Bedfordshire

Bedfordshire(/ˈbɛdfərdʃɪər,-ʃər/; abbreviatedBeds) is aceremonial countyin theEast of England. It is bordered byNorthamptonshireto the north,Cambridgeshireto the north-east,Hertfordshireto the south and the south-east, andBuckinghamshireto the west. The largest settlement isLuton(225,262),andBedfordis thecounty town.
The county has an area of 1,235 km(477 sq mi) and had a population of 704,736 at the 2021 census.Its other towns includeLeighton Buzzard,Dunstable,Biggleswade,Houghton Regis, andFlitwick. Much of the county is rural. Forlocal governmentpurposes, Bedfordshire comprises threeunitary authorityareas:Bedford,Central Bedfordshire, and Luton.
The county's highest point is 243 m (797 ft) onDunstable Downsin theChilterns.
The first recorded use of the name in 1011 was "Bedanfordscir", meaning the shire or county of Bedford, which itself means "Beda's ford" (river crossing).
Bedfordshire was historically divided into ninehundreds:Barford,Biggleswade,Clifton,Flitt,Manshead,Redbornestoke,Stodden,Willey,Wixamtree, along with the liberty and theancient boroughofBedford.
There have been several changes to the county boundary; for example, in 1897Kensworthand part ofCaddingtonwere transferred fromHertfordshireto Bedfordshire.
The southern end of the county is on thechalkridge known as theChiltern Hills. The remainder forms part of the broaddrainage basinof theRiver Great Ouseand its tributaries. Most of Bedfordshire's rocks areclaysandsandstonesfrom theJurassicandCretaceousperiods, with somelimestone. Local clay has been used forbrick-makingofFletton-style bricksin theMarston Vale.Glacialerosion of chalk has left hardflintnodules deposited as gravel—these have been commercially extracted in the past at pits which are now lakes: atPriory Country Park,WybostonandFelmersham. TheGreensand Ridgeis an escarpment across the county from near Leighton Buzzard to near Gamlingay inCambridgeshire.
Bedfordshire, being situated in the east of England, has a relatively dry climate for the UK with regular but generally moderate rainfall. Average annual rainfall is 608.6 millimetres (23.96 in) at Bedford. October is the wettest month, with 65.3 millimetres (2.57 in), and March the driest, with 37.3 millimetres (1.47 in).
Although temperatures are usually moderate, the county has one of the largest absolute temperature ranges in the UK – of more than 60 °C (108 °F). Average temperatures in Bedford range from a low of 1.5 °C (34.7 °F) overnight in February to a high of 22.4 °C (72.3 °F) during the day in July.The highest official temperature recorded in Bedfordshire was 39.7 °C (103.5 °F) in 2022.The lowest official temperature recorded in Bedfordshire was −20.6 °C (−5.1 °F) in 1947.
The Bedfordshire Police and Crime Commissioner isJohn Tizard, a member of theLabour Party.
For local government purposes, Bedfordshire is divided into threeunitary authorities: theboroughsofBedfordandLuton, and thedistrictofCentral Bedfordshire. Healthcare in the county is dealt with by a single Clinical Commission Group (CCG), which serves all three local authorities in the county, alongside theCity of Milton KeynesinBuckinghamshire.
Policing and fire and rescue services continue to be provided on a county-wide basis, withBedfordshire Policegoverned by theBedfordshire Police and Crime CommissionerandBedfordshire Fire and Rescue Servicegoverned by a Fire Authority comprising members of the three councils.
For elections to theHouse of Commons, Bedfordshire is divided into seven constituencies, each returning a singleMember of Parliament(MP):
The present constituencies date from1997.The boundaries were slightly modified for the2010 general election.
This is a chart of trend of regional gross value added of Bedfordshire at current basic pricespublished(pp. 240–253) byOffice for National Statisticswith figures in millions of British Pounds Sterling.
Bedfordshire is the location of a number of notable UK and international companies who have either headquarters or major bases in the county.Autoglass,BoxcleverandCharles Wells Pubsare all based inBedford, while theKier GroupandKingspan Timber Solutionsare based inSandy, andJordans Cerealsare based inBiggleswade.EasyJet,Impellam,TUI AirwaysandVauxhall Motorsare all based inLuton,Whitbreadis based inHoughton RegisandCosta Coffeeis now based inDunstable.UltraVisionis based inLeighton Buzzard, whileMoto Hospitalityis based atToddingtonservice station.
The "Bedfordshire clanger" is a local dish consisting of asuetcrust pastry filled with meat in one end and a fruit preserve in the other. It was traditionally a farm labourers' meal, designed so as to produce no waste as well as two separate meals.
Chocolate Toothpaste is another local delicacy.Achocolate tart, Chocolate Toothpaste consists of a gritty chocolate filling (said to resemble the texture of toothpaste) within a pastry tart, commonly finished with a swirl of whipped cream on top.
Bedfordshire lies on many of the main transport routes which linkLondonto theMidlands,Northern Englandand the rest of the UK.
Two of England's six maintrunk roadspass through Bedfordshire. TheA1London toEdinburghroad (the Great North Road) runs close by Biggleswade and Sandy, andWatling Street, the Roman road between London and Chester, passes through Dunstable. Until it was diverted in 2017,this was also the route of theA5 roadbetween London andHolyhead. The Bedfordshire section of the A5 now runs from junction 11a of the M1 to rejoin Watling Street between Dunstable andHockliffe, then continues on to cross theBuckinghamshireborder at theCity of Milton Keynes.
To these was added in 1959 theM1 motorway, running from London toLeeds. Running from junctions 10 to 13 in Bedfordshire, there are two junctions serving Luton (at the southern end), with another one serving Bedford andMilton Keynes(at the northern end). Between these lies two other junctions in the county, with one connecting to theA5and servingDunstable, and the other serving the town ofFlitwick. There is also one motorway service station in the county: Toddington Services.
