Please note the street numbering team is experiencing high demand and currently have a processing delay in excess of 35 working days. Thank you for your patience during this time. Please be assured we are seeking additional support and will process your application as soon as we are able to.
We are the naming authority for the Harrogate district and we have the statutory responsibility and have the legal responsibility to ensure that streets are named and properties are numbered. The authority has the power to approve or reject property addresses submitted by developers, and the general public or prescribe its own addressing schemes. We use the Public Health Act 1925 (sections 17 to 19) for the purpose of naming streets.
It is possible to change an address but you have to apply in writing to get it legally recognised. You can also add a name to an already numbered property.
It is important to have applied for an address before development starts as utility companies require addresses before they will apply connections.
Naming and numbering streets and properties are important because it allows:
- post to be delivered efficiently
- emergency services to find a property quickly
- visitors to find where they want to go
- reliable delivery of products and services
- service providers' records to be kept efficiently
Technology supports this in two ways:
Councils maintain a Local Land and Property Gazetteer (LLPG), with data pooled to form a national address database. Each address contains Ordnance Survey grid references, which make it possible to locate it on a map. This helps emergency services and service providers. It also makes a whole range of locational services available through mobile phones and in-car navigation systems possible.
Please be aware that it can take up to three months to determine new street name applications and six weeks to determine rename and new name applications.
Types of applications
Street name applications
New streets are numbered with even numbers on the right and odd numbers on the left, except for a cul-de-sac where numbering is usually consecutive and clockwise.
All numbers, including 13, must be used in the proper sequence. Application to omit any number from a sequence will be refused.
Building names or numbers will be allocated to the road serving the main entrance.
In the majority of cases, developments with less than five properties will not be given a street name.
The data entry conventions and best practices for addressing 2016 state that new street names should not be similar to those which already exist if they are within the same post town, and streets within close proximity should not be assigned to the same name with a different suffix. At the point of submission, developers are required to submit proposed names for consultation. It is advised that at least two different names are provided per street being addressed.
All suffixes should be given very careful consideration so that they do not give a false impression of the location. Suffixes do not need to be provided at the point of submission, applicants are encouraged to discuss these with the officer processing the application.
New name applications
These applications relate to the addressing of new properties currently being developed, this also includes conversions of flats to single dwellings or vice versa.
Rename applications
You can apply to add a house name to a numbered property or to change an existing house name.
Other considerations
On unnumbered streets, it's essential that houses have officially allocated names. The name shouldn't repeat the name of the road or that of any house or building in the area.
Postcodes
Royal Mail is responsible for allocating postcodes to addresses but it won't issue postcodes without first receiving notification from us that addresses have been allocated to the properties concerned. Royal Mail can deal with postcode queries.
To apply a postcode:
- the building has to be either a residential dwelling or a bona fide business address that has an office on-site with clear signage displaying the business name
- the building has a secure and lockable mail delivery point (letterbox) that is easily accessible for the delivery of mail at all times
- the building (if a business) needs to be occupied during business hours
On new developments, Royal Mail will add the addresses to their Not Yet Built (NYB) list while the building work is completed. Upon completion, the developer will need to inform Royal Mail so the addresses can be applied to the live Postcode Address File (PAF) database.
Land Registry
It is the owner's responsibility to advise the Land Registry of any changes to their property address. The Land Registry will update this for free.
Fees
Valid from 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023.
Addressing of new property - £94.50 per property.
Development of up to 10 new dwellings including a new street name - £210 per street plus £42 per property up to 10.
Development of over 10 new dwellings including a new street name - £210 per street plus £37 per property over 10.
Renaming of a property - £63.50 per property
Confirmation of address - £42
Change of business name or alias - £79
How to apply
You can apply for a change of address or new address by filling in the application form below and emailing it to streetnamingandnumbering@harrogate.gov.uk
When submitting an application please also include:
- fee
- a location plan (every application)
- site plan (for applications involving more than one property)
- floor plan (for flats, including the location of the post-box)
Contact us
If you'd like to discuss your proposals before making your application, or for any naming or numbering queries, contact the street naming and numbering team on 01423 556557 or email streetnamingandnumbering@harrogate.gov.uk
For more general address queries, contact the gazetteer custodian on 01423 500600 x56167.