Kingsbrook is an

electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected t ...

and area within the

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population was 106,940. Bedford is the county town of Bedfordshire and seat of the Borough of Bedford local government district. Bedford was founded at a ford (crossin ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. The boundaries of Kingsbrook are approximately the

River Great Ouse The River Great Ouse ( ) is a river in England, the longest of several British rivers called "Ouse". From Syresham in Northamptonshire, the Great Ouse flows through Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Norfolk to drain into the ...

and Priory

Country Park A country park is a natural area designated for people to visit and enjoy recreation in a countryside environment. United Kingdom History In the United Kingdom, the term ''country park'' has a specific meaning. There are around 250 designated c ...

to the north,

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

Road and the A421 to the south and east, with Redwood Grove and Willow Road to the west. The Fenlake and Silver Jubilee neighbourhoods are both part of the Kingsbrook ward, as is the Priory Business Park and the Cambridge Road Industrial Estate. Kingsbrook is the largest ward (in terms of population) in Bedford.

History

There is evidence of a late

Neolithic The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...

or early

Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...

settlement and ritual site, located next to the Bunyan Centre in Kingsbrook. Excavations in 1995 uncovered three skeletons and a complete Beaker pot. There was some settlement in the northern part of Kingsbrook (by the river) in the 19th century. However the area was not properly developed until the 20th century, with the construction of the Silver Jubilee neighbourhood in the 1930s, which was named after the

Silver Jubilee Silver Jubilee marks a 25th anniversary. The anniversary celebrations can be of a wedding anniversary, the 25th year of a monarch's reign or anything that has completed or is entering a 25-year mark. Royal Silver Jubilees since 1750 Note: This ...

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. George was born during the reign of his pa ...

in 1935. The final part of southern Kingsbrook was settled by the 1970s, and named Fenlake.

Governance

Kingsbrook is an

unparished area In England, an unparished area is an area that is not covered by a civil parish (the lowest level of local government, not to be confused with an ecclesiastical parish). Most urbanised districts of England are either entirely or partly unparis ...

of Bedford, with all community services under the direct control of

Bedford Borough Council Bedford Borough Council is the local authority of the Borough of Bedford, a local government district in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England. The town of Bedford was a borough from at least the 12th century until 1974, when the moder ...

. Kingsbrook elects two councillors to Bedford Borough Council, currently, after the 2015 election, one is Labour and the other Liberal Democrat.

Economy

There are many local shops and services located on London Road, including a

supermarket A supermarket is a self-service Retail#Types of outlets, shop offering a wide variety of food, Drink, beverages and Household goods, household products, organized into sections. Strictly speaking, a supermarket is larger and has a wider selecti ...

, petrol station,

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letter (message), letters and parcel (package), parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post o ...

and a

bakery A bakery is an establishment that produces and sells flour-based baked goods made in an oven such as bread, cookies, cakes, doughnuts, bagels, Pastry, pastries, and pies. Some retail bakeries are also categorized as Coffeehouse, cafés, servi ...

. There is a large

Tesco Tesco plc () is a British multinational groceries and general merchandise retailer headquartered in the United Kingdom at its head offices in Welwyn Garden City, England. The company was founded by Jack Cohen (businessman), Sir Jack Cohen in ...

superstore sited on Cardington Road, as well as the Barns Hotel. There are two large business parks in Kingsbrook. The first is the Cambridge Road Industrial Estate which houses many companies including

Fujifilm , trading as , or simply Fuji, is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, operating in the areas of photography, optics, Office supplies, office and Biomedical engine ...

. The second is Priory Business Park on Cardington Road, which houses many other firms including the head offices of Autoglass and the National Hairdressers' Federation.

Education

There is one

primary school A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...

in Kingsbrook - King's Oak Primary School located on Canvin Way and Oak Road. King's Oak Primary School was formed in September 2014 from an amalgamation of Stephenson Lower School (Canvin Way) and Harrowden Middle School (Oak Road). The main

secondary school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., b ...

in Kingsbrook is Bedford Academy sited on Mile Road.

Religious sites

* Christ the King

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

Church, located on Harrowden Road * St Michael's and All Angels Church (

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

), located on Barford Avenue * The Bedford

Nirankari Nirankari (, ''lit.'' "formless one") is a Sects of Sikhism, sect of Sikhism.Harbans Singh, Editor-in-Chief (201Nirankaris Encyclopedia of Sikhism Volume III, Punjabi University, Patiala, pages 234–235 It was a reform movement founded by Bab ...

Satsung Bhawan

Sikh Sikhs (singular Sikh: or ; , ) are an ethnoreligious group who adhere to Sikhism, a religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ''Si ...

Temple, located on Cardington Road * There is a Kingdom Hall for

Jehovah's Witnesses Jehovah's Witnesses is a Christian denomination that is an outgrowth of the Bible Student movement founded by Charles Taze Russell in the nineteenth century. The denomination is nontrinitarian, millenarian, and restorationist. Russell co-fou ...

on Goodmayes Close * Christ United Pentecostal Church holds meetings at the Jubilation Centre situated on Moulton Avenue * The

Redeemed Christian Church of God The Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) is a holiness pentecostal megachurch and denomination headquartered in Ebute Metta, Lagos, Nigeria. With presence in 197 countries and territories of the world and more than 5 million members in Nigeri ...

also holds meetings at the Jubilation Centre situated on Moulton Avenue JubilationCentreBedford

Community facilities

Kingsbrook's open spaces include Jubilee Park on Canvin Way, and Fenlake Meadows on Cardington Road. There are two

community centre A community centre, community center, or community hall is a public location where members of a community gather for group activities, social support, public information, and other purposes. They may be open for the whole community or for a sp ...

s in the area - The first is Scott Hall Community Centre located on Barford Avenue, and the second is the Jubilation Centre situated on Moulton Avenue. The Oasis Beach Pool (a public

swimming pool A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, paddling pool, or simply pool, is a structure designed to hold water to enable Human swimming, swimming and associated activities. Pools can be built into the ground (in-ground pools) or built abo ...

) is situated on Cardington Road. The Bunyan Centre is a

leisure centre A leisure centre, sports centre, or recreation centre is a purpose-built building or site, usually owned and provided by the local government authority, where people can engage in a variety of sports and exercise, and keep fit. Typical facilit ...

situated on Mile Road. The centre acts as a main sports venue for the whole of south Bedford.

References

External links

Kingsbrook and Cauldwell Urban Community Council

{{Areas of Bedford Areas of Bedford