Bedfordshire demographics.
Bedfordshire · Census 2023 · latest available data
A data-driven statistical profile of Bedfordshire — town populations, census figures, and key demographic indicators drawn from the latest available official data.
Population
67,736,802
World share: 0.84 %
Median age
40.1
Global rank: #21
Urban population
85.5 %
57,900,076 people
Density
280 / km²
People per km²
Fertility rate
1.57
Births per woman
- 01 / Population
Who lives here, and how that is changing.
Headline population counts, density and household structure, with the six-year growth trend.
- Population basics
- Total population
- 67,736,8022023
- Population density
- 280 / km²UK average
- Yearly change
- 0.34 %227,866
- Urban population
- 85.5 %57,900,076
- Net migration
- 165,790Annual net
- World population
- 0.84 %8,045,311,447
- Population trend
Total resident population in thousands. A rising line means net growth from births and inward migration.
- 02 / Age & gender
The shape of the population pyramid.
Age band distribution split by gender, with dependency and vital statistics.
- Age pyramid
Share of the total population in each age band, split by gender - wide middle bands indicate a strong working-age base.
- Vital statistics
- Median age
- 39.4 yrs40.2 yrs
- Dependency ratio
- 58.456.9
- Male
- 49.3%49.0%
- Female
- 50.7%51.0%
- Aged 65+
- 16.4%18.4%
- 03 / Housing & households
Tenure, dwelling type and household composition.
Census 2021 housing indicators for the area, benchmarked against England.
- Tenure & conditions
- Home ownership
- 61.0%62.5%
- Social rented
- 17.0%17.1%
- Private rented
- 22.0%20.4%
- Overcrowded households
- 6.1%8.4%
- No central heating
- 1.3%1.5%
- Property type mix
Composition of the housing stock by build type, as a share of all dwellings.
- Tenure split
How households occupy their homes - the owned versus rented balance drives local market liquidity.
- 04 / Employment & economy
Where the jobs and the output are.
Labour market headlines and the sector composition of local employment.
- Labour market
- Economically active
- 76.2%75.7%
- Unemployed
- 3.4%3.5%
- Full-time employees
- 42.1%41.6%
- Self-employed
- 11.8%12.4%
- Students (economically active)
- 5.6%5.2%
- Retired
- 20.9%21.6%
- Top employment sectors
Share of total employment by industry - a concentrated profile signals exposure to one sector's cycle.
- 05 / Education & qualifications
Attainment and the local skills base.
School performance and the qualification profile of working-age residents.
- Attainment & schools
- Level 4+ qualification
- 40.2%33.9%
- No qualifications
- 16.0%18.1%
- Apprenticeship
- 5.1%5.3%
- Full-time students 16+
- 8.4%7.9%
- Schoolchildren aged 5–15
- 12.6%12.4%
- Qualification levels
Highest qualification held by residents aged 16+. Level 4+ covers degree-level and above.
- 06 / Health & wellbeing
Life expectancy, access and deprivation.
Population health outcomes alongside primary care capacity and deprivation ranking.
- Health indicators
- Very good health
- 48.6%48.5%
- Good health
- 33.1%33.7%
- Bad or very bad health
- 5.8%5.2%
- Disabled (day-to-day limited)
- 18.2%17.3%
- Provides unpaid care
- 9.1%8.9%
- Life expectancy (male)
- 79.1 yrs79.4 yrs
- Life expectancy (female)
- 82.9 yrs83.1 yrs
- Healthy life expectancy
- 62.4 yrs63.1 yrs
- IMD decile
- 5 of 10-
- Deprivation
5
IMD decile out of 10 (1 = most deprived). The United Kingdom shows variation across regions, with pockets of both high affluence and concentrated deprivation.
- 07 / Ethnicity, language & religion
The cultural make-up of the area.
Census-based breakdowns of ethnic group, country of birth, language and religion.
- Ethnic group
Share of residents by broad census ethnic group.
- Religion
Stated religion at the last census, as a share of residents.
- Origin & language
- Born in the UK
- 83.6%83.2%
- Born outside the UK
- 16.4%16.8%
- English as main language
- 94.2%91.1%
- Cannot speak English well
- 1.4%1.9%
- 08 / Transport & commuting
How people move around.
Commuting modes, journey times, car ownership and network connectivity.
- Mode of travel to work
Primary commute mode for working residents, including those who mainly work from home.
