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|image_blank_emblem = Bedford arms.svg
|blank_emblem_type = Coat of arms of Bedford Borough Council
|blank_emblem_size = 150px
|image_map = Bedford UK locator map.svg
|mapsize =
|map_caption = Bedford shown within Bedfordshire
|subdivision_type = Sovereign state
|subdivision_name = {{flagdeco|UK}} United Kingdom
|subdivision_type1 = Country
|subdivision_name1 = {{flagdeco|ENG}} England
|subdivision_type2 = Region
|subdivision_name2 = East of England
|subdivision_type3 = Ceremonial county
|subdivision_name3 = Bedfordshire
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|government_type = Unitary Authority
|leader_title = Governing body
|leader_name = Bedford Borough Council
|leader_title1 = Executive mayor
|leader_name1 =
|leader_title2 =
|leader_name2 =
|leader_title3 = MPs
|leader_name3 = Richard Fuller (C)Alistair Strathern (L)Mohammad Yasin (L)
|seat_type = Administrative HQ
|seat = Borough Hall, Bedford
|established_title =
|established_date = 1 April 2009
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|population_as_of = {{English statistics year}}
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2021 United Kingdom census>2021)

id=E06000055

access-date=5 January 2024}}

Ethnic groups in the United Kingdom>Ethnic groups| demographics1_info1 =

{{Collapsible list
| 75.7% White
| 12.6% Asian
| 5.3% Black
| 4.6% Mixed
| 1.8% other
}}

| demographics_type2 = Religion (2021)| demographics2_footnotes =

Religion in England>Religion| demographics2_info1 =

{{Collapsible list
| 47.6% Christianity
| 34.1% no religion
| 11.2% other
| 7.1% Islam
}}
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}}The Borough of Bedford is a unitary authority area with borough status in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England. Its council is based in Bedford, its namesake and principal settlement, which is the county town of Bedfordshire. The Bedford built-up-area is the 71st largest in the United Kingdom and comprises the boundaries of the pre-1974 Bedford Municipal Borough, the town of Kempston and the village of Biddenham,{{NOMIS2011|id=E34004993|title=Bedford Built-up Area|access-date=26 July 2019}} with the BUA surrounded by a rural area with many villages. 75% of the borough's population live in the Bedford Urban Area and the five large villages which surround it, which makes up slightly less than 6% of the total land area of the Borough.The borough is also the location of the Wixams new town development, which received its first residents in 2009.

History

The ancient borough of Bedford was a borough by prescription, with its original date of incorporation unknown. The earliest surviving charter was issued c. 1166 by Henry II, confirming to the borough the liberties and customs which it had held in the reign of Henry I.BOOK,weblink The Borough of Bedford, A History of the County of Bedford: Volume 3, British History Online, 1912, Page, William, 8 August 2021, WEB,weblink Bedford Borough records introduction, Bedfordshire Archives, 8 August 2021, The borough became a municipal borough under the Municipal Corporations Act 1835.The District of Bedford was formed on 1 April 1974 as a merger of the existing borough of Bedford, along with Kempston Urban District and Bedford Rural District. In 1975 the district was granted a royal charter granting borough status as North Bedfordshire.North Bedfordshire Borough Council, London Gazette, 31 October 1975, page 13813. Change of name and status from Bedford District to North Bedfordshire Borough with effect from 16 October 1975. The borough changed its name back from North Bedfordshire to Bedford in 1992.Bulletin of Changes of Local Authority Status, Names and Areas, 1 April 1992 - 31 March 1993 (Department of the Environment). Change of name from North Bedfordshire to Bedford effective from 1 October 1992.Bedfordshire's administrative structure was reorganised as part of the 2009 structural changes to local government in England, meaning that Bedford Borough Council became a unitary authority in April 2009. Bedford Borough Council assumed responsibility in areas such as education, social services and transport which were previously provided by Bedfordshire County Council.Unitary solution confirmed for Bedfordshire â€“ New flagship unitary councils approved for Cheshire â€“ Corporate â€“ Communities and Local Government {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081122073630weblink |date=22 November 2008 }}County council to be abolished in shake-up â€“ Bedford Today A New Beginning {{webarchive |url=https://archive.today/20090224195200weblink |date=24 February 2009 }}

Governance

The council is based at Borough Hall on Cauldwell Street on the banks of the River Great Ouse in the centre of Bedford. The building was previously known as County Hall and had been the headquarters of Bedfordshire County Council prior to 2009. The unitary authority area is divided into 28 wards for elections to the Borough Council.WEB,weblink Wards and polling district maps, 3 December 2023, Bedford Borough Council,

Parishes

{{see also|Civil parishes in Bedfordshire}}Most of the area of the pre-1974 municipal borough of Bedford is unparished, although the parish of Brickhill was created within that area in 2004. The rest of the modern borough, including Kempston (the borough's only CP with a town council), is parished. The parishes are:WEB, Election Maps,weblink Ordnance Survey, 10 May 2023, {{div col|colwidth=22em}} {{div col end}}

Freedom of the Borough

The following people and military units have received the Freedom of the Borough of Bedford.{{Incomplete list|date=August 2020}}

Individuals

Etienne Stott: 11 December 2012.NEWS,weblink Olympic canoeist Etienne Stott given freedom of Bedford, BBC News, 11 December 2012,

Military Units

Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment: November 1955
RAF Cardington: 16 July 1959.WEB,weblink RAF Cardington Camp, rafcardingtoncamp.co.uk,
287 Regiment Royal Artillery: 5 May 1963.
1st Battalion Royal Anglian Regiment: 1980.NEWS,weblink In pictures: Royal Anglians march through Bedford, BBC News, 22 July 2014,
201 (Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire Yeomanry) Battery Royal Artillery (Volunteers): 3 May 1986.
RAF Henlow: 26 September 1992.
774th USAF Airbase Group: 15 December 1994.
134 (Bedford) Squadron Air Training Corps: 1 August 1999.

References

External links

{{Official website}}

{{Bedfordshire}}{{East_of_England}}{{Unitary authorities of England}}{{Authority control}}{{Coord|52|08|04|N|0|27|47|W|display=title|region:GB_type:city_source:nlwiki}}

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Borough of Bedford

History

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