The Firs, Kempston, Bedford, MK42 7RE

People

Gender

In the UK, the overall gender distribution is approximately 49% male and 51% female. The local area around MK42 7RE is generally consistent with those figures, having a male population of 48.4%.

	2011	2021	10y change (pp)	UK Average	postcode vs UK (pp)
Female	49.5%	51.6%	2.1%	51.0%	0.6%
Male	50.5%	48.4%	-2.1%	49.0%	-0.6%

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	27.2%	33.3%	6.1%	37.9%	-4.6%
Married: Opposite sex	56.4%	51%	-5.4%	44.2%	6.8%
Separated	3.5%	3.1%	-0.4%	2.2%	0.9%
Divorced	7.4%	8.2%	0.8%	9.1%	-0.9%
Widowed	5.4%	4.3%	-1.1%	6.1%	-1.8%

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	46.8%	47.7%	0.9%	48.4%	-0.7%
Good health	39.8%	35%	-4.8%	33.6%	1.4%
Fair health	10.4%	13%	2.6%	12.7%	0.3%
Bad health	2.4%	3.4%	1.0%	4.0%	-0.6%
Very bad health	0.6%	0.9%	0.3%	1.2%	-0.3%

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.

	2011	2021	10y change (pp)	UK Average	postcode vs UK (pp)
No qualifications	16.7%	12.9%	-3.8%	18.2%	-5.3%
1-4 GCSEs or Equivalent	20.2%	12.5%	-7.7%	9.6%	2.9%
5 or more GCSEs, an A-Level or 1-2 AS Levels	18.3%	14.5%	-3.8%	13.4%	1.1%
Apprenticeship	4.7%	4.7%	0.0%	5.3%	-0.6%
HNC, HND or 2+ A Levels	14.4%	20%	5.6%	16.9%	3.1%
Degree or Similar	19.5%	31.8%	12.3%	33.8%	-2.0%
Other	6.2%	3.5%	-2.7%	2.8%	0.7%

Culture

Ethnic Group

In this area, the population is more ethnically diverse compared to the UK average. While 69.3% of the residents identify as white, which is lower than the UK average of 81.4%, there are significant representations of other ethnic groups.

	2011	2021	10y change (pp)	UK Average	postcode vs UK (pp)
Chinese	0.3%	0.9%	0.6%	0.7%	0.2%
Indian	8%	11.8%	3.8%	3.1%	8.7%
Pakistani	0%	1.5%	1.5%	2.7%	-1.2%
Other Asian	2.1%	0.3%	-1.8%	1.6%	-1.3%
Black African	0%	7.7%	7.7%	2.5%	5.2%
Black Caribbean	0.9%	0.6%	-0.3%	1.0%	-0.4%
Other Black	0%	0.6%	0.6%	0.5%	0.1%
Mixed White and Asian	1.2%	1.5%	0.3%	0.8%	0.7%
Mixed White and Caribbean	1.2%	1.9%	0.7%	0.9%	1.0%
Mixed Other	0.3%	1.9%	1.6%	0.8%	1.1%
White	85.6%	69.3%	-16.3%	81.4%	-12.1%
Roma	0%	0.9%	0.9%	0.2%	0.7%
Other	0.3%	0.9%	0.6%	1.6%	-0.7%

Country of Birth

In this area, 72.4% of the population were born in the United Kingdom, which is lower than the UK average of 83.2%.

