the welland rises in the hothorpe hills in the parish of sibbertoft, northamptonshire and it issues at spring croft, church street. sibbertoft sits astride one of the principal watersheds in england. within , the small stream forms the border between northamptonshire and leicestershire. it flows westwards, before looping round, passing through the grounds of hothorpe hall in theddingworth, now a conference centre, to flow generally eastwards through lubenham to market harborough. one of the driveways to thorpe lubenham hall is carried over the river by an early nineteenth century ashlar bridge which is a grade ii listed structure. to the east of lubenham, the river passes old lubenham hall, part of an h-plan house built in the late sixteenth century and modified in the early eighteenth century. king charles i is believed to have stayed there before the battle of naseby. three arms of a square moat surround the house, and the site is a scheduled ancient monument.