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Bedfordshire

Historic County of England / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Bedfordshire (/ˈbɛdfərdʃɪər, -ʃər/; abbreviated Beds) is a ceremonial and historic county in the East of England. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Cambridgeshire to the north-east and east, Hertfordshire to the south and south-east, and Buckinghamshire to the west. Since Bedfordshire County Council was abolished in 2009, the county has been administered by the three unitary authorities of the Borough of Bedford, Borough of Luton, and Central Bedfordshire.

Quick facts: Bedfordshire, Sovereign state, Constituent co...
Bedfordshire
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Location of Bedfordshire in England
Location of Bedfordshire in England
Coordinates: 52°05′N 0°25′W
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Constituent countryEngland
RegionEast
EstablishedAncient
Time zoneUTC±00:00 (Greenwich Mean Time)
  Summer (DST)UTC+01:00 (British Summer Time)
Members of ParliamentList of MPs
PoliceBedfordshire Police
Largest townLuton
Ceremonial county
Lord LieutenantSusan Lousada
High SheriffLady (Jane) Clifford (2022–23) [1]
Area1,235 km2 (477 sq mi)
  Ranked41st of 48
Population (2021)669,338
  Ranked36th of 48
Density542/km2 (1,400/sq mi)
Ethnicity86.3% White
8.3% S.Asian
2.9% Black
Districts
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Districts of Bedfordshire
Unitary
Districts
  1. Bedford
  2. Central Bedfordshire
  3. Luton
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It is the fourteenth most densely populated county of England, with over half the population of the county living in the two largest built-up areas: Luton (258,018)[2] and Bedford (106,940).[3] Its highest elevation point is 243 metres (797 ft) on Dunstable Downs in the Chilterns.[4]