	2011	2021	10y change (pp)	UK Average	postcode vs UK (pp)
United Kingdom	87.2%	72.4%	-14.8%	83.2%	-10.8%
European Union	4.6%	11.9%	7.3%	6.1%	5.8%
Africa	1.5%	7.5%	6.0%	2.7%	4.8%
Middle East and Asia	5.8%	7.2%	1.4%	5.6%	1.6%
The Americas and the Caribbean	0.9%	0.6%	-0.3%	1.3%	-0.7%
Oceania	0%	0.3%	0.3%	0.3%	0.0%

Length of Residence

	2011	2021	10y change (pp)	UK Average	postcode vs UK (pp)
Born in the UK	86.9%	72%	-14.9%	83.2%	-11.2%
10+ Years	0%	18.1%	18.1%	9.8%	8.3%
5-10 Years	0.9%	4%	3.1%	2.9%	1.1%
2-5 Years	2.4%	0%	-2.4%	2.2%	-2.2%
Less than 2 years	9.8%	5.9%	-3.9%	1.9%	4.0%

Passport Held

	2021	UK Average	postcode vs UK (pp)
United Kingdom	66.5%	76.7%	-10.2%
Germany	0.3%	0.2%	0.1%
Italy	2.2%	0.6%	1.6%
Lithuania	1.6%	0.3%	1.3%
Poland	3.4%	1.3%	2.1%
Romania	0.9%	0.9%	0.0%
Other EU countries	4%	1.5%	2.5%
Central and Western Africa	6.2%	0.3%	5.9%
South and Eastern Africa	0.3%	0.2%	0.1%
Southern Asia	1.9%	1.2%	0.7%
South-East Asia	0.6%	0.2%	0.4%
Oceania	0.3%	0.1%	0.2%
No passport held	11.8%	13.5%	-1.7%

Religion

	2021	UK Average	postcode vs UK (pp)
No religion	31.3%	37.2%	-5.9%
Christian	56.4%	46.2%	10.2%
Hindu	2.2%	1.7%	0.5%
Muslim	1.6%	6.5%	-4.9%
Sikh	4.1%	0.9%	3.2%
Other religion	2.5%	0.6%	1.9%
Not answered	1.9%	6.0%	-4.1%

Safety

Is The Firs Street dangerous?

Over the last 12 months, the overall crime rate around The Firs was 43.3 per 1,000 residents, which is 65.7% lower than the Kempston Central & East average. The most reported crime type was Violence and sexual offences.

The Firs has the 17th lowest crime rate of 59 local areas in Kempston Central & East and the 200th lowest crime rate of 543 local areas in Bedford .

Violent and sexual offences accounted for around 24.8 crimes per 1,000 residents and have been rising year on year. Over the last decade, overall crime has fallen by about -85.6%.

🔎 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
£47,400

Income Rank
6/10

Household Income in MK42 7RE, Local Authority and Region

Deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) - 4/10 (below 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 - 4/10 (below 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 - 4/10 (below 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 - 6/10 (average )
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 - 5/10 (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 - 4/10 (below average )
The Crime Domain measures the risk of people and property being victims of crime in a local area.
Barriers to Housing and Services Domain - 4/10 (below 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 - 5/10 (average )
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) - 3/10 (low )
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 The Firs are based on 15 property sales since the beginning of 1995. Estimated property prices are calculated by adjusting the last sale price by current House Price Index for Bedford.
StreetScan downloads house price data directly from the HM Land Registry and uses it to create these statistics.

House Prices for The Firs, Kempston, Bedford, MK42 7RE

Estimated Average Property Prices for MK42 7RE

Average Price
£331,499

Semi-Detached
£312,310

Terraced
£370,221

Detached
£325,673

Flats/Maisonettes
no sales

Other
no sales

Estimated Average Property Prices for The Firs

Average Price
£361,714

Semi-Detached
£323,845

Terraced
£385,646

Detached
£364,248

Flats/Maisonettes
no sales

Other
no sales

Property Prices Comparison

Latest Property Sales on The FirsStreet

Address	Sale Price	Sale Date	Price Estimate 2025
11 The Firs, Bedford, Bedford Detached, an established residential building	£310,000	2026-02-05	£310,000
9 The Firs, Bedford, Bedford Detached, an established residential building	£310,000	2025-01-06	£321,227
16 The Firs, Bedford, Bedford Detached, an established residential building	£293,500	2023-01-10	£302,305
1 The Firs, Bedford, Bedford Detached, an established residential building	£275,000	2020-11-30	£328,978
4 The Firs, Bedford, Bedford Detached, an established residential building	£308,000	2019-05-21	£370,607

View All Property Sales and Other Statistics for MK42 7RE

Employment

MK42 7RE area has a low unemployment rate. According to Census 2021, 2% 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.

