University of Bedfordshire

The University of Bedfordshire was created by the merger of the University of Luton and De Montford University's Bedford campus and is the largest provider of undergraduate and postgraduate education in Bedfordshire.

About Bedford

Bedford is both the county town of Bedfordshire and the administrative centre for the Borough of Bedford, located slightly north of London. The town of Bedford itself is home to over 79,000 residents and students, while the adjacent urban areas bring the entire modern area to a population of over 153,000.

In the Middle Ages, Bedford started development as a market town in the agricultural area it used to be. After years of slow formation, the town took to engineering in the 1800s, which helped the town develop and grow faster than ever due to the construction of a railway system and other industrial innovations.

Little Italy

Some people with a tendency towards travel and foreign culture can notice a slight Italian character throughout the town. This is due to an influence from the relatively heavy population of Italians or Italian descendants, which started in the 1950’s when the British government hired many people in Italy to travel and work in Bedford. Today, even with such a character and prevalence, Bedford has become a hugely diverse town with an even distribution of people originally from many other parts of the globe.

Those looking to study should take a look at the courses that are on offer here. Here in Bedford lies the Bedford campus of the University of Bedfordshire. A merger in 2006 meant that this campus, formerly De Montfort University, came together with Luton’s academic institution to improve the quality of their educational services. Today we see over 14,000 students taking part in this University, so there’s definitely no lack of people to make up for a great student life!

Bedford itself has a great and detailed history and reflects this in its culture. Religion has always been a major part of the town too; nowadays you can see many different places of worship for many, many different religions. Whatever your views are, these buildings you can find in Bedford are of an architectural magnificence and are easy to appreciate.

Historical Sights Galore

Art is a major contributor to the culture of Bedford, too. If you are visiting the town or have just moved in, be sure to have a look at the Cecil Higgins Gallery, a large-scale art gallery featuring many different kinds of artwork up for display in a renovated and meticulously crafted Victorian home of the Higgins family. Just next door is the Bedford Museum, which can make for a convenient trip out with friends or family.

Getting in and out of Bedford is also not a problem; the town itself hosts two separate railway stations, which provides simple and regular transport access to London (specifically, St. Pancras, adjacent to King’s Cross) and many other major cities of England.

Traveling to Bedford

Many recent developments – and currently ongoing developments – of the road infrastructure around Bedford have meant that access to the town is easy by car, with both the A1 and M1 motorway provide easy entrance to the town when coming from the north or the south. For getting out and about in town, there exists a Park and Ride, which guarantees regular transport through the hot spots of town.