Street Naming and Numbering Policy and Procedure

1.1   Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council is the Local Authority responsible for street naming and numbering. This statutory function is carried out under Sections 17 and 18 of the Public Health Act 1925 and Sections 64 and 65 of the Town Improvement Clauses Act 1847.

1.2   The Council will follow best practice guidelines and will name and number streets and dwellings in accordance with the Street Naming and Numbering data entry conventions for the National Address Gazetteer. Following these conventions ensures the procedures are compliant with British Standard BS7766:2006.

1.3   Ensuring the Council has a comprehensive Street Naming and Numbering Policy is important to ensure that names and numbers are assigned in such a way that provides absolute clarity to ensure that:

• emergency services can locate a property
• there is a reliable and efficient delivery if mail, goods, services and products
• utility providers have up to date and accurate records
• visitors can find a property (either via maps or digital platforms)

This policy will be reviewed and updated on a biennial basis unless there are any statutory changes in the intervening period which will necessitate an interim review.

1.4   Requests for new postal addresses can be made by:

• individuals or developers building new houses, commercial and industrial premises
• individuals or developers undertaking conversions of residential, commercial or industrial premises which will result in the creation of new properties, or the consolidation of flats and sub dwellings into one property

Anyone seeking the creation of a new postal address, or a change of an existing address, must apply to the Council in writing following the procedures outlined in this policy.

The Council's officer responsible for street naming and numbering can be contacted, for advice and guidance, as follows:

Email: HTD@stockton.gov.uk

Telephone: 01642 526757

Postal Address: Street Naming and Numbering

Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council
Highway Network and Flood Risk Management Community Services and Transport
PO Box 229
Kingsway House
Billingham
TS23 2YL

1.5   The Council will accept no responsibility for costs incurred by individuals or property developers for failure to follow this policy.

2.1 Charges will be made for the street naming and numbering service.

These charges cover the following activities:

• consultation and liaising with external organisations and other stakeholders (as appropriate)
• the naming and numbering of properties and production of plans
• alterations in either name or numbers of new developments after the initial naming and numbering has taken place
• notifications to organisations listed in Appendix 1
• confirmation of addresses
• challenges to existing addresses

All charges are to be paid in full prior to any activities being undertaken and changes or notifications made.

2.2 From 1 April 2024 the level of charges will be as follows:

• developments - £262 per new road and £18 per plot
• developments which do not include a new road name (includes alterations to new developments after the initial naming and numbering has taken place) - £126 per plot
• renaming or renumbering an existing property (includes alterations to new developments after the initial naming and numbering has taken place) - £70

2.3 Charges will be reviewed annually, with the updated charging schedule published on the Council's website.

3.1 Contact should be made with the Council's officer responsible for Street Naming and Numbering as soon as possible after the development has been granted planning permission. An informative regarding this should be included on the planning decision notice.

3.2 Guidance notes for developers and applicants are available on the Councils website.

3.3 Property developers should not give any postal addresses, including post codes, to potential developers, directly or indirectly, before the Council has issued formal approval in writing. Problems can arise if purchasers have bought properties which have been marketed under an unofficial name and legal documentation has already been drafted. The Council will accept no responsibility for costs incurred by individuals or property developers for failure to follow this policy.

3.4 Applications for street naming and numbering should be sent, in writing, to the address given in Section 1.4 of this policy document. Each application must include, as a minimum, the following information:

• a location plan clearly identifying the new scheme in relation to existing streets or means of access
• a detailed plan of the development showing the approved road layout clearly marked with the properties, frontages and plot numbers. This plan must indicate the postal delivery point for each property in context to the adjacent highway
• for developments that are sub-divided at unit or floor level for example a block of flats, an internal layout plan should be provided. this plan shall be clearly marked to show the main entrance to the property in relation to the adjacent highway
• for any new street, the applicant should suggest possible street names. Several suggestions should be made in case the Council or Royal Mail object

3.5 Property developers are encouraged to suggest names for new streets for consideration against the criteria contained within this policy. The Council may accept the suggestion or object to it and offer an alternative. Once a suitable suggestion has been selected, agreement with the developer will be sought. If no agreement can be made, the final decision will be made by the Director of Community Services and Transport in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Environment and Transport.

