MK42 postcode area guide — Bedford

Where is MK42?

Broadband & internet speeds in MK42

Excellent coverage

Broadband availability in the MK42 postcode district (Bedford) is Excellent — gigabit-capable full fibre is widely available. Across the 1,217 postcodes Ofcom measures in MK42, superfast broadband (30 Mbit/s or faster) reaches 98.5% of premises and gigabit-capable lines are available to 90.6%.

Around 0% of premises in MK42 fall below the Universal Service Obligation (a minimum of 10 Mbit/s download and 1 Mbit/s upload), so the overwhelming majority of homes and businesses here can already order a decent fixed line. For a business that depends on its connection, the figures that matter most are gigabit and full-fibre availability — the symmetric, low-contention services we quote leased lines and FTTP against.

Sample postcodes in MK42

Run a speed test to see what you're actually getting, or check your exact postcode.

Mobile signal around Bedford

Ofcom's coverage model for the wider Bedford district (85,826 premises):

Signal varies street by street — use the mobile coverage checker to compare EE, O2, Three and Vodafone at an exact postcode.

Crime in MK42

Police recorded 336 incidents within about a mile of the centre of MK42 in May 2026 (latest published street-level data). The breakdown:

Raw counts favour busy town centres — a high street with shops and nightlife records more incidents than a residential cul-de-sac. Source: police.uk open data (point sample around the district centroid).

House prices in MK42

Based on 545 sales registered with HM Land Registry in the last 12 months, the median sold price in MK42 is £300,000, down 3.2% on the previous year (£310,000).

Latest recorded sales in MK42

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

Who lives here? Bedford demographics

Census 2021 figures for the wider Bedford district (185,227 residents, 74,949 households):

Source: ONS Census 2021 (district level — the finest openly licensed cut we republish). © Crown copyright, OGL v3.0.

Schools in and around MK42

Source: DfE Get Information about Schools (England & Wales). Check Ofsted report cards for inspection detail — headline one-word grades were retired in 2024.

Food hygiene ratings in MK42

282 rated food businesses operate in MK42. 209 hold the top rating of 5, 32 are rated 4, and 4 are rated 2 or below.

Among the 5-rated: A1 Foods, abm catering @ Adlington The Newalls, Addison Howard Centre, AFC Kempston Rovers Football Club, Aldi.

Source: Food Standards Agency, food hygiene ratings (FHRS) open data.

Energy performance (EPC) in MK42

From a sample of 154 Energy Performance Certificates across 11 MK42 postcodes, the most common rating is band B (average band C). 61% of sampled homes are rated C or better.

Source: MHCLG Energy Performance of Buildings Data (England & Wales), sampled at postcode level and refreshed monthly. Individual certificates are on each postcode’s page.

Phone area codes for Bedford

Landlines around MK42 typically use:

Had a call from an unknown number? Use our free UK phone number checker to see who called.

What's it like living in MK42?

Postcodes in MK42

Neighbouring districts

All Milton Keynes (MK) postcode districts ›

Frequently asked questions

Sources: HM Land Registry Price Paid Data, police.uk street-level crime, Ofcom Connected Nations, ONS Census 2021, DfE Get Information about Schools, Food Standards Agency FHRS — all © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Figures are area aggregates; individual addresses vary. Energy performance (EPC) data will be added when our Open Data Communities registration is approved.