MK43 8RT Bedford
Live postcode, introduced January 1980. Ward: Wootton & Kempston Rural. Region: East of England.
Streets
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 C (26% of about 690 homes).
Planning and heritage
- Conservation area: no postcode centre in this postcode is in one.
- Listed buildings within 100 m of this postcode: 3.
- 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
- BARN AT THE CLOCK HOUSE, grade II
- GROOM'S COTTAGE, STABLES, FODDERSTORE AND CARRIAGE SHED AT THE CLOCK HOUSE, grade II
- THE CLOCK HOUSE, grade II
Flood risk
Rivers, the sea or surface water: in this postcode, 0 addresses are in areas at high risk, 1 at medium risk and 1 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 26 addresses are between 39 m and 47 m above sea level (42 m on average).
Broadband
Superfast 100%, ultrafast 77%, gigabit 77% 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 | 3.6 km |
| Bedford St Johns 176,000 journeys in 2024–25 | 4.4 km | |
| Kempston Hardwick 9,780 journeys in 2024–25 | 4.7 km | |
| Bus stops | 0 stops within 400 m, 2 within 800 m; nearest Box End Road | 410 m |
| Bus or coach station | Bus Station Bedford | 4.1 km |
| EV charging points | bp Pulse | 2.9 km |
| Airport with scheduled flights | London Luton Airport LTN | 30.6 km |
Local services
| Nearest | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| GP surgeries | Queens Park Health Centre | 2.6 km |
| Pharmacies | 1 pharmacies within 1.6 km; nearest The Village Pharmacy | 1.3 km |
| NHS dentists | 1 practices within 1.6 km; nearest Munro Hall Clinic | 770 m |
| Hospital | Bedford Hospital | 4.0 km |
| Police station | Kempston Police | 2.9 km |
| Cash machines | The Cooperative Food Kempston, Kempston Cashzone | 2.8 km |
Parks and green space
| Nearest | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| Park or garden | Unnamed 2,820 m² | 1.1 km |
| Play area | Unnamed 770 m² | 1.1 km |
| Playing field | Unnamed 1,940 m² | 1.5 km |
| Allotments | Allen Park Allotment Site 2.2 ha | 2.2 km |
Landmarks
The nearest historic landmark is Box End House, a listed building (Grade II*), 670 m south-east. 12 listed buildings are within 1.0 km, 1 of them Grade II*.
| Name | What it is | From the postcode's centre |
|---|---|---|
| Box End House | Listed building, Grade II* | 670 m south-east |
| Bromham Bridge | Scheduled monument | 1.7 km north |
| Paved ford 400yds (366m) SE of Kempston Church | Scheduled monument | 1.8 km south-east |
| Garden at Three Gables | Registered park or garden, Grade II | 2.5 km north-east |
| Name | What it is | From the postcode's centre |
|---|---|---|
| Hanger Wood | Wood | 1.0 km west |
| The Thorns | Wood | 1.1 km north-west |
| Half Grown Spinney | Wood | 1.1 km west |
| Apple Island | Island | 2.3 km north-east |
| Bromham Lake | Lake or reservoir | 3.2 km north-east |
| Mushroom Hill | Hill | 3.5 km north |
Air quality
| Pollutant | Here | UK limit | WHO guideline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) | 6.4 | 40 | 10 |
| Fine particles (PM2.5) | 6.9 | 20 | 5 |
| Particles (PM10) | 12.2 | 40 | 15 |
All three are within the UK legal limits; PM2.5 is above the WHO guideline, as in most towns and cities.
Road and rail noise
| Level | Road traffic | Railways |
|---|---|---|
| 60 to 64 | 1 | 0 |
| 55 to 59 | 6 | 0 |
| Under 55 | 19 | 26 |
7 of the postcode's 26 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 | 49 | 40 |
| Children under 15 | 15% | 17% |
| Aged 65 and over | 23% | 18% |
Homes
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Owned (outright or with a mortgage) | 92% | 61% |
| Owned outright | 51% | 33% |
| Shared ownership | 0% | 1% |
| Social rented | 2% | 17% |
| Private rented | 6% | 21% |
Work and commuting
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Adults (16 and over) in work | 61% | 57% |
| Unemployment (of those working or looking for work) | 5% | 6% |
| Retired (of adults) | 25% | 22% |
| Long-term sick or disabled (of adults) | 1% | 4% |
| Work mainly from home (of those in work) | 44% | 32% |
| Travel to work by car or van | 47% | 48% |
| By train, Underground, metro or tram | 2% | 4% |
| By any public transport, including bus | 2% | 8% |
| On foot or by bicycle | 2% | 10% |
| Work within 10 km of home (of those who travel to work) | 61% | 65% |
| Work 30 km or more away | 9% | 8% |
Education and languages
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Degree or other higher qualification, Level 4+ (of adults) | 32% | 34% |
| No qualifications | 14% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship as highest qualification | 7% | 5% |
| Main language English (aged 3 and over) | 95% | 91% |
| Cannot speak English well or at all | under 1% | 2% |
Deprivation
The neighbourhood around this postcode is in decile 8 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.