Cardington
Cardington is a village in Bedfordshire, England, with a population of around 288. It has around 1 GP surgery, around 1 pharmacy, and around 3 restaurants and cafés, with 2 bus stops and the nearest railway station being Bedford St Johns, 3.8 km away. In June 2026, there were around 53 recorded street crimes, most commonly violence & sexual offences. This page gathers weather, crime, food hygiene, transport, flood risk, house prices, population, deprivation and your local MP for the Cardington area — all from official UK open data.
On deprivation, the Bedford area is around the average in England (IoD2019). The wider council area has around 185,227 residents at roughly 389 people per km².
- Council
- Bedford
- County
- Bedfordshire
- Constituency
- North East Bedfordshire
- Police force
- Bedfordshire
My Area Score
Mixed
Ranked 170th of 294 English council areas — better than 42% of them.
A percentile blend of eight open measures (100 = best in England); bars show this area’s England-wide percentile on each. See the rankings · methodology
Weather
17°COvercast
- Today: 19° / 11° · 8% rain
- Tomorrow: 20° / 11° · Overcast
Source: WeatherAPI
Daylight
Sunrise 06:24Sunset 19:33
13h 8m of daylight today
Next bank holiday: Christmas Day, Fri 25 Dec
Source: sunrise-sunset.org · gov.uk
Air quality
21US AQI · Good
Main pollutant: ozone
Source: WAQI · Northampton Spring Park, United Kingdom
Crime
38 reported · July 2026▼ 44% YoY
- Anti-social behaviour14
- Violence & sexual offences8
- Criminal damage & arson5
- Shoplifting5
Neighbourhood team: Wilstead, Shortstown, Willington · Bedfordshire
Local policing priorities
- Community Priority for New Cardington and Shortstown. During the priority setting meeting held on 31st January 2026 your local councillor…
Source: data.police.uk (within ~1 mile)
Road safety
288 reported road collisions (2024)
55 killed or seriously injured · 366 casualties · 15.5 collisions per 10,000 residents
Source: DfT reported road collisions (STATS19)
Food hygiene
98 food businesses within 2 miles
- 85 rated 4–5 ★ (69 top)
- 2 rated 0–2 (poor)
Source: Food Standards Agency
Flood risk
Buses & trains
- Nearest station: Bedford St Johns (3.8 km)
- 2 bus stops within ~½ mile
Live trains from Bedford St Johns (3.8 km):
Loading live departures…
Source: OpenStreetMap, National Rail
House prices
£329,830 average▲ 4.4% YoY
Across Bedford · to 2026-06
Source: UK House Price Index (HM Land Registry)
Private rents
£1,170 average monthly rent▲ 3.4% YoY
- 1 bed £798
- 2 bed £1,027
- 3 bed £1,256
Source: ONS Price Index of Private Rents · to 2026-07
Affordability
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
Fuel prices
- Cheapest petrol: 165.9p · ESSO (11.2 km)
- Cheapest diesel: 185.9p · ESSO (11.2 km)
4 stations within ~8 miles
Source: CMA fuel price scheme
EV charging
47 charging locations within ~8 km
- 14 with rapid charging (50 kW+)
- Fastest nearby: 300 kW
- Nearest: Bedford iLab Priory Buisness Park (0.9 km)
Source: Open Charge Map
Sport & leisure
- Swimming pools1
- Sports pitches6
- Playgrounds12
Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)
Population
185,227 residents in Bedford · 389/km²
- Under 16: 20%
- 16–64: 63%
- 65+: 17%
Source: ONS Census 2021 (local authority)
Deprivation
Around the average in England
Ranked 156 of 317 English local authorities (1 = most deprived)
4% of neighbourhoods are in England’s most deprived 10%
Source: English Indices of Deprivation 2019
Council tax
£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
Schools
85 schools · 35,894 pupils
54 primary · 13 secondary · 18 other
Ofsted: 35 of 38 graded schools rated Good or Outstanding (92%)
75inspected under Ofsted’s 2024+ framework (graded by area, no single overall grade)
Secondary schools:
- Bedford Free SchoolOutstanding
- Bedford AcademyGood
- Goldington AcademyGood
- St Thomas More Catholic SchoolGood
- Mark Rutherford SchoolRequires improvement
- Wixams AcademyRequires improvement
- Biddenham International School and Sports College
- Castle Newnham School
- Daubeney Academy
- Kempston Academy
- Lincroft Academy
- Sharnbrook Academy
- Wootton Academy
Source: DfE Get Information about Schools · Ofsted · Bedford
Care & health services
272 CQC-registered services
