Waterloo Road, Bedford, MK40 3PQ

People

Gender

In the UK, the overall gender distribution is approximately 49% male and 51% female. The local area around MK40 3PQ is generally consistent with those figures, having a male population of 48.5%.

	2011	2021	10y change (pp)	UK Average	postcode vs UK (pp)
Female	49.6%	51.5%	1.9%	51.0%	0.5%
Male	50.4%	48.5%	-1.9%	49.0%	-0.5%

Partnership Status

Across the UK, the average relationship status breakdown is roughly 44% married, 38% single, 9% divorced, 6% widowed, and 2% separated.

	2011	2021	10y change (pp)	UK Average	postcode vs UK (pp)
Single	33.2%	34.1%	0.9%	37.9%	-3.8%
Married: Opposite sex	42.2%	37.7%	-4.5%	44.2%	-6.5%
Married: Same sex	0%	0.6%	0.6%	0.3%	0.3%
Separated	1.9%	2.1%	0.2%	2.2%	-0.1%
Divorced	9.6%	11.6%	2.0%	9.1%	2.5%
Widowed	13.1%	13.9%	0.8%	6.1%	7.8%

Health

Across the UK, the average 48.4% rated their health as Very Good, 33.6% as Good, 12.7% as Fair, 4% as Bad, and 1.2% as Very Bad.

Population age significantly impacts residents' health. Additionally, socioeconomic status plays a crucial role: higher income levels and lower poverty rates are linked to better health outcomes. Affluent areas benefit from higher living standards, access to private healthcare, and healthier lifestyle choices.

	2011	2021	10y change (pp)	UK Average	postcode vs UK (pp)
Very good health	53.5%	51.7%	-1.8%	48.4%	3.3%
Good health	29.2%	27.4%	-1.8%	33.6%	-6.2%
Fair health	13.3%	12.1%	-1.2%	12.7%	-0.6%
Bad health	2.3%	4.4%	2.1%	4.0%	0.4%
Very bad health	1.6%	4.4%	2.8%	1.2%	3.2%

Education and Qualifications

During the 2021 census, the educational qualifications of residents across the UK were as follows: 18.2% had no qualifications, 9.6% had 1-4 GCSEs, 13.4% had 5 or more GCSEs and 1-2 A/AS Levels, 16.9% had 2 or more A Levels, 33.8% held a degree (or equivalent), and 5.4% had completed an apprenticeship.

This area stands out for its high percentage of residents with higher education degree or similar. The UK average is 33.8%, while in this area it is 50%.

	2011	2021	10y change (pp)	UK Average	postcode vs UK (pp)
No qualifications	22.7%	19.7%	-3.0%	18.2%	1.5%
1-4 GCSEs or Equivalent	6.1%	4.7%	-1.4%	9.6%	-4.9%
5 or more GCSEs, an A-Level or 1-2 AS Levels	8%	8.2%	0.2%	13.4%	-5.2%
Apprenticeship	1.6%	4.1%	2.5%	5.3%	-1.2%
HNC, HND or 2+ A Levels	7.7%	9.7%	2.0%	16.9%	-7.2%
Degree or Similar	49.5%	50%	0.5%	33.8%	16.2%
Other	4.5%	3.5%	-1.0%	2.8%	0.7%

Culture

Ethnic Group

This area closely mirrors the overall ethnic composition of the UK, with 89.8% of the population identifying as white, with UK average of 81.4%.