Economic Activity

Full-Time Employee	114
Retired	45
Part-Time Employee	36
Self-Employed	15
Other	12
Full-Time Student (with or without job)	8
Long-Term Sick or disabled	8
Looking after home or family	6
Unemployed	6
Student (economically inactive)	4

Employment Industry

Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motor cycles	37
Public administration and defence; compulsory social security	20
Education	19
Human health and social work activities	17
Manufacturing	15
Administrative and support service activities	14
Construction	9
Accommodation and food service activities	8
Information and communication	8
Professional, scientific and technical activities	5
Transport and storage	5
Other	4
Financial and insurance activities	3
Real estate activities	2
Water supply; sewerage, waste management and remediation activities	1
Electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply	1
Agriculture, forestry and fishing	1

Schools

Nursery

	Ofsted Overall Effectiveness	Distance	Establishment Type	Has Nursery Classes	Gender	More Info
Peter Pan Nursery School Edward Road , MK42 9DR	4out of 4	2,022 yd	Local authority nursery school	Yes	Mixed	More About School
Cherry Trees Nursery School Hawkins Road , MK42 9LS	4out of 4	2,364 yd	Local authority nursery school	Yes	Mixed	More About School
Southway Nursery School Ampthill Road , MK42 9HE	- not rated	2,403 yd	Local authority nursery school	Yes	Mixed	More About School

Primary

	Ofsted Overall Effectiveness	Distance	Establishment Type	Has Nursery Classes	Gender	More Info
Springfield Primary School Orchard Street , Kempston MK42 7LJ	- not rated	160 yd	Community school	No	Mixed	More About School
Springfield Primary School Orchard Street , Kempston MK42 7LJ	3out of 4	160 yd	Academy converter	No	Mixed	More About School
Camestone School Jowitt Avenue , Kempston MK42 8NW	3out of 4	735 yd	Community school	No	Mixed	More About School
Bedford Road Primary School Hillgrounds Road , Kempston MK42 8QH	- not rated	981 yd	Community school	No	Mixed	More About School
Bedford Road Primary Academy Hillgrounds Road , Kempston MK42 8QH	2out of 4	1,046 yd	Academy sponsor led	No	Mixed	More About School

Secondary

	Ofsted Overall Effectiveness	Distance	Establishment Type	Has Nursery Classes	Gender	More Info
Daubeney Academy Orchard Street , Kempston MK42 7PS	- not rated	302 yd	Academy converter	No	Mixed	More About School
Kempston Academy Hill Rise , Kempston MK42 7EB	3out of 4	1,589 yd	Academy sponsor led	No	Mixed	More About School
Hastingsbury Business & Enterprise College Hill Rise , Kempston MK42 7EB	- not rated	1,589 yd	Foundation school	No	Mixed	More About School
John Bunyan School Mile Road , MK42 9TR	- not rated	2,682 yd	Community school	Not Applicable	Mixed	More About School
Bedford Academy Mile Road , MK42 9TR	3out of 4	2,740 yd	Academy sponsor led	Not Applicable	Mixed	More About School

