The Indices of Deprivation 2019 were published by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) in September 2019.
The Indices of Deprivation are prepared using the Lower Super Output Area (LSOA) geography which has the dual benefits of consistent size throughout England, and being stable over time so that changes in deprivation levels can be measured.
Download a brief guide to LSOAs
There are 32,844 LSOAs in England (103 in Bedford Borough). Deprivation scores are calculated for each LSOA and then ranked from 1 (most deprived) to 32,844 (least deprived).
The rankings are often reported as deciles of deprivation from 0-10% (most deprived), 10-20%, 20-30% … 90-100% (least deprived).
It should be noted that:
- The Indices of Deprivation measure relative deprivation, not absolute.
- Not all residents of deprived areas are deprived, and not all deprived people live in deprived areas.
The Indices of Deprivation 2019 provide a national ranking of local deprivation levels using a series of 7 domains (income, employment, education, health and disability, barriers to housing and services, crime, and the living environment) which are also weighted and combined to form the most commonly referenced measure of deprivation, the Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD).
Particular attention is paid to those LSOAs which fall within the 0-10%, 10-20%, and 20-30% most deprived areas in England.
Deprivation in Bedford Borough
Nationally, Bedford Borough is in the mid range on overall deprivation, ranking 150 out of 317 local authorities in England (where 1 is the most deprived) on the 2019 IMD (based on the measure of ‘rank of average score’).
However, this average overall ranking masks areas of significant deprivation affecting many residents in Bedford and Kempston Towns.
There are 25 LSOAs in the Borough which fall within the 0-30% most deprived areas in England on the IMD. All 25 are in either Bedford or Kempston Towns.
More data
View data for deprivation at Neighbourhood-level or Postcode level in England.
View data for deprivation at local authority district level in England.
Download the complete datasets for the Indices of Deprivation 2019, together with technical reports and guidance.
Further information
For further information, please contact: intelligence@bedford.gov.uk
