Area type
Unitary Authority
Population Density
411
Population growth
1.9%
Gender ratio
0.98 male to female
english main language
97%
birth rate
11.6
death rate
8.8
Major religion
62% Christian
Urbanisation
61%
View trend
View trend
View breakdown
The population of Central Bedfordshire is 294,096 according to mid-2020 population figures published by the ONS. Central Bedfordshire's population growth rate between mid-2019 and mid-2020 was 1.9% per year. Central Bedfordshire covers an area of 716 square kilometres (276 square miles) and has a population density of 411 people per square kilometre (km2), based on the latest population estimates taken in mid-2020.
According to the latest 2011 census, the population in Central Bedfordshire is predominantly white (94%), with non-white minorities representing the remaining 6% of the population.
The median average age in Central Bedfordshire in 2019 was 41.1, with over 18s representing 80.0% of the population. The sex ratio was 97.5 males to every 100 females. Compare average age by area.
In 2011, the urban population of Central Bedfordshire was approximately 154,109 or 61%, while the rural population was around 100,272 or 39%.
The largest religious group in Central Bedfordshire is Christians who account for 62% of the population.
English is spoken as the main language by 97.0% of people in Central Bedfordshire, and spoken either well or very well by 3% of the remaining population. 0.4% reported having poor English language skills.
Main page: Central Bedfordshire Population
The population of Central Bedfordshire is 294,096 according to mid-2020 population figures published by the ONS. In the year between mid-2019 and mid-2020, the population in Central Bedfordshire grew by an estimated 5,448 people, and in the ten years before mid-2020, the population grew by 38,452.
Central Bedfordshire's population growth rate between mid-2019 and mid-2020 was 1.9%, which is 0.3% higher than the average population growth rate in Central Bedfordshire for the ten years before mid-2020 (1.6%).
Central Bedfordshire covers an area of 716 square kilometres (276 square miles) and has a population density of 411 people per square kilometre (km2), based on the latest population estimates taken in mid-2020. That figure has increased by 54 people per km2 over the past decade.
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According to mid-year population estimates published by the ONS in 2019, males account for 49.4% of Central Bedfordshire's 294,096 population, while females made up 50.6% of the total.
The sex ratio (the number of males for each female in a population) was 97.508 males to every 100 females in 2011. In England as a whole, the gender ratio was 98 males to every 100 females in 2011.
Age statistics collected by the ONS show the adult population of Central Bedfordshire, that is how many people there are over the age of 18, is 235,297.
Central Bedfordshire's age structure shows the working-age population to be 182,665 which is 62.1% of the population. People under the age of 16 represent 20.0% of the population, and over 65s represent 17.9% of the population. The percentage of the population that is of working-age has decreased over the last 10 years from 64.8% to 56.3%.
Central Bedfordshire's age pyramid shows how the population is distributed by age and gender.
The median average age of someone in Central Bedfordshire was 41.1 years in 2019. Split by gender, the average female age is 41.7 years, and the average male is 40.4 years.
Of the Central Bedfordshire population over the age of 90, girls outnumber boys by 1.7 to 1.
The life expectancy of someone born today in Central Bedfordshire is 82 years. Split by gender, a girl born today in Central Bedfordshire has a life expectancy of 84 years, and a boy has a life expectancy of 80 years. Compare life expectancy by area.
As a comparison, in England as a whole, current life expectancy at birth is 81 years, for females that rises to 83 years and for males it falls to 79 years.
The life expectancy for someone born in Central Bedfordshire has risen by 3 years over the past decade, from a life expectancy of 79 years to a life expectancy of 82 years. In England as a whole, life expectancies have risen by 3 years.
Age | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 00-01 | 80.3 | 83.8 | 82.1 |
| 01-04 | 79.6 | 83.0 | 81.3 |
| 05-09 | 75.6 | 79.1 | 77.4 |
| 10-14 | 70.7 | 74.1 | 72.4 |
| 15-19 | 65.7 | 69.1 | 67.4 |
| 20-24 | 60.7 | 64.2 | 62.5 |
| 25-29 | 55.9 | 59.2 | 57.6 |
| 30-34 | 51.1 | 54.3 | 52.7 |
| 35-39 | 46.2 | 49.3 | 47.8 |
| 40-44 | 41.5 | 44.4 | 43.0 |
According to the latest 2011 census, the population in Central Bedfordshire is predominantly white (93.8%), with non-white minorities representing the remaining 6.2% of the population.
Asian people were the largest minority group in Central Bedfordshire accounting for 2.5% of the population.
3,614 or 1% of the Central Bedfordshire population are black according to the latest 2011 census.
In England more broadly the portion of the population that is white is 85.4%. 7.8% are Asian and 3.5% are Black.
Estimates of personal wellbeing in the UK are published by the ONS annually, with scores for anxiety, happiness, life satisfaction, and feeling that life is worthwhile. Overall scores are based on surveying a representative sample of the population and are scored out of 10 (.e.g for happiness 0 is 'not at all happy' and 10 is 'completely happy').
Levels of reported Anxiety in Central Bedfordshire were 3.0 in 2012 and 2.8 in 2021. In the rest of England levels of Anxiety are currently 3.1.
Reported levels of Happiness in 2021 were 7.7, and 7.4 in 2012. In England, the average happiness indicator is currently 7.5. Of the 363 areas in England, Central Bedfordshire is the 52 nd happiest area in England.
Life satisfaction scores for 2021 are 7.8 and were 7.6 in 2012. For the feeling that things done in life are worthwhile the 2021 level is 7.9 and was 7.8 in 2012.
Central Bedfordshire Salary
Central Bedfordshire House Prices
Central Bedfordshire Crime
According to the latest 2011 census, the most populous religious group within Central Bedfordshire is Christians, accounting for 62.2% of the population.
Central Bedfordshire has a Muslim population of 1,931 which is 0.7% of the population.
Compared to England as a whole, in England circa 59% of the population is Christian, 5% is Muslim, 2% is Hindu, and Buddhists, Sikhs and Jews each is around 1%. The remainder is split between people with no religion and those who decided not to identify a religion.
Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence v.3.0. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2021. Data sources: ONS Local statistics