- Network & journey times
- Average commute
- 29 min28 min
- No car or van
- 24.0%23.5%
- 2+ cars or vans
- 34.0%33.1%
- Work mainly from home
- 17.0%21.0%
- Car ownership
Households by number of cars or vans available.
— 09 / Political & administrative
Who governs, and how engaged residents are.
Administrative structure, council tax levels, political control and turnout.
— Governance
- Parliamentary constituencies
- 12
- Council type
- Metropolitan / two-tier
- Council tax (Band D)
- £2,148
- Political control
- Labour majority
- General election turnout
- 62.4%
- Local election turnout
- 31.8%
— 10 / Crime & safety
Recorded crime and its composition.
Police.uk recorded offences, normalised per 1,000 residents and split by offence type.
— Headline rates
- Crime rate per 1,000
- 94.689.7
- Police force
- West Yorkshire Police—
- Year-on-year change
- -2.8%-1.4%
— Crime type breakdown
Share of all recorded offences by category over the last 12 months.
— 11 / Environment & climate
Green space, air quality and climate risk.
Environmental quality indicators and exposure to flooding across the area.
— Environmental indicators
- Green space coverage
- 38.4%40.1%
- NO₂ (annual mean)
- 21 µg/m³18 µg/m³
- PM2.5 (annual mean)
- 9.4 µg/m³9.1 µg/m³
- Area at flood risk
- 6.2%8.0%
- Annual rainfall
- 812 mm838 mm
- Sunshine hours
- 1,4101,493
— 12 / UK Cities
Population of major UK cities.
Top 10 UK cities by population, sourced from the latest available census and administrative data.
| # | City | Population |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | London | 7,556,900 |
| 2 | Birmingham | 984,333 |
| 3 | Liverpool | 864,122 |
| 4 | Nottingham | 729,977 |
| 5 | Sheffield | 685,368 |
| 6 | Bristol | 617,280 |
| 7 | Glasgow | 591,620 |
| 8 | Leicester | 508,916 |
| 9 | Edinburgh | 464,990 |
| 10 | Leeds | 455,123 |
— 12b / County Towns
Town populations within the county.
Built-up area populations across the 2001, 2011 and 2021 census years.
| # | Town | 2001 | 2011 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bedford | 82,467 | 87,631 | 97,241 |
| 2 | Leighton Buzzard | 32,368 | 37,089 | 42,727 |
| 3 | Dunstable | 28,198 | 30,262 | 34,487 |
| 4 | Kempston | 19,903 | 19,795 | 22,781 |
| 5 | Biggleswade | 14,730 | 15,969 | 21,961 |
| 6 | Houghton Regis | 16,383 | 16,606 | 18,818 |
| 7 | Flitwick | 12,700 | 12,998 | 13,663 |
| 8 | Stotfold | 6,107 | 9,520 | 12,308 |
| 9 | Sandy | 10,237 | 10,883 | 11,370 |
| 10 | Ampthill | 6,767 | 7,028 | 8,822 |
| 11 | Wootton | 4,230 | 4,156 | 7,569 |
| 12 | Shefford | 4,928 | 5,881 | 7,311 |
| 13 | Cranfield | 4,818 | 5,274 | 7,049 |
| 14 | Marston Moretaine | 3,122 | 3,923 | 6,351 |
| 15 | Wixams | 528 | 1,357 | 6,048 |
| 16 | Arlesey | 4,740 | 5,584 | 6,022 |
| 17 | Potton | 4,204 | 4,594 | 5,228 |
| 18 | Barton-le-Clay | 4,793 | 4,992 | 4,941 |
| 19 | Shortstown | 2,023 | 2,788 | 4,838 |
| 20 | Bromham | 4,599 | 4,670 | 4,653 |
| 21 | Toddington | 4,459 | 4,585 | 4,502 |
| 22 | Clapham | 3,643 | 4,560 | 4,502 |
| 23 | Great Denham | 555 | 1,040 | 4,366 |
| 24 | Eaton Bray (/ Edlesborough) | 4,139 | 3,912 | 4,193 |
