Central Bedfordshire | |
---|---|
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Constituent country | England |
Region | East of England |
Ceremonial county | Bedfordshire |
Founded | 1 April 2009 |
Admin. HQ | Chicksands |
Government | |
• Type | Unitary authority |
• Body | Central Bedfordshire Council |
• Leadership: | Leader & Cabinet |
• Executive: | No overall control |
• MPs: | Richard Fuller (C) Rachel Hopkins (L) Alex Mayer (L) Alistair Strathern (L) Blake Stephenson (C) |
Area | |
• Total | 276 sq mi (716 km2) |
• Rank | 45th |
Population (2022) | |
• Total | 301,501 |
• Rank | Ranked 47th |
• Density | 1,100/sq mi (420/km2) |
Ethnicity (2021) | |
• Ethnic groups | |
Religion (2021) | |
• Religion | List
|
Time zone | UTC+0 (Greenwich Mean Time) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC+1 (British Summer Time) |
ISO 3166-2 | GB-CBF |
ONS code | 00KC (ONS) E06000056 (GSS) |
Website | centralbedfordshire |
Central Bedfordshire is a unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England. It was created in 2009.
Central Bedfordshire was created on 1 April 2009 as part of a structural reform of local government in Bedfordshire. The Bedfordshire County Council and all the district councils in the county were abolished, with new unitary authorities created providing the services which had been previously delivered by both the district and county councils. Central Bedfordshire was created covering the area of the former Mid Bedfordshire and South Bedfordshire Districts. [2] [3]
The local authority is called Central Bedfordshire Council.
Following the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, Central Bedfordshire would be split between five parliamentary constituencies: [4]
Central Bedfordshire comprises a mix of market towns and rural villages. The largest town is Leighton Buzzard followed by Dunstable and Houghton Regis. Dunstable and Houghton Regis form part of the Luton/Dunstable urban area. Central Bedfordshire includes the following towns and villages.
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.
South Bedfordshire was a local government district in Bedfordshire, in the East of England, from 1974 to 2009. Its main towns were Dunstable, Houghton Regis and Leighton Buzzard.
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.
South West Bedfordshire was a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. As with all constituencies of the UK Parliament, it elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.
Luton South and South Bedfordshire is a constituency in Bedfordshire represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2019 by Rachel Hopkins, a member of the Labour Party.
Houghton Regis is a market town and civil parish in the Central Bedfordshire district of Bedfordshire, England.
Caddington is a village and civil parish in the Central Bedfordshire district of Bedfordshire, England.
Luton Rural District was a local authority in Bedfordshire, England from 1894 to 1974. It covered an area which almost surrounded but did not include the towns of Luton and Dunstable.
Luton was a constituency including the town of Luton in Bedfordshire. It returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the UK Parliament from 1885 to 1974, elected by the first past the post system.
South Bedfordshire was 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 system.
Manshead was a hundred of Bedfordshire in England. It covered an area in the south-west of the county stretching from Salford to Studham and from Leighton Buzzard to Houghton Regis and Dunstable.
The Luton/Dunstable urban area, according to the Office for National Statistics, is the conurbation including the settlements of Luton, Dunstable and Houghton Regis, in Bedfordshire, East of England.
Central Bedfordshire College is a British further education college located in Bedfordshire, England. The college was established in 1961 in Dunstable. On 14 January 2010, the college was renamed Central Bedfordshire College. Now part of the Bedford College Group 2023. Sarah Mortimer CBE, principal and chief executive explained that the change of name was to reflect the College's commitment to Central Bedfordshire as a whole and be recognised as the premier post sixteen institution in the area.
Dunstable is a market town and civil parish in Bedfordshire, England, east of the Chiltern Hills, 30 miles north of London. There are several steep chalk escarpments, most noticeable when approaching Dunstable from the north. Dunstable is the fourth largest town in Bedfordshire and along with Houghton Regis forms the westernmost part of the Luton/Dunstable urban area.
Central Bedfordshire Council is the local authority for Central Bedfordshire, a local government district in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England. The council is a unitary authority, being a district council which also performs the functions of a county council. It has been under no overall control since 2023, being run by an independent-led administration. The council is based at Chicksands.
The Luton-Dunstable Busway is a guided busway system in Bedfordshire, England, which connects the towns of Dunstable, Houghton Regis and Luton with Luton Airport. It was built on the route of a disused railway track and opened in September 2013. The busway runs parallel to the A505 and A5065 for 13.4 kilometres (8.3 mi), of which 7.7 kilometres (4.8 mi) is guided track with a maximum speed of 50 mph. It is claimed to be the second longest busway in the world.
Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard is a constituency of the House of Commons in the UK Parliament. It was first contested at the 2024 general election. The current MP is Alex Mayer of the Labour Party.