- Care homes73
- GP practices34
- Dentists50
- Homecare agencies84
- Hospitals & hospices8
CQC ratings: 82% of rated services Good or Outstanding · 7 Inadequate
Source: Care Quality Commission · Bedford
Heritage & planning
- In a conservation area (Cardington)
- Not in the Green Belt
- 39 listed buildings within ~1.5 km
Source: planning.data.gov.uk (England)
Planning decisions
221 applications decided
72.4% granted · 160 granted, 61 refused
Source: MHCLG planning statistics (PS2) · 2026 Q1
Your MP
Richard Fuller
Conservative
North Bedfordshire
Recent votes:
- AyeHealth Bill: Report Stage: Amendment 1
- AyeHealth Bill: Report Stage: New Clause 143
- AyeHealth Bill: Report Stage: New Clause 142
- NoRepresentation of the People Bill: Third Reading
Source: UK Parliament
Council control
Conservative majority · directly-elected mayor
- Lab 12
- Con 14
- LD 13
- Grn 4
- Oth 3
Source: Open Council Data UK (CC BY-SA)
Amenities nearby
- Schools1
- GPs & clinics1
- Pharmacies1
- Parks & greens6
- Restaurants & cafés3
Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)
Local businesses
8,350 active business enterprises in the area
Source: ONS UK Business Counts (2025)
Jobs
21 jobs advertised
e.g. Online Physics Tutor - Part Time, Online Computer science Tutor - Part Time, Become a Yoga Tutor in Gretton – Flexible & Remote
Source: Adzuna
Local economy
£780 median full-time weekly pay
4.4% 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
Energy efficiency
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
Grid electricity
88% low-carbon electricity
Wind 57% · Nuclear 18% · Gas 11% · Solar 9%
49 gCO₂/kWh · low intensity
Latest estimate for East England · National Grid ESO
Health
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
Wellbeing
- 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
Local petitions
Open UK Parliament petitions most signed in North Bedfordshire:
- Remove sentence reductions for guilty pleas in controlling and coercive cases619 local signatures · 104,741 nationwide
- Make a public animal abuser register & automatically ban ownership428 local signatures · 242,705 nationwide
- Review the evidence and fund the addition of SMA to the Newborn Screening Test354 local signatures · 151,287 nationwide
- Ban anyone convicted of terrorism offences from standing for public office353 local signatures · 205,058 nationwide
- Do not ban social media for under 16s323 local signatures · 217,501 nationwide
Source: petition.parliament.uk · as of 2026-08-06
Notable places nearby
Cardington, Bedfordshire · 0.3 kmCardington is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Bedford in Bedfordshire, England.
Cardington railway station · 0.6 kmCardington was a railway station on the Bedford to Hitchin Line which served the village of Cardington in Bedfordshire, England. Opened in 1857, it gave more than a century of service before closing in 1962.
Heart Bedford · 0.9 kmHeart Bedford was an Independent Local Radio station based in the Priory Business Park in Bedford, Bedfordshire in England.
- Cardington Workmen's Platform railway station · 1.0 km
Cardington Workmen's Platform was a railway station on the Bedford to Hitchin Line which served the Royal Air Force station near the village of Cardington in Bedfordshire, England. A short-lived halt, it opened during…
Real Bedford F.C. · 1.0 kmReal Bedford Football Club is a football club in Bedford, England, established in 2002 as a merger of Bedford United and US Valerio. They are members of the Southern League Premier Division Central, the seventh tier o…
Biggleswade F.C. · 1.2 kmBiggleswade Football Club is a football club based in Biggleswade, Bedfordshire, England. The club are currently members of the Southern League Division One Central and groundshare at Bedford Town's Eyrie ground in Ca…
Source: Wikipedia (text under CC BY-SA)
Nearby towns
Frequently asked questions
- Where is Cardington?
- Cardington is a town in Bedfordshire, England, in the Bedford local authority.
- What is the population of Cardington?
- Cardington has an approximate settlement population of 288.
- How deprived is Cardington?
- The Bedford local authority, which includes Cardington, is around the average in England on the IoD2019.