3.6 When naming and numbering is complete, the Council will contact Royal Mail who will allocate the post code and add the property to their database.

3.7 Once Royal Mail have allocated the post code, the Council will provide the applicant, in writing, with official confirmation of the full postal address.

3.8 The Council will notify all statutory bodies or agencies who have requested address change information. A list of those notified is shown in Appendix 1.

3.9 Where developers have not followed the Council's policy and occupation of the property has taken place, the Council will endeavour to contact the owner or developer to ask for an application to be made. If an application is not forthcoming, the Council will allocate a postal address and charge the owner or developer retrospectively. The Council will not accept responsibility for any costs incurred by the owner or developer of a property as a result of a retrospective application brought about by a developer not following this policy.

4.1 Every street must be clearly signposted, with nameplates being positioned at principal junctions so as to be easily readable by both pedestrians and drivers.

4.2 All street nameplates shall be designed in accordance with the Tees Valley Design Guide and Specification for Residential and Industrial Estates Development. A copy of this design guide can be found on the Middlesbrough Council website.

4.3 Developers can either supply and install the new nameplates themselves or they can have them produced and installed on their behalf by the Council. All cost associated with the supply and install of street nameplates shall be met by the developer regardless of which option is chosen.

4.4 The siting and location of street nameplates will be carefully considered by the Councils officers and agreed with the developer. In all cases the need to avoid unnecessary street furniture will always be a key consideration

4.5 No street nameplates shall be installed until such time as the street name has been confirmed, in writing, by the Council.

5.1 Street naming is subject to the following criteria:

• new street names should avoid duplicating any similar names already in use within Stockton-on-Tees Borough. A variation in the suffix, for example Drive, Avenue or Close will not be accepted as sufficient reason to duplicate a street name
• names for consideration need to be sufficiently unique so as to avoid confusion of misunderstanding
• where possible street names should reflect the historical or geographical significance of the area. Names with a common theme are preferable on large developments
• naming of street after living individuals will be considered. The request must relate to an individual that has made an outstanding contribution to society or is of historical significance to the local area. Where the request relates to a living individual, the decision will be referred to the Director of Community Services and Transport and the Cabinet Member for Environment and Transport in consultation with Full Council
• naming of streets after individuals posthumously will be allowed. However, requests will only be considered once the applicant has obtained approval from the named person's family or estate administrators
• street names must not contain numeric characters
• street names that construe marketing or that promote a company, service or product are not acceptable
• street names should not be capable of being twisted into obscene meanings and must not cause offence
• all punctuation, including apostrophes, shall be avoided. For example, St John's Way will be officially recorded as St Johns Way
• a parcel of land, such as a farmer's field, cannot be given an official address. Only properties with the relevant planning consents on that parcel of land can have a conventional address, enabling mail delivery and services

5.2 New street names will not be assigned to new developments when said developments can be included within the current numbering scheme of the street providing the main point access.

5.3 The manipulation of this naming criteria in order to secure a, perceived, more prestigious address will not be accepted by the Council.

5.4 In the event of a developer not agreeing with the suggested street names for a development the final decision will be referred to the Director of Community Services and Transport, for determination, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Environment and Transport.

6.1 The following conventions apply to the numbering of properties:

• wherever possible, roads are numbered so that when travelling away from the centre of a town, the odd numbers are located on the left side and the even numbers on the right side
• side roads shall be numbered in ascending order from the most important road that they lead off
• in certain cases, such as cul-de-sacs, properties may be numbered sequentially in a clockwise direction
• succeeding odd and even numbers should, where possible be opposite one another
• number 13 will not be excluded from numbering schemes
• new properties must always be numbered according to the street name on which the main entrance is accessed
• in small groups of low-rise flats, dwelling should always be numbered within the ordinary street numbering system. The numbers of the flats contained in each block should be displayed at the entrance in a position that is clearly readable from the roadside

6.2 New properties in existing unnumbered streets will require a property name.

6.3 The manipulation of the numbering criteria by developers or homeowners, in order to secure a, perceived, more prestigious address will not be accepted by the Council.

