MK40 2BJ Bedford
Live postcode, introduced January 1980. Ward: Harpur. Region: East of England.
Streets
- Bromham Road, Bedford: 48 addresses
Council tax
What each band costs in Bedford in 2026-27: Band D £2,472 a year on average, including the police, fire and any county and parish charges.
| A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| £1,648 | £1,922 | £2,197 | £2,472 | £3,021 | £3,570 | £4,120 | £4,943 |
Homes by band in the neighbourhood around this postcode: most are in band A (38% of about 1,070 homes).
Planning and heritage
- Conservation area: yes, Bedford (council page). Extensions, demolition, some windows and doors, and work on trees need consent.
- Listed buildings within 100 m of this postcode: 2.
- Article 4 direction (removing permitted development rights): none recorded, though not every council has published theirs.
- Tree preservation orders: none recorded, though not every council has published theirs.
- Green belt: no.
Listed buildings
- 122 Bromham Road, grade II
- 126 AND 128, BROMHAM ROAD, grade II
Brownfield land registered for housing within 1.0 km
- West One, 63 - 67 Bromham Road, Bedford: up to 24 homes, permissioned (30 m)
- West One, 63 to 67 Bromham Road, Bedford: up to 12 homes, permissioned (30 m)
- West One, 63 - 67 Bromham Road, Bedford: up to 25 homes, permissioned (40 m)
- Enterprise House, 4 - 6 Union Street, Bedford: up to 2 homes, permissioned (150 m)
- Enterprise House, 4 - 6 Union Street, Bedford: up to 6 homes, permissioned (160 m)
- 1 to 3 Union Street Bedford, permissioned (210 m)
- 15 Shakespeare Road, Bedford: up to 13 homes, permissioned (220 m)
- 31 Warwick Avenue, Bedford: up to 4 homes, permissioned (300 m)
Flood risk
Rivers, the sea or surface water: in this postcode, 0 addresses are in areas at high risk, 0 at medium risk and 34 at low risk. Each address counts once, at the higher of its rivers-and-sea and surface-water risk.
Rivers and the sea alone: no home is in an area at risk.
High: 3.3% (1 in 30) or more chance of flooding a year. Medium: 1% to 3.3%. Low: 0.1% to 1%. Very low: under 0.1%. The rivers and sea figures allow for flood defences. Counts cover whole postcodes, which can include other streets.
Flood zone for planning: no postcode centre is in flood zone 2 or 3.
Height above sea level
The postcode's addresses are about 32 m above sea level.
Broadband
Superfast 100%, ultrafast 97%, gigabit 0% of premises; 0% cannot get 10 Mbit/s. Ofcom Connected Nations, data as at January 2026.
Getting around
| Nearest | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| Railway stations | Bedford 3.8 million journeys in 2024–25 | 420 m |
| Bedford St Johns 176,000 journeys in 2024–25 | 1.3 km | |
| Kempston Hardwick 9,780 journeys in 2024–25 | 5.6 km | |
| Bus stops | 18 stops within 400 m, 55 within 800 m; nearest Shakespeare Road Bedford | 200 m |
| Bus or coach station | Bus Station Bedford | 460 m |
| Car parks | 1 within 800 m; nearest River Street Car Park | 670 m |
| EV charging points | 26 within 1.6 km; nearest bp Pulse | 360 m |
| Airport with scheduled flights | London Luton Airport LTN | 30.4 km |
Local services
| Nearest | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| GP surgeries | 5 practices within 1.6 km; nearest Ashburnham Road Surgery | 420 m |
| Pharmacies | 8 pharmacies within 1.6 km; nearest Kay's Chemist | 150 m |
| NHS dentists | 21 practices within 1.6 km; nearest Shakespeare Clinic | 210 m |
| Hospital | Bedford Hospital | 1.3 km |
| Police station | Bedford Police Station | 460 m |
| Cash machines | 5 machines within 800 m; nearest Costcutter Cashzone | 150 m |
Parks and green space
| Nearest | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| Park or garden | 3 within 800 m; nearest Unnamed 4,250 m² | 80 m |
| Play area | 11 within 800 m; nearest Unnamed 710 m² | 240 m |
| Playing field | 1 within 800 m; nearest Priory Recreation Ground 6,000 m² | 230 m |
| Allotments | Queens Park Allotment Site 2.9 ha | 880 m |
Within 800 m: 3 parks and gardens, 0.9 hectares in all.
