Meppershall

9°CPatchy rain nearby

• Today: 12° / 7° · 31% rain
• Tomorrow: 12° / 5° · Patchy rain nearby

Source: WeatherAPI

Sunrise 06:59Sunset 16:29

9h 30m of daylight today

Next bank holiday: Christmas Day, Fri 25 Dec

Source: sunrise-sunset.org · gov.uk

15US AQI · Good

Main pollutant: coarse particles (PM10)

Source: WAQI · Brent - Ikea, 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

5 reported · August 2026▼ 62% YoY

• Anti-social behaviour2
• Criminal damage & arson1
• Other theft1
• Violence & sexual offences1

Neighbourhood team: Biggleswade, Sandy, Potton and Shefford · Bedfordshire

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

475 reported road collisions (2025)

113 killed or seriously injured · 688 casualties · 16.1 collisions per 10,000 residents

Source: DfT reported road collisions (STATS19)

69 food businesses within 2 miles

• 59 rated 4–5 ★ (50 top)
• 0 rated 0–2 (poor)

Source: Food Standards Agency

• Nearest station: Arlesey (5.1 km)
• 2 bus stops within ~½ mile

Source: OpenStreetMap, National Rail

£355,263 average▲ 0.1% YoY

Across Central Bedfordshire · to 2026-08

Source: UK House Price Index (HM Land Registry)

£1,250 average monthly rent▲ 3.7% YoY

• 1 bed £865
• 2 bed £1,097
• 3 bed £1,376

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

9.7× house price to earnings

A typical home costs 9.7 times median annual pay (10.7× for cheaper homes vs lower pay).

Source: ONS house price to workplace earnings ratio · 2025

4,398 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: 159.9p · Esso (10.1 km)
• Cheapest diesel: 193.9p · Esso (10.1 km)

4 stations within ~8 miles

Source: CMA fuel price scheme

11 charging locations within ~8 km

• Fastest nearby: 11 kW
• Nearest: Hitchin Road (2.2 km)

Source: Open Charge Map

• Swimming pools8
• Sports pitches5
• Playgrounds4

Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)

• Protecting our roads and keeping Central Bedfordshire moving this winter· 29 Oct 2026
• Residents invited to help shape Public Health Funerals Policy· 29 Oct 2026
• Remembrance Day road closures – 2026· 28 Oct 2026
• Housing Matters - October 2026· 27 Oct 2026
• Helping every child get the best start in life in Central Bedfordshire· 26 Oct 2026

Source: Central Bedfordshire Council

294,252 residents in Central Bedfordshire · 411/km²

• Under 16: 20%
• 16–64: 62%
• 65+: 18%

Source: ONS Census 2021 (local authority)

• Moves in from elsewhere in the UK20,665
• Moves out to elsewhere in the UK16,435
• Net moves+4,230

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

Less deprived than the average in England

Ranked 230 of 296 English local authorities (1 = most deprived)

Source: English Indices of Deprivation 2025

£2,516 a year · Band D, 2026-27

Most homes here are Band C (27% of 134,350)

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

136 schools · 49,238 pupils

95 primary · 14 secondary · 27 other

Ofsted: 52 of 59 graded schools rated Good or Outstanding (88%)

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

Source: DfE Get Information about Schools · Ofsted · Central Bedfordshire

224 CQC-registered services

• Care homes64
• GP practices27
• Dentists56
• Homecare agencies58
• Hospitals & hospices3

CQC ratings: 85% of rated services Good or Outstanding

Source: Care Quality Commission · Central Bedfordshire

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

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

421 applications decided

81.5% granted · 343 granted, 78 refused

Source: MHCLG planning statistics (PS2) · 2026 Q2

Alistair Strathern

Labour

Hitchin

Source: UK Parliament

Independent (minority)

• Lab 4
• Con 20
• LD 8
• Grn 1
• Ref 2
• Oth 28

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

• Schools1

Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)

14,040 active business enterprises in the area

Source: ONS UK Business Counts (2026)

22 jobs advertised · £36,269 avg

e.g. PCB Inspector, Warehouse Operative, Electrician

Source: Adzuna

£869 median full-time weekly pay

2.6% of residents aged 16–64 claim unemployment-related benefits

£26,560 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 · 138,501 certificates

8.3% of households were in fuel poverty (2023)

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

83% low-carbon electricity

Wind 54% · Nuclear 20% · Gas 16% · Biomass 10%

75 gCO₂/kWh · low intensity

Latest estimate for East England · National Grid ESO

Life expectancy: 84.4 yrs women · 82 yrs men

Healthy life expectancy: 60.9 women · 61.5 men

65% of adults overweight or obese

Source: OHID Fingertips · 2025

• Life satisfaction7.3
• Feeling worthwhile7.8
• Happiness yesterday7.3
• Anxiety yesterday (lower is better)3.2

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

3 GP surgeries · 2 pharmacies in SG17

• Chicksands Medical Centre
• Shefford Health Centre
• Ivel Valley South Pcn Hub

Source: NHS Organisation Data Service

Open UK Parliament petitions most signed in Hitchin:

• Dedicated funding for Epidermolysis Bullosa and rare skin conditions research584 local signatures · 11,555 nationwide
• Remove sentence reductions for guilty pleas in controlling and coercive cases477 local signatures · 105,832 nationwide
• Hold a UK-wide briefing on climate and nature risks405 local signatures · 127,144 nationwide
• Protect legal right to support for children with SEND292 local signatures · 111,357 nationwide
• Change surrogacy law to recognise intended parents from birth264 local signatures · 113,305 nationwide

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

• 
  Meppershall · 0.0 km

  Meppershall is a hilltop village in Bedfordshire near Shefford, Campton, Shillington, Stondon and surrounded by farmland.

• 
  Upper Stondon · 1.3 km

  Upper Stondon is a village in the civil parish of Stondon, in the Central Bedfordshire district, in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England.

• 
  Campton and Chicksands · 1.6 km

  Campton and Chicksands is a civil parish in the Central Bedfordshire district of Bedfordshire, England. Its main settlements are Campton and Chicksands. At the 2021 census the parish had a population of 1,895.

• 
  Church of All Saints, Campton · 1.7 km

  The Church of All Saints is the Anglican parish church in the village of Campton, Shefford, Bedfordshire, England. Its official title is Campton and Chicksands Parish and encompasses the villages of Campton and Chicks…

• 
  Campton, Bedfordshire · 1.8 km

  Campton is a village in the civil parish of Campton and Chicksands, in the Central Bedfordshire district of Bedfordshire, England. It is about 9 miles (14 km) south of Bedford, and is about 9 miles (14 km) north-west…

• 
  Shefford Town & Campton F.C. · 1.9 km

  Shefford Town & Campton Football Club is an English football club based in the town of Shefford, Bedfordshire. The team plays its home matches at Shefford Sports Club on Hitchin Road in Shefford and at Campton Playing…

Source: Wikipedia (text under CC BY-SA)