Inclusive for all

Opportunities

Explore new delivery methods (potentially led by the public sector) to ensure high quality housing is built at pace and with the critical mass to provide infrastructure first.

Explore different housing types and tenures that meet the needs of families and older people.

Lifetime Homes ensure that all new homes are built to standards that enable people can continue to live in their homes into later life.

Work with existing community buildings and networks to develop more opportunities for younger and older people and create cross generational links.

Challenges

A growing and ageing population could place additional strain on infrastructure, including the health and social care system, to support residents to live as healthy a lifestyle as possible.

Reducing household sizes requires a greater need to create spaces for interaction and social support networks.

Central Bedfordshire is sparsely populated and classified as ‘predominantly rural’. Growth needs to be carefully planned so as to retain the special qualities of rural settlements, but to ensure these small communities have access to a rich range of community, leisure and cultural spaces.

Trends

A growing population

There are 20% more people living in Central Bedfordshire than in 2001. This is predicted to increase by 54,000 (18%) by 2035.

An influx of families

The biggest household group in Central Bedfordshire is, however, new families, which reflects the amount of new-build housing in the area.

An ageing population

Growth is fastest amongst older people, where 27,800 more residents aged 65+ are expected by 2035.

Pockets of deprivation

Overall, households are fairly affluent. 76% of people live in the least deprived 50% of neighbourhoods in the UK. However, 3.3% live in the most deprived 20% of areas of England. These areas are mostly concentrated in small pockets of deprivation in Dunstable, Houghton Regis and Leighton Linslade.