Landmarks
The nearest historic landmark is Harpur Centre, a listed building (Grade II*), 730 m south-east. 61 listed buildings are within 1.0 km, 3 of them Grade I and 3 of them Grade II*.
| Name | What it is | From the postcode's centre |
|---|---|---|
| Harpur Centre | Listed building, Grade II* | 730 m south-east |
| Harpur Suite | Listed building, Grade II* | 780 m south-east |
| Church of St Peter | Listed building, Grade I | 790 m east |
| Church of St Paul | Listed building, Grade I | 850 m south-east |
| Medieval lime kiln off Castle Lane, Bedford | Scheduled monument | 1.0 km south-east |
| Bedford Castle motte and bailey | Scheduled monument | 1.1 km south-east |
| Bedford Park | Registered park or garden, Grade II | 1.3 km north-east |
| Bedford Cemetery | Registered park or garden, Grade II | 1.3 km north-east |
| Oval barrow 60m west of Ranworth Walk, 650m south west of Westfield School | Scheduled monument | 1.8 km south-west |
| Name | What it is | From the postcode's centre |
|---|---|---|
| Hill Rise | Wood | 1.0 km north-east |
| Castle Hill | Hill | 1.1 km south-east |
| Rink Islands | Island | 1.2 km south-east |
| Deep Spinney | Wood | 2.0 km west |
| Parkwood | Wood | 2.0 km north |
| Bromham Lake | Lake or reservoir | 2.0 km north-west |
Air quality
| Pollutant | Here | UK limit | WHO guideline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) | 10.2 | 40 | 10 |
| Fine particles (PM2.5) | 7.2 | 20 | 5 |
| Particles (PM10) | 11.8 | 40 | 15 |
All three are within the UK legal limits; nitrogen dioxide and PM2.5 are above the WHO guideline, as in most towns and cities.
Road and rail noise
| Level | Road traffic | Railways |
|---|---|---|
| 60 to 64 | 48 | 0 |
| Under 55 | 0 | 48 |
48 of the postcode's 48 addresses are modelled at 55 dB or more from road traffic, above the WHO guidelines.
People and work
Who lives here
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Median age | 36 | 40 |
| Children under 15 | 7% | 17% |
| Aged 65 and over | 26% | 18% |
Homes
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Owned (outright or with a mortgage) | 13% | 61% |
| Owned outright | 6% | 33% |
| Shared ownership | 0% | 1% |
| Social rented | 8% | 17% |
| Private rented | 79% | 21% |
Work and commuting
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Adults (16 and over) in work | 58% | 57% |
| Unemployment (of those working or looking for work) | 7% | 6% |
| Retired (of adults) | 27% | 22% |
| Long-term sick or disabled (of adults) | 5% | 4% |
| Work mainly from home (of those in work) | 27% | 32% |
| Travel to work by car or van | 39% | 48% |
| By train, Underground, metro or tram | 3% | 4% |
| By any public transport, including bus | 8% | 8% |
| On foot or by bicycle | 22% | 10% |
| Work within 10 km of home (of those who travel to work) | 68% | 65% |
| Work 30 km or more away | 8% | 8% |
Education and languages
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Degree or other higher qualification, Level 4+ (of adults) | 41% | 34% |
| No qualifications | 25% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship as highest qualification | 4% | 5% |
| Main language English (aged 3 and over) | 74% | 91% |
| Cannot speak English well or at all | 3% | 2% |
Deprivation
The neighbourhood around this postcode is in decile 3 of 10 on the English Indices of Deprivation 2025, where 1 is the most deprived tenth of England's 33,755 neighbourhoods and 10 the least.
The full dossier for this postcode's main street is on Bromham Road.