Leighton Buzzard Central

Central Bedfordshire · East of England · population 9,521 · 5 LSOAs

Approximate neighbourhood (MSOA) boundary. © OpenStreetMap contributors; boundary © ONS / Crown copyright.

46Area Score / 100 ?
  • #3,727 of 6,856 in England
  • #506 of 746 in East of England
  • #30 of 33 in Central Bedfordshire
  • Around the England average
Compare this area →

People living here Census 2021

Residents9,584
Median age (est.)40
Density5,394per km²
No qualifications19%
Degree or above32%
No car or van22%

Age

0–14 18%15–24 9%25–44 30%45–64 26%65+ 17%

Tenure

Own outright: 26%Mortgage/shared: 31%Social rent: 22%Private rent: 21%
Own outright 26%Mortgage/shared 31%Social rent 22%Private rent 21%

Households

One person: 36%Couple, no children: 17%Couple with children: 23%Lone parent: 12%Other: 11%
One person 36%Couple, no children 17%Couple with children 23%Lone parent 12%Other 11%

Work (top occupations)

Professional 19% · Associate professional 16% · Managers & directors 13%

All occupation groups
Professional19%
Associate professional16%
Managers & directors13%
Skilled trades11%
Elementary10%
Administrative9%
Sales & customer service8%
Caring & leisure7%
Process & plant7%

Ethnic group

White: 92%Asian: 2%Black: 2%Mixed: 3%Other: 1%
White 92%Asian 2%Black 2%Mixed 3%Other 1%

Religion & identity

No religion 49% · Christian 42% · Muslim 1%

Born outside the UK: 11%

Census 2021 (ONS), Crown copyright, OGL v3.0. Shares are of each question's own respondents (e.g. education is % of residents aged 16+). Figures date from March 2021 and change slowly between censuses.

In summary

Leighton Buzzard Central sits close to the national midpoint for deprivation, #3,727 of 6,856 in England, and #30 of 33 in Central Bedfordshire. Across the seven themes it scores highest on Housing & access (74) and lowest on Crime (28). Typical homes here sold for about £275,000 over the past year, broadly flat over five years (+0%) (from 189 sales), 24% below the wider Central Bedfordshire median of £363,000. Typical household take-home income is around £40,251 a year, around the middle of England. Recorded crime ran at 123 incidents per 1,000 residents over the past year, above the England rate of 83.

Themed scores ?

Each 0–100, higher = less deprived on that theme. National rank shown.

Income 38 · #4,214
Employment 42 · #3,960
Education 42 · #3,940
Health 45 · #3,748
Crime 28 · #4,906
Housing & access 74 · #1,760
Living environment 55 · #3,110

House prices ?

£275,000median (12m) · -0.4% yr · n=189
TypeMedian (12m)Sales1yr5yr
All homes£275,000189-0.4%0.0%
Detached£437,50020+0.6%+8.7%
Semi-detached£341,25038+7.5%+6.6%
Terraced£291,00058+0.3%+11.0%
Flat£168,00073-4.5%+5.0%
This area£275,000
Central Bedfordshire£363,000
East of England£348,000
England£300,000
Annual median price, all homes. Small samples can be volatile.

Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. This data is licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Household income

Net household income (a year)£40,251±£5,632 · #3,341 of 6,856
After housing costs (equivalised)£34,058
Price-to-income ?6.8×typical home ÷ net income — less stretched than the England figure of 7.5×

Model-based ONS estimates (FYE 2023) with 95% confidence intervals — a guide to the typical household, not a measurement. How income estimates work →

Affordability-adjusted Score ?

68Affordability-adjusted Score / 100
Best-value areas in England →

Recorded crime ?

123 crimes per 1,000 residents · 12 months · 1,174 offences
Central Bedfordshire51
East of England70
England83

Rank #5,527 of 6,427 areas with published data (1 = lowest recorded rate).

Category (12 months)Recorded
Violence & sexual offences420
Theft292
Burglary66
Vehicle crime79
Criminal damage & arson110
Public order & weapons117
Drugs40
Robbery29
Other21

Anti-social behaviour, recorded separately: 258 incidents.

Recorded incidents, not convictions. Crimes are counted where they happen while residents are counted where they live, so busy town-centre, retail and nightlife areas show high per-resident rates because visitors bring incidents with them. Street-level crime data © Crown copyright, data.police.uk, OGL v3.0. More on crime figures →

Official sources

Nearby areas

The closest neighbourhoods on the map, whichever authority they fall in.

Other areas in Central Bedfordshire

Similar areas across England

Neighbourhoods with the closest Area Score elsewhere in the country, for comparison.