Middle deemed secondary

	Ofsted Overall Effectiveness	Distance	Establishment Type	Has Nursery Classes	Gender	More Info
Daubeney Middle School Orchard Street , Kempston MK42 7PS	- not rated	302 yd	Foundation school	No	Mixed	More About School
Robert Bruce Middle School Bedford Road , Kempston MK42 8PU	- not rated	1,230 yd	Academy sponsor led	No	Mixed	More About School
Robert Bruce Middle School Bedford Road , Kempston MK42 8PU	- not rated	1,230 yd	Foundation school	No	Mixed	More About School
Abbey Middle School Mowbray Road , MK42 9XA	- not rated	1,959 yd	Community school	No	Mixed	More About School
Kingsbrook Middle School Oak Road , MK42 0HH	- not rated	2,982 yd	Community school	Not Applicable	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	2,976 yd	Further education	Not Applicable	Mixed	More About School

Not applicable

	Ofsted Overall Effectiveness	Distance	Establishment Type	Has Nursery Classes	Gender	More Info
Greys Education Centre Manor Drive , Kempston MK42 7AB	- not rated	1,146 yd	Pupil referral unit	Not Applicable	Mixed	More About School
Greys Education Centre Manor Drive , Kempston MK42 7AB	3out of 4	1,146 yd	Academy alternative provision converter	No	Mixed	More About School
Greys House Residential School Manor Drive , Kempston MK42 7AB	- not rated	1,266 yd	Miscellaneous	Not Applicable	Mixed	More About School
Greys House Manor Drive , Kempston MK42 7AB	- not rated	1,266 yd	Pupil referral unit	Not Applicable	Mixed	More About School
The Student Support Centre Greys House , Manor Drive MK42 7AB	- not rated	1,266 yd	Pupil referral unit	Not Applicable	Mixed	More About School

School statistics for this postcode are based on Ofsted rankings.

Food and Drink

Restaurants, Cafes, Canteens

Business Name	Address	Distance
Burger King	Burger King, Interchange Retail Park, 3 Polo Field Way	437 yd
McDonald's	Mcdonalds, Interchange Retail Park, Race Meadows Way	437 yd
Costa Ltd	Unit N, Interchange Retail Park, Race Meadows Way	437 yd
KFC	Kfc, Interchange Retail Park, 3 Polo Field Way	437 yd
Bedfordshire Fire & Rescue Service	Bedfordshire And Luton Fire And Rescue Service, Southfields Road	667 yd

Pubs, Bars, Nightclubs

Business Name	Address	Distance
The Mulberry Bush	The Mulberry Bush, Springfield Centre	274 yd
The Duke Inn	The Duke Inn, 10 Woburn Road	657 yd
Royal Oak	The Royal Oak, 91 Woburn Road	729 yd
Kempston Constitutional Club	196a Bedford Road	955 yd
The Smiths Arms Public House Ltd	The Smiths Arms, 15 Margetts Road	973 yd

Takeaway, Sandwich Shops

Business Name	Address	Distance
Cinnamon	2 Springfield Centre	274 yd
Mangal BBQ	3 Springfield Centre	274 yd
Kim Hing Takeaway	7 Springfield Centre	274 yd
Domino's Pizza	232 Saxon Centre, Bedford Road	848 yd
The Café Grill	14 Bunyan Road	876 yd

Supermarkets, Hypermarkets

Business Name	Address	Distance
J Sainsbury Plc (Main Store)	252-274 Saxon Centre, Bedford Road	848 yd
Co-operative	12-14 St Johns Street	925 yd
Tesco	203-207 Bedford Road	1,054 yd

Sport

Facility Name	Sport Objects	Distance
Daubeney Academy ORCHARD STREET	grass pitches, tennis courts	306 yd
Southfield Tennis Courts LAUREL WALK	tennis courts	566 yd
Cryselco Sports Field ST. JOHNS AVENUE	grass pitches	836 yd
Kempston East Methodist Church 227 227 BEDFORD ROAD		1,006 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	102.2 Mbit/s
Minimum download speed	200 Mbit/s
Maximum download speed	200 Mbit/s

Upload Speed

Median upload speed	10 Mbit/s
Average upload speed	11.5 Mbit/s
Maximum upload speed	20 Mbit/s

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