| 25 | Lower Stondon | 3,043 | 3,738 | 3,966 |
| 26 | Langford | 2,882 | 3,091 | 3,712 |
| 27 | Silsoe | 1,729 | 1,791 | 3,424 |
| 28 | Caddington | 3,174 | 3,190 | 3,292 |
| 29 | Clifton | 2,218 | 2,306 | 2,773 |
| 30 | Stewartby | 1,151 | 1,129 | 2,545 |
| 31 | Clophill | 2,211 | 2,369 | 2,514 |
| 32 | Oakley | 2,438 | 2,493 | 2,509 |
| 33 | Maulden | 2,256 | 2,357 | 2,487 |
| 34 | Henlow | 1,795 | 2,253 | 2,446 |
| 35 | Wilstead | 1,969 | 2,177 | 2,397 |
| 36 | Harlington | 2,322 | 2,297 | 2,288 |
| 37 | Great Barford | 1,864 | 2,003 | 2,251 |
| 38 | Aspley Guise | 2,125 | 2,102 | 2,114 |
| 39 | Westoning | 2,001 | 2,147 | 2,098 |
| 40 | Meppershall | 1,549 | 1,745 | 2,046 |
| 41 | Houghton Conquest | 1,180 | 1,362 | 1,866 |
| 42 | Sharnbrook | 1,442 | 1,795 | 1,739 |
| 43 | Harrold | 1,235 | 1,691 | 1,670 |
| 44 | Shillington | 1,452 | 1,447 | 1,627 |
| 45 | Flitton | 1,207 | 1,383 | 1,527 |
| 46 | Kensworth | 1,504 | 1,455 | 1,515 |
| 47 | Heath and Reach | 1,285 | 1,346 | 1,450 |
| 48 | Slip End | 1,484 | 1,358 | 1,407 |
| 49 | Blunham | 926 | 946 | 1,391 |
| 50 | Upper Caldecote | 1,217 | 1,218 | 1,335 |
| 51 | Riseley | 1,284 | 1,286 | 1,320 |
| 52 | Lidlington | 990 | 1,185 | 1,300 |
| 53 | Hockliffe | 730 | 823 | 1,066 |
| 54 | Totternhoe | 948 | 982 | 1,016 |
| 55 | Wymington | 868 | 876 | 1,000 |
| 56 | Turvey | 920 | 940 | 932 |
| 57 | Carlton | 827 | 874 | 929 |
| 58 | Haynes | 886 | 940 | 913 |
| 59 | Cotton End | 408 | 451 | 826 |
| 60 | Willington | 782 | 751 | 802 |
| 61 | Beeston | 650 | 774 | 801 |
| 62 | Cople | 736 | 722 | 783 |
| 63 | Milton Ernest | 754 | 761 | 769 |
| 64 | Dunton | 722 | 696 | 768 |
| 65 | Chicksands | 519 | 721 | 722 |
| 66 | Moggerhanger | 636 | 620 | 672 |
| 67 | Wyboston | 560 | 559 | 621 |
| 68 | Tempsford | 564 | 590 | 604 |
| 69 | Holywell | 659 | 636 | 600 |
| 70 | Wrestlingworth | 594 | 591 | 597 |
| 71 | Pulloxhill | 533 | 569 | 596 |
| 72 | Broom | 574 | 579 | 594 |
| 73 | Streatley | 535 | 559 | 589 |
| 74 | Stevington | 581 | 552 | 582 |
| 75 | Woburn | 603 | 628 | 582 |
| 76 | Upper Gravenhurst | 581 | 595 | 564 |
| 77 | Pavenham | 479 | 527 | 505 |
— 13 / English Regions
Regional population comparison.
Population figures for English regions across the 2001, 2011 and 2021 census years.
| Region | 2001 | 2011 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|
| East Midlands | 4,172,174 | 4,533,222 | 4,880,054 |
| East of England | 5,388,140 | 5,846,965 | 6,335,074 |
| North East England | 2,515,442 | 2,596,886 | 2,647,013 |
| North West England | 6,729,764 | 7,052,177 | 7,417,397 |
| South East England | 8,000,645 | 8,634,750 | 9,278,065 |
| South West England | 4,928,434 | 5,288,935 | 5,701,186 |
| West Midlands | 5,267,308 | 5,601,847 | 5,950,757 |
| Yorkshire and The Humber | 4,964,833 | 5,283,733 | 5,480,777 |
— Data sources
- ONS — population, age, ethnicity, housing
- Nomis — employment, earnings, qualifications
- Census 2021 (Nomis) — area vs England comparisons
- Police.uk — crime data
- MHCLG — Index of Multiple Deprivation
- Postcodes.io / GeoNames — boundary mapping