	2011	2021	10y change (pp)	UK Average	postcode vs UK (pp)
Bangladeshi	0%	1%	1.0%	1.1%	-0.1%
Indian	2.3%	2%	-0.3%	3.1%	-1.1%
Pakistani	2.6%	0%	-2.6%	2.7%	-2.7%
Other Asian	0.3%	0.8%	0.5%	1.6%	-0.8%
Black African	0%	0.5%	0.5%	2.5%	-2.0%
Black Caribbean	1%	2.8%	1.8%	1.0%	1.8%
Other Black	1.3%	0%	-1.3%	0.5%	-0.5%
Mixed White and Asian	0.5%	1.3%	0.8%	0.8%	0.5%
Mixed White and African	0.3%	0%	-0.3%	0.4%	-0.4%
Mixed White and Caribbean	0%	1.5%	1.5%	0.9%	0.6%
Mixed Other	0.5%	0.3%	-0.2%	0.8%	-0.5%
White	90.9%	89.8%	-1.1%	81.4%	8.4%
Arab	0.3%	0%	-0.3%	0.6%	-0.6%

Country of Birth

In this area, 88.4% of the population were born in the United Kingdom, which is similar to the UK average of 83.2%.

	2011	2021	10y change (pp)	UK Average	postcode vs UK (pp)
United Kingdom	87.5%	88.4%	0.9%	83.2%	5.2%
European Union	5.2%	5.7%	0.5%	6.1%	-0.4%
Rest of Europe	0.8%	0.5%	-0.3%	0.8%	-0.3%
Africa	1%	1.3%	0.3%	2.7%	-1.4%
Middle East and Asia	2.1%	2.1%	0.0%	5.6%	-3.5%
The Americas and the Caribbean	2.1%	1.8%	-0.3%	1.3%	0.5%
Oceania	1.3%	0.3%	-1.0%	0.3%	0.0%

Length of Residence

	2011	2021	10y change (pp)	UK Average	postcode vs UK (pp)
Born in the UK	86.7%	88.4%	1.7%	83.2%	5.2%
10+ Years	1.3%	8.5%	7.2%	9.8%	-1.3%
5-10 Years	0.8%	1.3%	0.5%	2.9%	-1.6%
2-5 Years	1.8%	0.5%	-1.3%	2.2%	-1.7%
Less than 2 years	9.4%	1.3%	-8.1%	1.9%	-0.6%

Passport Held

	2021	UK Average	postcode vs UK (pp)
United Kingdom	78.5%	76.7%	1.8%
Ireland	1%	0.6%	0.4%
France	0.3%	0.3%	0.0%
Germany	0.3%	0.2%	0.1%
Italy	1%	0.6%	0.4%
Romania	0.3%	0.9%	-0.6%
Other EU countries	1%	1.5%	-0.5%
Southern Asia	0.5%	1.2%	-0.7%
South-East Asia	0.3%	0.2%	0.1%
No passport held	16.8%	13.5%	3.3%

Religion

	2021	UK Average	postcode vs UK (pp)
No religion	43.9%	37.2%	6.7%
Christian	50.1%	46.2%	3.9%
Hindu	1.3%	1.7%	-0.4%
Muslim	1%	6.5%	-5.5%
Sikh	0.3%	0.9%	-0.6%
Other religion	0.5%	0.6%	-0.1%
Not answered	2.9%	6.0%	-3.1%

Safety

Is Waterloo Road dangerous?

Over the last 12 months, the overall crime rate around Waterloo Road was 111.9 per 1,000 residents, which is 46.7% lower than the Castle & Newnham average. The most reported crime type was Violence and sexual offences.

Waterloo Road has the 25th highest crime rate of 52 local areas in Castle & Newnham and the 120th highest crime rate of 543 local areas in Bedford .

Violent and sexual offences accounted for around 44.8 crimes per 1,000 residents and have been falling year on year. Over the last decade, overall crime has fallen by about -58.7%.

🔎 See full breakdown of local crime, hotspots & trends

Affluence

Household Income

Households in this area have a similar level level of wealth to the average household in England and Wales. 59% of analyzed areas in England and Wales have lower average household annual income than this area.