6.4 Industrial estates shall be numbered in accordance with the above criteria.

6.5 Where a property has been allocated a number by the Council it must be used and displayed. Where a name has been given to a property together with a number, the number must always be displayed. The name cannot be regarded as an alternative. This applies to both domestic and commercial properties.

6.6 When new developments have been allocated postal addresses and the developer subsequently revises the site layout, either adding or deleting plot, then a revised numbering scheme will be carried out. The Council will apply a charge, in accordance with Section 2 of this policy, for the revised numbering scheme.

6.7 In the event of a developer not agreeing with the numbering of properties on a development the final decision will be referred to the Director of Community Services and Transport, for determination, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Environment and Transport.

7.1   Section 18 of the Public Health Act 1925 gives the Council the power, by order, to alter the name of any street, or part of a street.

7.2   Under normal circumstances requests to rename an existing street will only be considered if it can be demonstrated that there are persistent problems with the delivery of goods and services.

7.3   Requests to rename an existing street should be sent, in writing, to the address given in Section 1.4 of this policy document.

7.4   On receipt of a request the Council will consult with all the property owners in the street and will require the agreement of at least two thirds of the affected owners before the request will be progressed.

7.5   If a request is approved, the Council is required to publish its intention to make an order to rename the street on site for a period of at least one month prior to the intended date of change.

7.6   Any person aggrieved by the intended order may, within 21 days after the posting of the notice, appeal to the Magistrates Court.

7.7  Only when an order is confirmed will the Council contact Royal Mail to confirm the new street name is acceptable. Royal Mail may issue a new post code.

7.8  Once approved by Royal Mail, the Council will inform all affected properties of their new postal addresses. The organisations detailed in Appendix 1 will also be supplied with the new postal address details.

7.9  New street name plates will be required, and these will be erected on site by the Council adjacent to the name plates for the old street name. The old street name plates, with the lettering struck through, will remain in place for a period of six months.

7.10  All costs associated with the request to rename an existing street, including the installation of street name plates, will be met by the requestor.

7.11 In certain circumstances the Council may decide that it is necessary to rename or renumber an existing street. In these instances, the same processes will be followed with all costs met by the Council.

8.1 In some, mainly rural, locations there is no formal street numbering system. In such cases the house name forms a part of the postal address and occasionally the house name may need to be changed.

8.2 In such cases the house owner should submit a formal request, in writing, to the Council. Tenants cannot submit a request.

8.3 The request must include the following information:

• the existing house name, address and post code
• the proposed new name
• a plan showing the exact location of the property

8.4 A check will be made to ensure there is no other property in the locality with same or a similar sounding name. In no circumstances will the Council allow a replicated house in the same postal area.

8.5 Once a name has been agreed the details will sent to Royal Mail to update their records and the organisations detailed in Appendix 1 will be advised.

8.6 If the property already has a house number, the number cannot be replaced with a name. However, a name can be added to an existing numbered property by contacting the Royal Mail Address Management Team.

Organisations informed of new address information

• Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council - Land Search
• Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council - Planning and Performance (GIS)
• Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council - Gazetteer
• Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council - Revenue and Benefits
• Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council - Land Charges
• Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council - Private Sector Housing
• Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council - Planning
• Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council - Systems Development Team
• Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council - Democratic, Administration and Electoral Services
• Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council - Environment, Culture, Leisure and Events
• Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council - Community Services and Transport (Highway Network and Flood Risk Management)
• Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council - Community Services and Transport (Streetworks Permits)
• Royal Mail Address Management Team
• The Valuation Office Agency
• Centrica
• Northern Powergrid
• Northumbrian Water Ltd
• Cleveland Fire Brigade
• Cleveland Constabulary
• North East Ambulance Service NHS Trust and Ambulance Control
• HM Land Registry
• Ordnance Survey