Cotton End

Eastcotts is an electoral ward within the Borough of Bedford, in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England. It was formerly also a civil parish until its abolition on 1 April 2019, when Cotton End and Shortstown parishes were established.The boundaries of Eastcotts are approximately Exeter Wood to the east, Bedfordshire Greensand Ridge to the south and Shocott Spring to the west. There are two woodlands; Shocott Spring and Exeter Wood, two villages; Shortstown and Cotton End and two hamlets; Harrowden and Herrings Green. And some landmarks such as the Cardington Sheds.

Cardington Airfield, previously RAF Cardington, is a former Royal Air Force station in Bedfordshire, England, with a long and varied history, particularly in relation to airships and balloons. Most of the former RAF station is in the parish of Eastcotts, as is the settlement of Shortstown.

Herrings Green is a hamlet in the civil parish of Cotton End, on the outskirts of Bedford, in the Bedford district, in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England. The settlement is close to Cotton End and Wilstead. It is a tiny group of just 3 cottages and some farms on the Wilstead Road. Until 2019 Herrings Green forms part of the Eastcotts civil parish.

Cardington Workmen's Platform was a railway station on the Bedford to Hitchin Line which served the Royal Air Force station near the village of Cardington in Bedfordshire, England. A short-lived halt, it opened during the First World War and closed in 1921.

Cardington was a railway station on the Bedford to Hitchin Line which served the village of Cardington in Bedfordshire, England. Opened in 1857, it gave more than a century of service before closing in 1962.

Cardington is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Bedford in Bedfordshire, England. Part of the ancient hundred of Wixamtree, the settlement is best known in connection with the Cardington airship works founded by Short Brothers during World War I, which later became an RAF training station. However most of the former RAF station is actually in the parish of Eastcotts, as is the settlement of Shortstown, which was originally built by Short Brothers for its workers. The village of Cardington is located to the north east of Shortstown and the RAF station, and houses most of the population of the parish, which was 270 in 2005, making it one of the least populated parishes in Bedfordshire.

Bedfordshire is a county in the East of England. It is bounded by Hertfordshire to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Northamptonshire to the north, and Buckinghamshire to the west. It has an area of 1,235 square kilometres (477 sq mi), and population estimated in 2015 at 630,000, with an increase of 10% over the previous ten years. The county town is Bedford, and the name is first recorded in the treaty in about 879 between King Alfred the Great and Guthrum, which divided English and Danish territory by a line which went through Bedford.Southern Bedfordshire is part of the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. North and mid Bedfordshire are undulating claylands with broad river valleys of the River Great Ouse and its tributaries, and the Bedfordshire Greensand Ridge. Jurassic and Cretaceous clays are overlaid by Quaternary glacial deposits of chalky boulder clay.There are forty Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) in Bedfordshire, designated by Natural England. Thirty-five are listed for their biological interest, and five for their geological interest. Three of the sites are also national nature reserves, twelve are in the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and eleven are managed wholly or partly by the Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire. In 2009 Bedfordshire was divided into three unitary local authorities: thirty-two sites are in Central Bedfordshire, eight in Bedford and none in Luton.

Bedfordshire (; abbreviated Beds) is a ceremonial county in the East of England. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Hertfordshire to the south and the south-east, and Buckinghamshire to the west. The largest settlement is Luton (225,262), and Bedford is the county town. The county has an area of 1,235 km2 (477 sq mi) and had a population of 704,736 at the 2021 census. Its other towns include Leighton Buzzard, Dunstable, and Biggleswade. Much of the county is rural. For local government purposes, Bedfordshire comprises three unitary authority areas: Bedford, Central Bedfordshire, and Luton. The county's highest point is 243 m (797 ft) on Dunstable Downs in the Chilterns.

Bedfordshire is a county in the East of England. It is bounded by Hertfordshire to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Northamptonshire to the north, and Buckinghamshire to the west. It has an area of 1,235 square kilometres (477 sq mi), and a population estimated in 2016 at 640,000, with an increase of 11% over the previous ten years. Geographically, it is mainly rural, but still the fourteenth most densely populated county of England, with over half the population living in the two largest built-up areas, Luton and Bedford. The county is governed by three unitary authorities, Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Luton. The county town is Bedford, and the name is first recorded in the treaty in about 879 between King Alfred the Great and Guthrum, which divided English and Danish territory by a line which went through Bedford.Much of Luton and southern Bedfordshire lies in the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. North and mid Bedfordshire are undulating claylands with broad river valleys of the River Great Ouse and its tributaries, and the Bedfordshire Greensand Ridge. Jurassic and Cretaceous clays are overlaid by Quaternary glacial deposits of chalky boulder clay.Local nature reserves (LNRs) are designated by local authorities under the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949. The local authority must have a legal control over the site, by owning or leasing it, or having a legal agreement with the owner. LNRs are sites which have a special local interest either biologically or geologically, and local authorities have a duty to care for them. They can apply local bye-laws to manage and protect LNRs.As of March 2016 there are twenty local nature reserves in Bedfordshire: eight in Bedford, eleven in Central Bedfordshire and one in Luton. The largest is Harrold-Odell Country Park with 59.3 hectares (147 acres); it is a former quarry on the bank of the River Great Ouse which has river meadows and two lakes. The smallest is Hill Rise at 0.9 hectares (2.2 acres); it is close to Bedford town centre and surrounded on three sides by houses, but it has a variety of habitats. There is public access to all the sites.

Shortstown is a village and civil parish on the outskirts of Bedford, on a ridge above the River Great Ouse, originally called Tinkers Hill.This ridge also overlooks the two other parts of Eastcotts – Harrowden to the north and Cotton End to the south. The name is taken from Short Brothers. The Admiralty established an airship works for the company in 1916. The company pulled out of airship work just three years later, but the name Shortstown stuck.

Eastcotts Castle was a medieval castle located in the parish of Eastcotts, at the edge of Exeter Wood, in the county of Bedfordshire, England. Eastcotts Castle is believed to have been constructed during the late 11th, or early 12th, centuries. It was a small motte castle, made of timber, located on the northern edge of the Bedfordshire Greensand Ridge. It was in a prime location, overlooking the village of Cardington, as well as the River Ouse. Only earthworks remain at the site, which is a Scheduled Monument, located in Exeter Wood, 780m south east of Wood Farm.

Heart Bedford (formerly Chiltern Radio 96.9) was an Independent Local Radio station based in the Priory Business Park in Bedford, Bedfordshire in England.