Average Household Income
£47,300

Income Rank
6/10

Household Income in MK40 3PQ, Local Authority and Region

Deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) - 6/10 (average )
Indices of multiple deprivation (IMD) is used to classify the relative deprivation (a measure of poverty) of the area. It considers the following domains:
Income Deprivation Domain - 6/10 (average )
The Income Deprivation Domain measures the percentage of people in the population who are experiencing poverty due to having a low income. It includes both those who are unemployed and those who are employed but earn very little (and who satisfy the respective means tests).
Employment Deprivation Domain - 5/10 (average )
The Employment Deprivation Domain measures the proportion of the working-age population in an area involuntarily excluded from the labour market. This includes people who would like to work but are unable to do so due to unemployment, sickness or disability, or caring responsibilities.
Education, Skills and Training Domain - 2/10 (very low )
The Education, Skills, and Training Deprivation Domain measures the lack of education and skills in a local area. It has two parts: one for children and young people, and one for adults. The part for children and young people looks at their school achievements ('flow'), while the part for adults looks at the number of adults without qualifications ('stock').
Health Deprivation and Disability Domain - 7/10 (above average )
The Health Deprivation and Disability Domain measures the risk of early death and poor quality of life due to bad physical or mental health. It looks at illness, disability, and early death, but not at behaviors or environments that might affect future health.
Crime Domain - 10/10 (very high )
The Crime Domain measures the risk of people and property being victims of crime in a local area.
Barriers to Housing and Services Domain - 6/10 (average )
The Barriers to Housing and Services Domain measures how easy or hard it is to access housing and local services. It has two parts: one looks at how close local services are, and the other looks at issues like how affordable housing is.
Living Environment Deprivation Domain - 9/10 (very high )
The Living Environment Deprivation Domain measures the quality of the local environment. It has two parts: the "indoors" part looks at housing quality, and the "outdoors" part looks at air quality and road traffic accidents.
Income Deprivation Affecting Children Index (IDACI) - 5/10 (average )
The Income Deprivation Affecting Children Index (IDACI) measures how many children aged 0 to 15 live in low-income families. It is part of the Income Deprivation Domain, which looks at how many people in an area have low incomes. This includes both those who are unemployed and those who work but earn very little (and who satisfy the respective means tests).
Income Deprivation Affecting Older People Index (IDAOPI) - 7/10 (above average )
The Income Deprivation Affecting Older People Index (IDAOPI) measures the percentage of people aged 60 or older who have low income. It is part of the Income Deprivation Domain, which looks at how many people in an area have low income, including both unemployed people and those with low-paying jobs (and who satisfy the respective means tests).

Property Prices

Average property prices on Waterloo Road are based on 67 property sales since the beginning of 1995. Estimated property prices are calculated by adjusting the last sale price by current House Price Index for North Bedfordshire.
StreetScan downloads house price data directly from the HM Land Registry and uses it to create these statistics.

House Prices for Waterloo Road, Bedford, MK40 3PQ

Estimated Average Property Prices for MK40 3PQ

Average Price
£625,282

Semi-Detached
£778,041

Terraced
£667,735

Detached
£931,710

Flats/Maisonettes
£217,330

Other
£23,894

Estimated Average Property Prices for Waterloo Road

Average Price
£515,056

Semi-Detached
£830,988

Terraced
£617,501

Detached
£960,188

Flats/Maisonettes
£194,886

Other
no sales

Property Prices Comparison

Latest Property Sales on Waterloo Road

Address	Sale Price	Sale Date	Price Estimate 2025
33 Waterloo Road, Bedford, Bedford Detached, an established residential building	£790,000	2025-05-23	£835,165
1 Waterloo Road, Bedford, Bedford Terraced, an established residential building	£690,000	2024-03-28	£730,792
11 Waterloo Road, Bedford, Bedford Semi-Detached, an established residential building	£725,000	2023-11-30	£769,950
35 Waterloo Road, Bedford, Bedford Semi-Detached, an established residential building	£800,000	2023-07-06	£854,728
14 Waterloo Road, Bedford, Bedford Terraced, an established residential building	£750,000	2023-02-27	£799,143

View All Property Sales and Other Statistics for MK40 3PQ

Employment

MK40 3PQ area has a low unemployment rate. According to Census 2021, 3% residents of this area were unemployed, while the average in the UK was 4.83%. A low level of unemployment in an area indicates a strong job market, where most people who are seeking work can find employment. This generally reflects a healthy economy in the area.