Former trunk roads, now local roads managed by the local highway authorities, include theA428(Cambridge-Coventry) running east–west through Bedford Borough, and theA6from Luton toCarlisle.
Three of England's main lines pass through Bedfordshire.
TheWest Coast Main Linehas but a short section where it passes through the far west of the county, with one station atLeighton Buzzardserved byWest Midlands TrainstoLondon EustonandNorthampton.
TheEast Coast Main Linehas stations atArlesey,BiggleswadeandSandy, served byGreat Northernservices toKing's CrossandPeterborough.
TheMidland Main LineservesLuton,Luton Airport(viaLuton DARTlink from the station atLuton Airport Parkway) andBedford, with trains to many destinations operated byEast Midlands RailwayandThameslink. Intermediate stations atFlitwick,HarlingtonandLeagraveare served by Thameslink.
There are London North Western rural services also running between Bedford andBletchleyalong theMarston Vale Line.
TheRiver Great Ouselinks Bedfordshire to theFenlandwaterways. As of 2004 there are plans by theBedford & Milton Keynes Waterway Trustto construct acanallinking the Great Ouse at Bedford to theGrand Union Canalat Milton Keynes, 14 miles (23 km) distant.
Luton Airport(thefifth busiestin the United Kingdom) has flights to many UK, European,Middle EasternandNorth Africandestinations, operated largely (but not exclusively) by low-cost airlines.
Local news is provided byBBC EastandITV AngliafromCambridge, the southern part of the county such asLutoncan also receiveBBC London&ITV Londonmeaning the area can get news and television programmes fromCambridgeandLondon.
Local radio stations areBBC Three Counties Radio(broadcast fromDunstable),Heart East,Greatest Hits Radio Bucks, Beds and Herts(formerly Mix 96),BigglesFM(coveringBiggleswade,PottonandSandy),In2beats(Bedford) andRadio LaB(Luton).
The state education system for all of Bedfordshire used to be organised by Bedfordshire County Council. Unlike most of the United Kingdom, Bedfordshire County Council operated athree-tier educationsystem arranged into lower, middle and upper schools, as recommended in thePlowden Reportof 1967, although Luton continued to operate a two-tier system. The three-tier arrangement continued in the rest of the county, though in 2006 a vote was held with a view to moving to the two-tier model, but this was rejected.
After the2009 structural changes to local government in England, Bedfordshire County Council was abolished, and its responsibilities for education were passed toBedford Borough CouncilandCentral Bedfordshire Council.
Bedford Borough Council voted in November 2009 to change to the two-tier model in its area.The change was due to be introduced over a five-year period and be completed in 2015.However, with the cancellation of theBuilding Schools for the Futureprogramme in 2010, the borough changed its proposals, and the switch proceeded on school by school basis where council funds allowed. However as of 2020 all of Bedford Borough has a two-tier education structure apart from in the Marston Vale area (one upper school remains).
Most of the secondary schools in the area offersixth formcourses (such asA Levels), thoughBedford CollegeandThe Bedford Sixth Formalso offer a range offurther educationcourses. Additionally,Stella Mann Collegeis a private college which offers a range of further education courses relating to theperforming arts.
There are a number ofindependent schools, many of which have links to theHarpur Trust. These includeBedford School,Bedford Modern SchoolandBedford Girls' School.
In Central Bedfordshire, the school systems in Dunstable and Sandy have been re-organised into the two-tier model in response to parent and school demand, but elsewhere in the authority the three-tier model continues. Plans for the construction of new settlements in Marston Vale have included lower, middle and upper schools.
As well as sixth form departments in schools, the main further education providers in the district areCentral Bedfordshire CollegeandShuttleworth College
Luton also operates a three-tier education system, though its organisation of infant, junior and high schools mirrors the traditional transfer age into secondary education of 11 years. However, most of Luton's high schools do not offer sixth-form education. Instead, this is handled byLuton Sixth Form College, thoughBarnfield CollegeandCardinal Newman Catholic School,Stockwood Park AcademyandThe Chalk Hills Academyalso offer a range offurther educationcourses.
There are twouniversitiesbased in the county – theUniversity of BedfordshireandCranfield University. These institutions attract students from all over the UK and abroad, as well as from Bedfordshire.
The enormous Cardington airship sheds are situated to the south of Bedford, near the villages ofCardingtonand Shortstown.  They were originally built for the construction of large airships during World War I.  Since falling out of their intended use, one has been used for many purposes including housing film sets for 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory' and 'Batman Begins' and as a rehearsal space forTake That, with the other having been extensively refurbished and now accommodating Hybrid Air Vehicles, a British modern airship design and manufacturing company.
St Paul's Church, Bedfordis a Church of England parish church and the Civic Church of the Borough of Bedford and the County of Bedfordshire. Located on St Paul's Square, it is a large medieval and later church of cathedral proportions and spire. St Paul's was the church of the BBC during the Second World War.
TheMillbrook Proving Ground, near Junction 13 of the M1, has 70 kilometres (43 miles) of varied vehicle test tracks.
Bedfordshire is home to Championship teamLuton Town F.C.and theAmpthill RUFCandBedford Bluesrugby teams, amongst other various sporting teams.
Bedfordshire boasts a 40-mile (64  km) walk traversing the county from Leighton Buzzard at the southern endpoint andSandy, Bedfordshire/Gamlingayin southern Cambridgeshire to the east; this is called theGreensand Ridge Walk. For cyclists, there is a parallel route called theGreensand Cycle Waythat follows minor country roads.