Luton
Luton is a city in Bedfordshire, England, with a population of around 225,262. It has around 2 schools, 4 GP surgeries, 14 pharmacies, 6 supermarkets, 1 park, and around 95 restaurants and cafés, with 10 bus stops and the nearest railway station being Luton, 1.7 km away. The average sold house price is around £317,755, and there were around 905 recorded street crimes in June 2026, 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 Luton area — all from official UK open data.
On deprivation, the Luton area is among the most deprived areas in England (IoD2025). The wider council area has around 225,262 residents at roughly 5,196 people per km².
- Council
- Luton
- County
- Bedfordshire
- Constituency
- Luton South
- Police force
- Bedfordshire
My Area Score
Challenged
Ranked 264th of 294 English council areas — better than 10% 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
9°CPatchy rain nearby
- Today: 10° / 6° · 25% rain
- Tomorrow: 11° / 6° · Partly Cloudy
Source: WeatherAPI
Daylight
Sunrise 07:01Sunset 16:28
9h 27m of daylight today
Next bank holiday: Christmas Day, Fri 25 Dec
Source: sunrise-sunset.org · gov.uk
Air quality
30US AQI · Good
Main pollutant: fine particles (PM2.5)
Source: WAQI · Brent - Ikea, United Kingdom
Air pollution (PM2.5)
- 7.6 µg/m³ average fine-particle (PM2.5) concentration
- 5.7% of adult (30+) deaths estimated attributable to fine-particle pollution
Lower is better for both figures.
Source: OHID Fingertips · 2024
Crime
966 reported · August 2026▲ 4% YoY
- Violence & sexual offences292
- Anti-social behaviour197
- Shoplifting91
- Public order66
9 stop & searches · mostly controlled drugs
Neighbourhood team: Luton Town Centre · Bedfordshire
Local policing priorities
- Community Identified Priority for TOWN CENTRE AUGUST 26 - NOVEMBER 26 The following have been identified as the community priority for th…
Source: data.police.uk (within ~1 mile)
Road safety
354 reported road collisions (2025)
63 killed or seriously injured · 450 casualties · 15.7 collisions per 10,000 residents
Source: DfT reported road collisions (STATS19)
Food hygiene
500+ food businesses within 2 miles
- 315 rated 4–5 ★ (225 top)
- 36 rated 0–2 (poor)
Source: Food Standards Agency · split of the nearest 500
Flood risk
Buses & trains
- Nearest station: Luton (0.4 km)
- 47 bus stops within ~½ mile
Live trains from Luton (0.3 km):
Loading live departures…
Source: OpenStreetMap, National Rail
House prices
£285,800 average▲ 0.1% YoY
Across Luton · to 2026-08
Source: UK House Price Index (HM Land Registry)
Private rents
£1,222 average monthly rent▲ 2.7% YoY
- 1 bed £907
- 2 bed £1,114
- 3 bed £1,337
Source: ONS Price Index of Private Rents · to 2026-08
Affordability
8.5× house price to earnings
A typical home costs 8.5 times median annual pay (9.7× for cheaper homes vs lower pay).
Source: ONS house price to workplace earnings ratio · 2025
Property sales
1,673 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
Fuel prices
- Cheapest petrol: 169.9p · Asda (3.3 km)
- Cheapest diesel: 145.8p · AppleGreen (0.7 km)
8 stations within ~8 miles
Source: CMA fuel price scheme
EV charging
78 charging locations within ~8 km
- 11 with rapid charging (50 kW+)
- Fastest nearby: 250 kW
- Nearest: Alma Street (0.2 km)
Source: Open Charge Map
Sport & leisure
- Sports centres3
- Gyms4
- Sports pitches42
- Golf courses1
- Playgrounds17
Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)
Population
225,262 residents in Luton · 5,196/km²
- Under 16: 23%
- 16–64: 65%
- 65+: 12%
Source: ONS Census 2021 (local authority)
Internal migration
- Moves in from elsewhere in the UK11,446
- Moves out to elsewhere in the UK19,454
- Net moves−8,008
Residential moves between local authorities (counts of moves, not people) · ONS Internal migration, YE Jun 2025
Deprivation
Among the most deprived areas in England
Ranked 33 of 296 English local authorities (1 = most deprived)
14% of neighbourhoods are in England’s most deprived 10%
Source: English Indices of Deprivation 2025
Council tax
£2,440 a year · Band D, 2026-27
Most homes here are Band B (33% of 85,480)
Source: VOA council-tax stock · MHCLG band levels 2026-27
Schools
79 schools · 40,884 pupils
46 primary · 13 secondary · 20 other
Ofsted: 29 of 33 graded schools rated Good or Outstanding (88%)
70 inspected under Ofsted’s 2024+ framework (graded by area, no single overall grade)
Secondary schools:
- Challney High School for BoysOutstanding
- Challney High School for GirlsOutstanding
- Denbigh High SchoolOutstanding
- Chiltern AcademyGood
- Icknield High SchoolGood
- Lealands High SchoolGood
- Queen Elizabeth SchoolGood
- Stopsley High SchoolGood
- Lea Manor High SchoolInadequate
- Cardinal Newman Catholic School A Specialist Science College
- Putteridge High School
- The Chalk Hills Academy
- The Stockwood Park Academy
Source: DfE Get Information about Schools · Ofsted · Luton
Care & health services