The percentage of retired residents living in MK40 3PQ area is much higher than the country's average. According to Census 2011, 32% residents of this area were retired, while the average in the UK was 14%.

Economic Activity

Full-Time Employee	114
Retired	108
Self-Employed	34
Part-Time Employee	28
Student (economically inactive)	15
Unemployed	11
Long-Term Sick or disabled	10
Other	7
Looking after home or family	5
Full-Time Student (with or without job)	5

Employment Industry

Education	31
Human health and social work activities	22
Information and communication	20
Professional, scientific and technical activities	20
Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motor cycles	13
Accommodation and food service activities	10
Other	9
Manufacturing	9
Financial and insurance activities	7
Public administration and defence; compulsory social security	6
Real estate activities	6
Transport and storage	5
Construction	3
Administrative and support service activities	3
Mining and quarrying	2

Schools

Nursery

	Ofsted Overall Effectiveness	Distance	Establishment Type	Has Nursery Classes	Gender	More Info
Cherry Trees Nursery School Hawkins Road , MK42 9LS	4out of 4	1,441 yd	Local authority nursery school	Yes	Mixed	More About School
Peter Pan Nursery School Edward Road , MK42 9DR	4out of 4	1,498 yd	Local authority nursery school	Yes	Mixed	More About School

Primary

	Ofsted Overall Effectiveness	Distance	Establishment Type	Has Nursery Classes	Gender	More Info
Castle Newnham School Goldington Road , MK40 3EP	4out of 4	737 yd	Foundation school	Yes	Mixed	More About School
Priory Primary School Greyfriars , MK40 1JD	4out of 4	1,008 yd	Foundation school	Yes	Mixed	More About School
Livingstone Primary School Clapham Road , MK41 7LG	3out of 4	1,405 yd	Foundation school	No	Mixed	More About School
Shackleton Primary School Pearcey Road , MK42 9LZ	3out of 4	1,445 yd	Academy converter	No	Mixed	More About School
St John Rigby Catholic Primary School Polhill Avenue , MK41 9DQ	4out of 4	1,502 yd	Academy converter	No	Mixed	More About School

Secondary

	Ofsted Overall Effectiveness	Distance	Establishment Type	Has Nursery Classes	Gender	More Info
Bedford Free School Cauldwell Street , MK42 9AD	3out of 4	587 yd	Free schools	No	Mixed	More About School
Castle Newnham School Polhill Avenue , MK41 9DT	3out of 4	1,398 yd	Foundation school	No	Mixed	More About School
Goldington Academy Haylands Way , MK41 9BX	3out of 4	1,661 yd	Academy converter	Not Applicable	Mixed	More About School
Bedford Academy Mile Road , MK42 9TR	3out of 4	2,220 yd	Academy sponsor led	Not Applicable	Mixed	More About School
Biddenham International School and Sports College Biddenham Turn , MK40 4AZ	3out of 4	2,628 yd	Foundation school	No	Mixed	More About School

16 plus

	Ofsted Overall Effectiveness	Distance	Establishment Type	Has Nursery Classes	Gender	More Info
Bedford College Cauldwell Street , MK42 9AH	- not rated	580 yd	Further education	Not Applicable	Mixed	More About School

Not applicable

	Ofsted Overall Effectiveness	Distance	Establishment Type	Has Nursery Classes	Gender	More Info
Bedford Girls' School Cardington Road , MK42 0BX	- not rated	436 yd	Other independent school	No	Girls	More About School
Bedford School De Parys Avenue , MK40 2TU	- not rated	660 yd	Other independent school	No	Boys	More About School
St Andrew's School 78 Kimbolton Road , MK40 2PA	- not rated	885 yd	Other independent school	Yes	Mixed	More About School
E-Spired Centre of Excellence The Raleigh Centre , Ampthill Road MK42 9HE	- not rated	1,103 yd	Other independent school	No	Mixed	More About School
Polam School 45 Lansdowne Road , MK40 2BU	- not rated	1,261 yd	Other independent school	Yes	Mixed	More About School

School statistics for this postcode are based on Ofsted rankings.

