit of The Wrekin lies 3 miles south-west of the town.

It is by far the largest of the borough towns and the third largest town in Shropshire if counting it as its own town separate from Telford itself.

The creation of Telford Dawley New Town was designated by the government in 1963, and was expanded to encompass Wellington in 1968 under the new name of Telford, named for the great engineer and first county surveyor of Shropshire, Thomas Telford. The creation of Telford has divided opinion in Wellington ever since, with some celebrating the jobs and investment it brought to the area and others bemoaning the negative impact on Wellington's own economy – as well as its status and sense of identity. The development of Telford Town Centre and local retail parks since the 1970s had an adverse effect on Wellington's retail centre. The local football team's name was changed from Wellington Town to Telford United in 1969.

For many years, local politics left Wellington in conflict with Wrekin District (now Telford and Wrekin Council), with claims and counterclaims of neglect. In the 21st century, however, the borough council has invested heavily in the town. Chief amongst these investments has been the redeveloped Wellington Civic and Leisure Centre near the centre of the town, which has brought together the library, town council, swimming pool and gym, along with a modern register office. 200 borough council officers are also located at the new complex.

Shopping and local businesses The area's largest employers are located in nearby areas of Telford, with Wellington itself housing hundreds of small businesses in its shops, offices and small manufacturing units. A range of nationwide chains have branches in Wellington.

Transport Wellington has road links, centrally located railway and bus stations, and a position on routes 45 and 81 of the National Cycle Network.

Wellington railway station was built in 1849 and has three platforms, served by Avanti West Coast (which replaced Virgin Trains West Coast), Transport for Wales, and West Midlands Trains providing northbound trains towards Shrewsbury and Wales, and southbound trains to the West Midlands and London Euston. One of the platforms is a bay platform, which sees little use at present. Additionally, from 2008 to 2011 the town had a through train service to London Marylebone operated by Wrexham & Shropshire, the first for almost 40 years.

In 1867, a branch line was opened to connect the town with Market Drayton. The Wellington and Market Drayton Railway operated for just under one hundred years before closure under the Beeching Axe in 1963. The line remained open for goods only services until 1967, when this service was also withdrawn. The track was lifted in 1970.

There were also railway links to Much Wenlock (closed 1962) and Stafford, which closed in the late 1960s.

A goods only link to a rail head at Donnington, on part of the former Wellington to Stafford line, has been re-opened. There has been some campaigning to re-open the whole of the line from Shrewsbury to Stafford through Wellington, Leegomery, Hadley, Trench, Donnington, and Newport.

Wellington is located at the western terminus of the M54 motorway Junction 7 and has good bus services making it one of the most accessible towns in Shropshire.