Geological clues have been found that there were settlers from the Neolithic and Bronze ages living on the fields that border which once was a Royal Deer Park. From about 1800. sheep grazed the land after which it became two farms. Glebe Farm was brought by several well known local people to establish a nine hole golf-course in 1895, later the second farm was brought to extend the golf-course.

In 1987 the club wished to move and placed a planning application for 800 houses to be built much to the devastation of the local residents who fought against this with great venum which resulted in the fields becoming a wildlife park. In 1995, the town of Northampton officially named its park 'Bradlaugh Fields' - named after Charles Bradlaugh (1833-1891) a Victorian radical atheist who was MP in the town.

The site now owned by Northampton Borough Council, has been managed successfully since 1996 by a partnership between local residents, the Friends of Bradlaugh Fields and Bradlaugh Barn Association (BBA) along with the British Trust for Conservation Volunteers (BTCV) and the Northamptonshire Wildlife Trust.

The 60-hectare site comprises of parkland and two Local Nature Reserves; the Hills and Hollows, the Scrub Field and a central grassland area set within an active urban environment.

Although the Fields are surrounded by urban development they contain a variety of important habitats including rare limestone grassland and many ancient hedgerows. It is a place which contains a third of British butterfly species, an active badger set, foxes, and plants rare to Europe.

Today, Bradlaugh Fields is a local nature reserve for both people and wildlife. It is a place with wildlife and geological features that are of special interest locally, which allows people the opportunity to study and learn, or simply enjoy and have contact with nature. More can be found in a delightful booklet 'Secrets of Bradlaugh Fields' available from The Visitors Centre.