Bedford

11°CPatchy rain nearby

• Today: 11° / 7° · 54% rain
• Tomorrow: 11° / 6° · Patchy rain nearby

Source: WeatherAPI

Sunrise 07:00Sunset 16:29

9h 29m of daylight today

Next bank holiday: Christmas Day, Fri 25 Dec

Source: sunrise-sunset.org · gov.uk

34US AQI · Good

Main pollutant: fine particles (PM2.5)

Source: WAQI · Northampton Spring Park, United Kingdom

• 7.1 µg/m³ average fine-particle (PM2.5) concentration
• 5.3% of adult (30+) deaths estimated attributable to fine-particle pollution

Lower is better for both figures.

Source: OHID Fingertips · 2024

33 reported · August 2026▲ 65% YoY

• Anti-social behaviour17
• Violence & sexual offences6
• Other theft4
• Vehicle crime3

Neighbourhood team: Bromham, Oakley, Wootton · Bedfordshire

Source: data.police.uk (within ~1 mile)

293 reported road collisions (2025)

69 killed or seriously injured · 383 casualties · 15.8 collisions per 10,000 residents

Source: DfT reported road collisions (STATS19)

76 food businesses within 2 miles

• 66 rated 4–5 ★ (62 top)
• 0 rated 0–2 (poor)

Source: Food Standards Agency

• Nearest station: Bedford (3.9 km)
• 0 bus stops within ~½ mile

Source: OpenStreetMap, National Rail

£330,462 average▲ 1.1% YoY

Across Bedford · to 2026-08

Source: UK House Price Index (HM Land Registry)

£1,173 average monthly rent▲ 3% YoY

• 1 bed £800
• 2 bed £1,029
• 3 bed £1,260

Source: ONS Price Index of Private Rents · to 2026-08

9.1× house price to earnings

A typical home costs 9.1 times median annual pay (9.3× for cheaper homes vs lower pay).

Source: ONS house price to workplace earnings ratio · 2025

2,128 property sales in the last 12 months

12 months to May 2026

A busier or quieter market is not by itself good or bad. Monthly counts are small and volatile, so only the annual total is shown.

Source: HM Land Registry UK HPI, 12 months to 2026-05

• Cheapest petrol: 173.9p · Asda (5.1 km)
• Cheapest diesel: 199.9p · Asda (5.1 km)

1 station within ~8 miles

Source: CMA fuel price scheme

46 charging locations within ~8 km

• 14 with rapid charging (50 kW+)
• Fastest nearby: 300 kW
• Nearest: Outfields Farm (1.6 km)

Source: Open Charge Map

• Sports pitches6
• Golf courses1
• Playgrounds7

Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)

185,227 residents in Bedford · 389/km²

• Under 16: 20%
• 16–64: 63%
• 65+: 17%

Source: ONS Census 2021 (local authority)

• Moves in from elsewhere in the UK10,498
• Moves out to elsewhere in the UK10,187
• Net moves+311

Residential moves between local authorities (counts of moves, not people) · ONS Internal migration, YE Jun 2025

Around the average in England

Ranked 141 of 296 English local authorities (1 = most deprived)

4% of neighbourhoods are in England’s most deprived 10%

Source: English Indices of Deprivation 2025

£2,472 a year · Band D, 2026-27

Most homes here are Band C (25% of 80,810)

Source: VOA council-tax stock · MHCLG band levels 2026-27

84 schools · 35,150 pupils

53 primary · 12 secondary · 19 other

Ofsted: 35 of 38 graded schools rated Good or Outstanding (92%)

74 inspected under Ofsted’s 2024+ framework (graded by area, no single overall grade)

Source: DfE Get Information about Schools · Ofsted · Bedford

269 CQC-registered services

• Care homes73
• GP practices34
• Dentists50
• Homecare agencies81
• Hospitals & hospices8

CQC ratings: 82% of rated services Good or Outstanding · 7 Inadequate

Source: Care Quality Commission · Bedford

• Not in the Green Belt
• 8 listed buildings within ~1.5 km

Source: planning.data.gov.uk (England)

321 applications decided

79.4% granted · 255 granted, 66 refused

Source: MHCLG planning statistics (PS2) · 2026 Q2

Conservative majority · directly-elected mayor

• Lab 12
• Con 14
• LD 13
• Grn 4
• Oth 3

Source: Open Council Data UK (CC BY-SA)

• Schools4
• GPs & clinics1
• Parks & greens1
• Restaurants & cafés2

Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)

8,405 active business enterprises in the area

Source: ONS UK Business Counts (2026)

1,776 jobs advertised · £41,161 avg

e.g. 7.5t Delivery Driver, Senior Design Manager, Contract Fabricator

Source: Adzuna

£780 median full-time weekly pay

4.5% of residents aged 16–64 claim unemployment-related benefits

£24,626 disposable income per head (2024)

Source: ONS / Nomis (claimant count · ASHE) · ONS regional GDHI

54% of homes rated EPC C or above

Most common band: C · 90,060 certificates

9.5% of households were in fuel poverty (2023)

Source: MHCLG EPC statistics · DESNZ sub-regional fuel poverty

Life expectancy: 83.4 yrs women · 80.2 yrs men

Healthy life expectancy: 62.7 women · 62.5 men

73% of adults overweight or obese

Source: OHID Fingertips · 2025

• Life satisfaction7.5
• Feeling worthwhile7.7
• Happiness yesterday7.6
• Anxiety yesterday (lower is better)3.4

Average rating out of 10 · ONS personal well-being 2022-23

Open UK Parliament petitions most signed in North Bedfordshire:

• Remove sentence reductions for guilty pleas in controlling and coercive cases623 local signatures · 105,832 nationwide
• Change surrogacy law to recognise intended parents from birth275 local signatures · 113,305 nationwide
• Dedicated funding for Epidermolysis Bullosa and rare skin conditions research239 local signatures · 11,555 nationwide
• Protect legal right to support for children with SEND221 local signatures · 111,357 nationwide
• Hold a UK-wide briefing on climate and nature risks214 local signatures · 127,144 nationwide

Source: petition.parliament.uk · as of 2026-10-05

• 
  Bedford & County Golf Club · 0.6 km

  Bedford & County Golf Club is a golf club to the northeast of Clapham, Bedfordshire, England. It was established in 1912. As of 1995 the course measured 6,290 yards.

• St Thomas More Catholic School, Bedford · 1.3 km

  St Thomas More Catholic School is a mixed secondary school and sixth form located in Bedford in the English county of Bedfordshire.

• 
  RAF Twinwood Farm · 1.4 km

  Royal Air Force Twinwood Farm or more simply RAF Twinwood Farm is a former Royal Air Force satellite station located on the outskirts of Clapham, 4 miles (6.4 km) north of Bedford in Bedfordshire, England. For the maj…

• 
  Church of St Thomas of Canterbury, Clapham, Bedfordshire · 1.6 km

  Church of St Thomas of Canterbury is a parish church and Grade I listed building in Clapham, Bedfordshire, England. It became a listed building on 13 July 1964. Though the church can be traced back before AD 1000, the…

• Freeman's Common · 1.6 km

  Freeman's Common is a 12.5 hectare area of land situated to the north of Bedford, in the parish of Ravensden. It was created in 1858. Over many years it has been the focus of local dispute as to whether the site shoul…

• 
  Park Wood, Bedford · 1.6 km

  Park Wood is a 5.2 hectare Local Nature Reserve located in the Brickhill area of Bedford. It is owned by Bedford Borough Council and managed by the council with the assistance of the Friends of Park Wood.

Source: Wikipedia (text under CC BY-SA)