This is up to two-hour walk, or a one-hour jog. Join it from any point. Go in either direction. I've started and ended it at the church car park. Parking is free there for 3 hours, although clearly, you can park anywhere near where the circular route runs.
This route is handy for people living on either side of Sundon Road to join it. But if you fancy something a bit more rural, below is an alternative section utilising Bedford Rd and rural footpaths:
This is the section north of the A5 dual carriageway. There is one vehicular bridge at the western end and a pedestrian bridge at the eastern end. At the western end the route runs on public footpath through Grove Farm. The west-east track at the top is a green wide track, part of Thiodweg or Theed Way and is the border between Houghton Regis and Chalgrave. This track was first recorded in the Chalgrave Charter of 926. If you're lucky you may see a local pony and trap trotting along here as I did one day.
This is the section the northeast of Houghton Regis. While building work is in progress, follow any diverted paths. From Sundon Road turn south into Parkside Drive.
Through Parkside Recreation ground, there is a football pitch (please clean up after your dog). Sometimes locals refer to it as the Dog and Duck field, after the name of the former pub that stood at the eastern end of the field. The old pub building was enlarged and is now a celebrated dining venue called Go Houghton. Look that up on Trip Advisor. In fact, if you can get a booking, it might not be a bad idea to aim to start and finish your walk here. There is a public car park next to it, as well as the restaurant's own parking.
The route continues through Parkside Recreation ground where there are swings for older children, a MUGA if you remembered to bring your basketball with you, and a playground for younger children. These three facilities are operated by Houghton Regis Town Council, so any problems there you know who to report them to.
The route then goes through a small copse at the southern end of Parkside Recreation ground, across a small stream (Houghton Brook), and through to Windsor Drive recreation ground. Cross Windsor Drive and follow the cycle/walking route to Park Road North and Houghton Hall Park.
Houghton Hall Park has a visitor centre on Park Road North, a cafe, and car park with time limits. Summer opening times in normal circumstances are weekdays 10am until 5:30 and weekends 9am until 5:30. Winter opening hours are a bit shorter. Another potential place to start and end your walk. Find out more on their website.
From this visitor centre, there are various paths north back to the church car park. The route above maximises your 2-hour walk mostly along pedestrian routes or ones with low vehicle usage.