Central Bedfordshire population, 2001–2024
Central Bedfordshire has an estimated population of 315,877 (mid-2024), up 35.0% since 2001. Official ONS mid-year estimates for the Central Bedfordshire local authority area.
315,877
population, mid-2024
+35.0%
since 2001
+18.3%
last 10 years
2024
peak year (315,877)
Year by year
| Year | Population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 315,877 | +2.1% |
| 2023 | 309,382 | +2.5% |
| 2022 | 301,829 | +2.1% |
| 2021 | 295,651 | +2.3% |
| 2020 | 289,105 | +1.6% |
| 2019 | 284,688 | +1.5% |
| 2018 | 280,414 | +1.0% |
| 2017 | 277,655 | +1.0% |
| 2016 | 274,909 | +1.5% |
| 2015 | 270,962 | +1.5% |
| 2014 | 267,066 | +1.4% |
| 2013 | 263,425 | +1.5% |
| 2012 | 259,524 | +1.5% |
| 2011 | 255,644 | +1.3% |
| 2010 | 252,460 | +0.9% |
| 2009 | 250,329 | +0.5% |
| 2008 | 249,035 | +0.9% |
| 2007 | 246,803 | +1.0% |
| 2006 | 244,351 | +0.9% |
| 2005 | 242,062 | +0.7% |
| 2004 | 240,444 | +0.8% |
| 2003 | 238,547 | +1.0% |
| 2002 | 236,297 | +1.0% |
| 2001 | 234,006 | — |
Food businesses
Central Bedfordshire has 193 takeaways, 389 restaurants and cafés and 189 pubs and bars on the FSA's statutory register (as of July 2026) — 0.50 takeaways per restaurant against an English average of 0.49, and 6.1 takeaways per 10,000 residents. How that compares across England.
Figures are ONS mid-year population estimates for the Central Bedfordshire local authority area (code E06000056), which can differ from the population of a town of the same name. Sources & method.