Food and Drink

Restaurants, Cafes, Canteens

Business Name	Address	Distance
The Panacea Museum	9 Newnham Road	169 yd
Cibo Deli & Kitchen	38 Newnham Street	234 yd
Kraken MMA & Ftiness Ltd	24-26 Newnham Street	237 yd
Belvedere Taste of Poland	4 Newnham Street	237 yd
Cappuccino Bar	36 Newnham Street	237 yd

Pubs, Bars, Nightclubs

Business Name	Address	Distance
The Castle	The Castle, 17 Newnham Street	237 yd
Three Cups Pub	The Three Cups, 45 Newnham Street	237 yd
Ship	The Ship, 7 St Cuthberts Street	303 yd
The Rose	The Rose, 45 High Street	379 yd
The Mill	The Mill Hotel, 32-34 Mill Street	410 yd

Takeaway, Sandwich Shops

Business Name	Address	Distance
Papa Gigi's	Papa Gigis Pizzas, 109a Castle Road	396 yd
Roosters	47 St Cuthberts Street	431 yd
BB Tea	43 High Street	439 yd
Lee's Kitchen	Lee's Kitchen, Duckmill Lane	467 yd
Alia’s treat house		502 yd

Supermarkets, Hypermarkets

Business Name	Address	Distance
Tesco	63 High Street	458 yd
Lidl Food Stores	5-9 St Peters Street	526 yd
Farmfoods	Farm Foods, 4-6 Kingsway	725 yd
BQUALITY AFRICA MINI MARKET	Flat D, Broadway Apartments, 30 The Broadway	749 yd
Liana International Market	59 Midland Road	819 yd

Sport

Facility Name	Sport Objects	Distance
Bunyan Meeting Church MILL STREET		317 yd
Bedford Girls School CARDINGTON ROAD	artificial grass pitch, grass pitches, health and fitness suite, swimming pool	386 yd
Pace Health Club (Bedford) (Closed) St. Marys Street	health and fitness suite	489 yd
Flexibility Health & Fitness Club 1-3 1-3 SILVER STREET	health and fitness suite	559 yd
Russell Park PEMBROKE STREET	grass pitches, tennis courts	575 yd
Bedford Borough Indoor Bowling Club GOLDINGTON ROAD	indoor bowls	596 yd
Goldington Road (Bedford Blues Rufc) GOLDINGTON ROAD	grass pitches	617 yd
Bedford Free School CAULDWELL HOUSE CAULDWELL HOUSE CAULDWELL STREET		636 yd
Bedford College CAULDWELL STREET	health and fitness suite	692 yd
Bedford School DE PARYS AVENUE	grass pitches, health and fitness suite, squash courts, swimming pool, tennis courts	748 yd

Broadband

Technology Aviability

Percentage of premises that have Superfast Broadband (30Mbit/s or greater) coverage from fixed broadband	100.0%
Percentage of premises that have Ultrafast Broadband (100Mbit/s or greater) coverage from fixed broadband	100.0%
Percentage of premises that have Ultrafast Broadband (300Mbit/s or greater) coverage from fixed broadband	100.0%
Percentage of premises that have coverage from a Gigabit capable service from fixed broadband	100.0%

Speed Aviability

Percentage of premises unable to receive 2Mbit/s	0.0%
Percentage of premises unable to receive 5Mbit/s	0.0%
Percentage of premises unable to receive 10Mbit/s	0.0%
Percentage of premises unable to receive 30Mbit/s	0.0%

Download Speed

Median download speed	100 Mbit/s
Average download speed	212.6 Mbit/s
Minimum download speed	1000 Mbit/s
Maximum download speed	1000 Mbit/s

Upload Speed

Median upload speed	20 Mbit/s
Average upload speed	19.5 Mbit/s
Maximum upload speed	50 Mbit/s

Broadband statistics are based on Ofcom's Communications Market Report (CMR) 2022.

Overview of MK40 3PQ