Bedford is the quiet, grid-planned suburb between Bayswater and Maylands, named after a colonial governor rather than a landmark, and shaped almost entirely by a tram line that stopped running decades ago. It’s a suburb of solid single-family homes and neighbourhood ovals rather than headline attractions, and increasingly popular precisely because of that.
Bedford Suburb Boundary Map
Bedford sits within the City of Bayswater, bordering Bayswater, Embleton and Maylands, about 6km north-east of the Perth CBD.
Quick Facts
| LGA | City of Bayswater |
| Region | Perth Metropolitan, North East corridor |
| Postcode | 6052 |
| Population | 5,716 (2021 Census) |
| Demographics | Median age 39; median weekly household income $2,072; average 2.5 people per household |
| Attractions | Grand Promenade Reserve, Beaufort Park, Beaufort Street heritage streetscape |
| Median House Price | Around $1,130,000-$1,200,000 depending on data source and period (REIWA, 12 months to mid-2026) |
| Median Rent | $360/week (2021 Census benchmark) |
| Dwellings | 2,423 (2021 Census) |
| Transport | No train station within Bedford; Meltham, Bayswater and Maylands stations all a short bus ride away |
| Distance to Perth CBD | Approximately 6km (around 10-15 minutes by car) |
Sources: ABS 2021 Census QuickStats, Bedford WA (SAL50091); REIWA suburb profile, accessed July 2026.
Who It Suits
Bedford suits buyers wanting a settled, tightly gridded inner-northern suburb with genuine character homes, without the price premium or foot traffic of Mount Lawley next door. It’s a strong fit for families and professionals who want quick access to Beaufort Street’s cafes and shops while living somewhere quieter, and less suited to anyone chasing a suburb with its own train station or standout attraction.
What’s It Like Living Here
Bedford is named after Frederick Bedford, Governor of Western Australia from 1903 to 1909, and its first real development wave came in the 1920s when the extension of Beaufort Street, and the tram service that ran along it, made the area accessible enough to build on. Bedford Park itself was gazetted as a townsite in 1937, and the suburb’s major growth came after the Second World War, driven by State Housing Commission developments in the postwar housing push. That history has left Bedford with a distinctive grid street pattern, a remnant of the original ribbon land grants, and a stock of predominantly low-density, single-family detached homes. A median age of 39 and household income of $2,072 a week, among the highest recorded in this series so far, reflect a well-established, comfortably-off population.
Realty Market
Bedford’s median house price is reported anywhere from around $1,130,000 to $1,200,000 depending on data source and period, with REIWA recording annual growth estimates ranging from roughly 10% to 19% over the past year, a strong run reflecting demand for character homes within easy reach of Beaufort Street and Mount Lawley without paying Mount Lawley prices. The 2021 Census rent benchmark of $360 a week is a useful floor for current comparisons, though a small, tightly held suburb like this sees relatively few rental listings at any one time. Units do come up here and there, but the market remains dominated by standalone houses on traditional blocks.
Hospitals
St John of God Mt Lawley Hospital is only a few kilometres away, making it the closest private hospital for Bedford residents. Royal Perth Hospital remains within a roughly 15-20 minute drive for major or emergency care, and St John of God Midland Public and Private Hospitals are accessible to the north-east.
Education
Bedford has no public primary school within its own boundary; families are typically zoned to Hillcrest Primary School, on a site chosen atop a hill on Coode Street just over the Bayswater border and opened in 1950, Inglewood Primary School, or Morley Primary School depending on their street. St Peter’s Primary School, a Catholic school on Wood Street established next to its parish church, provides a local private option within the suburb itself.
Industry and Work Life
Bedford is a residential suburb with commercial activity concentrated along Beaufort Street, Grand Promenade and Walter Road rather than any dedicated employment precinct. Census figures show close to 12% of employed residents use public transport to get to work, notably higher than the wider WA average, reflecting reasonable bus access to the surrounding train network despite having no station of its own; around 64% still commute by car. Most residents work across professional, retail, healthcare and education occupations spread across the wider inner-northern suburbs rather than within Bedford itself.
Attractions
The Beaufort Street streetscape that runs along Bedford’s western edge carries much of the character that draws people to this part of Perth, a legacy of the 1920s tram-driven development boom, even though the tram itself is long gone. Grand Promenade Reserve, at 142 Rosebery Street, is the suburb’s community sporting hub, with an oval used for soccer and cricket on an artificial pitch, cricket nets, basketball and netball courts, a well-regarded sand-based playground, an adjoining lawn bowls club and a community hall leased to the Filipino Australian Multicultural Association, giving the reserve a genuinely multicultural community role beyond sport.
Parks, Greenspaces and Other Public Amenities
Beaufort Park, on the corner of Drummond and Beaufort Streets, adds a large grassed oval, playground and a hireable hall, doubling as a cricket ground with an artificial pitch in summer and two soccer pitches in winter. RA Cook Reserve rounds out the suburb’s sporting greenspace, hosting Australian rules football, cricket and soccer across the season. Together these three reserves give a small suburb like Bedford a genuinely solid spread of organised sporting facilities relative to its size.
Transport
Bedford has no train station within its own boundary, but Meltham, Bayswater and Maylands stations, all on the Midland, Airport and Ellenbrook lines, are within a short bus ride, giving residents genuine choice of connection points rather than being tied to a single station. Local Transperth buses run along Beaufort Street and Walter Road. Perth CBD is approximately 6km away, around 10-15 minutes by car.
The Honest Verdict
Bedford trades a train station and a headline attraction for genuinely quiet, character-filled streets a short walk from Beaufort Street’s cafes, at prices that still sit below its flashier Mount Lawley neighbour. It’s not a suburb that will show up on a visitor’s itinerary, but for buyers who want inner-northern character and access without inner-northern noise, it’s one of the more understated options in the City of Bayswater.
FAQ
Does Bedford have a train station?
No. The nearest stations are Meltham, Bayswater and Maylands, all a short bus ride away on the Midland, Airport and Ellenbrook lines.
Where does the name Bedford come from?
From Frederick Bedford, Governor of Western Australia from 1903 to 1909.
References
- Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2021 Census QuickStats, Bedford WA (SAL50091), abs.gov.au
- REIWA, Bedford suburb profile, reiwa.com.au
- Wikipedia, Bedford, Western Australia, en.wikipedia.org
- City of Bayswater, Local History, bayswater.wa.gov.au
- City of Bayswater, Schools and Education, bayswater.wa.gov.au
- Wikipedia, Meltham railway station, en.wikipedia.org
- Transperth, Midland Line timetable, transperth.wa.gov.au