Bedford Borough of Bedford | |
---|---|
Coordinates: 52°8′0″N0°27′0″W / 52.13333°N 0.45000°W | |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Country | England |
Region | East of England |
Ceremonial county | Bedfordshire |
Administrative HQ | Borough Hall, Bedford |
Government | |
• Type | Unitary Authority |
• Governing body | Bedford Borough Council |
• MPs | Richard Fuller (C) Alistair Strathern (L) Mohammad Yasin (L) |
Area | |
• Total | 476 km2 (184 sq mi) |
Population (2022) [1] | |
• Total | 187,466 |
• Rank | 108th |
• Density | 393/km2 (1,020/sq mi) |
Ethnicity (2021) | |
• Ethnic groups | |
Religion (2021) | |
• Religion | List
|
Time zone | GMT |
• Summer (DST) | British Summer Time |
ONS code | 00KB |
NUTS 3 | UKH22 |
ISO 3166-2 | GB-BDF |
Website | bedford |
Bedford, or the Borough of Bedford, is a local government district with borough status in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England. It is administered by Bedford Borough Council, a unitary authority. The council is based in Bedford, the borough's namesake and principal settlement, which is the county town of Bedfordshire.
The Bedford built-up-area is the 71st largest in the United Kingdom and also includes Kempston and Biddenham. [3] Away from the Bedford built-up area the borough includes a large rural area with many villages. 75% of the borough's population live in the Bedford built-up and the five large villages which surround it, which makes up slightly less than 6% of the total land area of the borough.
The borough is also the location of the Wixams new settlement, immediately south of Bedford, which received its first residents in 2009.
The ancient borough of Bedford was a borough by prescription, with its original date of incorporation unknown. The earliest surviving charter was issued c. 1166 by Henry II, confirming to the borough the liberties and customs which it had held in the reign of Henry I. [4] [5] The borough became a municipal borough under the Municipal Corporations Act 1835.
The District of Bedford was formed on 1 April 1974 as a merger of the existing borough of Bedford, along with Kempston Urban District and Bedford Rural District. In 1975 the district was granted a royal charter granting borough status as North Bedfordshire. [6] The borough changed its name back from North Bedfordshire to Bedford in 1992. [7]
Bedfordshire's administrative structure was reorganised as part of the 2009 structural changes to local government in England, meaning that Bedford Borough Council became a unitary authority in April 2009. Bedford Borough Council assumed responsibility in areas such as education, social services and transport which were previously provided by Bedfordshire County Council. [8] [9] [10]
The council is based at Borough Hall on Cauldwell Street on the banks of the River Great Ouse in the centre of Bedford. The building was previously known as County Hall and had been the headquarters of Bedfordshire County Council prior to 2009. The unitary authority area is divided into 28 wards for elections to the Borough Council. [11]
Most of the area of the pre-1974 municipal borough of Bedford is unparished, although the parish of Brickhill was created within that area in 2004. The rest of the modern borough, including Kempston (the borough's only CP with a town council), is parished. The parishes are: [12]
The following people and military units have received the Freedom of the Borough of Bedford.
Bedfordshire is a ceremonial county in the East of England. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Hertfordshire to the south and the south-east, and Buckinghamshire to the west. The largest settlement is Luton (225,262), and Bedford is the county town.
Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of its urban area, including Kempston and Biddenham, was 106,940. Bedford is also the county town of Bedfordshire and seat of the Borough of Bedford, a unitary authority area that includes a significant rural area.
Bedfordshire is an English ceremonial county which lies between approximately 25 miles and 55 miles north of central London.
A civil parish is a country subdivision, forming the lowest unit of local government in England. There are 125 civil parishes in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, most of the county being parished: Luton is completely unparished; Central Bedfordshire is entirely parished. At the 2001 census, there were 312,301 people living in the 125 parishes, which accounted for 55.2 per cent of the county's population.
Bedford is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2017 by Mohammad Yasin of the Labour Party.
Bedford Borough Council is the local authority of the Borough of Bedford, a local government district in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England. The town of Bedford was a borough from at least the 12th century until 1974, when the modern district was created. It covers a largely rural surrounding area as well as the town itself. The modern council was initially called Bedford District Council from 1974 to 1975, then North Bedfordshire Borough Council from 1975 until 1992, when the current name was adopted. Until 2009 it was a lower-tier district council, with county-level services provided by Bedfordshire County Council. The county council was abolished in 2009, since when Bedford Borough Council has been a unitary authority, being a district council which also performs the functions of a county council.
Kempston Rural is a civil parish in the Borough of Bedford in Bedfordshire, England.
Brickhill is a civil parish and electoral ward within northern Bedford in Bedfordshire, England.
Bedford Borough Council is the local authority for the unitary authority of Bedford in Bedfordshire, England. Until 1 April 2009 it was a non-metropolitan district. Since 2002 it has also had a directly elected mayor.
Colmworth is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Bedford in the county of Bedfordshire, England about 6.5 miles (10 km) north-east of Bedford.
North Bedfordshire is a county constituency in Bedfordshire. It returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first-past-the-post voting system, from the 1983 general election until it was abolished for the 1997 general election.
Eastcotts is an electoral ward within the Borough of Bedford, in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England. It was formerly also a civil parish until its abolition on 1 April 2019, when Cotton End and Shortstown parishes were established.
Biddenham International School and Sports College is a mixed secondary school and sixth form located in Biddenham in the English county of Bedfordshire.
The Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment was the final title of a line infantry regiment of the British Army that was originally formed in 1688. After centuries of service in many conflicts and wars, including both the First and Second World Wars, the regiment was amalgamated with the Essex Regiment in 1958 to form the 3rd East Anglian Regiment. However, this was short-lived and again was amalgamated, in 1964, with the 1st East Anglian Regiment and 2nd East Anglian Regiment, and the Royal Leicestershire Regiment to form the present Royal Anglian Regiment.
Central Bedfordshire is a local government district in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England. It is administered by Central Bedfordshire Council, a unitary authority. It was created in 2009.
Roxton is a small village and civil parish in the Borough of Bedford, Bedfordshire, England about 7 miles (11 km) north-east of the county town of Bedford.
The East of England Local Government Association (EELGA) is an association of the 52 local authorities in the East of England. It is a regional grouping of the Local Government Association and the regional employers organisation. It was established in April 2010 following the abolition of the East of England Regional Assembly.