194 CQC-registered services
- Care homes35
- GP practices32
- Dentists31
- Homecare agencies69
- Hospitals & hospices7
CQC ratings: 70% of rated services Good or Outstanding · 3 Inadequate
Source: Care Quality Commission · Luton
Heritage & planning
- In a conservation area (Town Centre Conservation Area 1)
- Not in the Green Belt
- 70 listed buildings within ~1.5 km
Source: planning.data.gov.uk (England)
Planning decisions
162 applications decided
72.2% granted · 117 granted, 45 refused
Source: MHCLG planning statistics (PS2) · 2026 Q2
Your MP
Rachel Hopkins
Labour
Luton South and South Bedfordshire
Recent votes:
- AyeBudget Resolution No. 86: High value council tax surcharge
- AyeBudget Resolution No. 76: Rates of alcohol duty
- AyeBudget Resolution No. 55: Value added tax (electric vehicle charging)
- AyeBudget Resolution No. 15: Charges in connection with employment visas
Source: UK Parliament
Council control
Liberal Democrat / Independent / Conservative coalition
- Lab 21
- Con 3
- LD 13
- Grn 2
- Ref 1
- Oth 8
Source: Open Council Data UK (CC BY-SA)
Amenities nearby
- Schools22
- GPs & clinics13
- Pharmacies13
- Supermarkets11
- Parks & greens21
- Restaurants & cafés220
Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)
Local businesses
9,365 active business enterprises in the area
Source: ONS UK Business Counts (2026)
Jobs
1,373 jobs advertised · £47,837 avg
e.g. Class 1 Driver, Retail Graduate Management Programme (Hiring Immediately), Senior Estimator
Source: Adzuna
Local economy
£709 median full-time weekly pay
6.6% of residents aged 16–64 claim unemployment-related benefits
£19,612 disposable income per head (2024)
Source: ONS / Nomis (claimant count · ASHE) · ONS regional GDHI
Energy efficiency
42% of homes rated EPC C or above
Most common band: D · 94,640 certificates
12.2% of households were in fuel poverty (2023)
Source: MHCLG EPC statistics · DESNZ sub-regional fuel poverty
Grid electricity
65% low-carbon electricity
Wind 37% · Gas 34% · Nuclear 15% · Biomass 7%
143 gCO₂/kWh · moderate intensity
Latest estimate for East England · National Grid ESO
Health
Life expectancy: 83.3 yrs women · 78.4 yrs men
Healthy life expectancy: 55.8 women · 56.9 men
69% of adults overweight or obese
Source: OHID Fingertips · 2025
Wellbeing
- Life satisfaction7.3
- Feeling worthwhile8.0
- Happiness yesterday7.6
- Anxiety yesterday (lower is better)2.6
Average rating out of 10 · ONS personal well-being 2022-23
Health services
14 GP surgeries · 10 pharmacies in LU1
- Bell House Medical Centre
- Castle Medical Group Practice
- Lea Vale Medical Practice
Source: NHS Organisation Data Service
Local petitions
Open UK Parliament petitions most signed in Luton South and South Bedfordshire:
- Raise Human Rights Issues in Azad Kashmir with the Government of Pakistan 616 local signatures · 20,508 nationwide
- Protect legal right to support for children with SEND123 local signatures · 111,357 nationwide
- Fund £20,000 a year (term time) wage for Teaching Assistants111 local signatures · 39,730 nationwide
- Remove sentence reductions for guilty pleas in controlling and coercive cases105 local signatures · 105,832 nationwide
- Change surrogacy law to recognise intended parents from birth101 local signatures · 113,305 nationwide
Source: petition.parliament.uk · as of 2026-10-05
Notable places nearby
Luton Corporation Tramways · 0.0 kmLuton Corporation Tramways served the town of Luton in Bedfordshire from 21 February 1908 until 16 April 1932.
Luton Town Hall · 0.0 kmLuton Town Hall is a building at the junction between Manchester Street, Upper George Street and George Street, Luton, England; the current building was completed in 1936 on the site of the older Town Hall, which was…
Frasers Plus Luton · 0.2 kmFrasers Plus Luton is a shopping centre in Luton, Bedfordshire, England. It was formerly an Arndale Centre, until it was purchased by Capital & Regional in January 2006. It was temporarily called The Mall Arndale, but…
Luton · 0.2 kmLuton is a town and borough in Bedfordshire, England. The borough had a population of 225,262 at the 2021 census.
The Great Northern, Luton · 0.3 kmThe Great Northern is a pub at 63 Bute Street, Luton, Bedfordshire. The 19th-century building is Grade II listed.
The Hat Factory · 0.3 kmThe Hat Factory is an arts facility in the centre of Luton, England that seeks to develop the arts in the town and surrounding region. The Hat Factory opened in April 2004, and includes theatre, music, comedy, dance a…
Source: Wikipedia (text under CC BY-SA)
Nearby towns
Compare Luton with nearby areas
Frequently asked questions
- Where is Luton?
- Luton is a town in Bedfordshire, England, in the Luton local authority.
- What is the population of Luton?
- Luton has an approximate settlement population of 225,262.
- How deprived is Luton?
- The Luton local authority, which includes Luton, is among the most deprived areas in England on the IoD2025.