Street Naming & Numbering Policy

Disclaimers

We have summarised our rules for Street Naming & Numbering below. Please read through the relevant rules before applying.

Please note that the rules below are only a summary of the most commonly cited rules. For the full policy, please see the section at the bottom of the page.

Please note that an official postal address is not meant to be a locator for your property. They are routing instructions for Royal Mail. This means that sections may not make sense when considered from a navigational perspective.

Official Postal Addresses are allocated in the following format:

Address Line	Contents
1	[Property Alias] or [Business Name]
2	[Property Name] or [Property Number and Street]
3	Street (If not mentioned in the line above)
4	Locality (Where appropriate)
5	POSTAL TOWN
6	POSTCODE

Square Brackets have been used above to show where there are multiple options for the address line contents.

If a line in the table above would be empty for a property it will be omitted from the property's address.

Please note that Royal Mail may list certain properties under different localities.

Rules for Street Names

Street names must be distinct from other street names in the same parish & postcode area.
Street names must not be difficult to pronounce or spell.
Street names must not be offensive, rude, or discriminatory.
Developers are not permitted to publicly announce a street name until after it has been approved by the District Council in writing. If a name is announced prior to approval, it will be disqualified.
Street names referring to the Royal Family require formal permission from the Cabinet Office. The Street Naming & Numbering Officer will make contact with the national government once the application has been received.
Street names must not refer to an existing property on that road.
The use of cardinal directions (North, East, South, West) may only be used when a road is approximately continuous (e.g. passing over a junction). It is not allowed if there is no direct vehicular access between the two sections.
Streets cannot be named after living persons.
Streets cannot be named after people who have passed away within the last 10 years.
Any development with more than 5 properties being addressed will need to provide a digital site plan. Please see the section below for details.
All street names will be passed to the local parish council for consultation.
Developers shall be responsible for putting up the street sign on a new street. Torridge District Council will then take responsibility for the street sign once the street is adopted.
Requests to alter a street name must be made by the local parish council.
Torridge District Council holds final discretion on when to change a street name. This will only be done where a reasonable need exists and where two thirds of the ratepayers (Council Tax & NNDR) agree to the change.
For street name changes, the parish council will be expected to pay for the new street sign.

Rules for Property Names, Numbers, & Aliases

Property names & aliases must be distinct from other property names in the same parish & postcode area. (This includes words that may sound similar over a radio: e.g. "Farm" and "Barn").
You cannot use the name of another property in a new postal address, unless the new address is for a flat.
Property names & aliases must not be difficult to pronounce or spell.
Property names & aliases must not be offensive, rude, or discriminatory.
Property addresses will not be allocated to agricultural buildings or land.
Proof of residential or business planning permission is required before any postal addresses will be allocated. Certificates of Lawful Developments are acceptable proof for properties built under permitted development.
Each postal address requires a separate and secure delivery point (A.K.A. Letter box). All postal delivery points must be clearly visible and accessable from the nearest street.
Holiday lets & other non-residential structures will be addressed where the Street Naming & Numbering Officer believes that there is a reasonable need for a postal address at the site and that the site is occupied by people regularly.
Temporary structures will only be addressed if they are acting as a stand-in while a property is under construction or where a temporary residential structure has received planning permission for permanent situation.
Campsites and caravan parks will not be given addresses unless there is a main administrative building on site. The administrative building will be the only structure to be addressed.
Where a property has a number and an alias, the number must always be displayed. This is because some organisations do not record the property alias.
Postal numbers will be allocated where the Street Naming & Numbering Officer deems appropriate. This will usually be for developments of more than 4 properties or where a street already has numbered properties on it.
All property names and numbers must be clearly displayed at the property once the address has been allocated by the SNN Officer.
Property Names and Numbers must not be displayed at the property before the SNN Officer has confirmed the allocation of a postal address. The Council accepts no liability for costs associated with changing property address signage or personal documents bearing an unauthorised address.
It is a criminal offence (under the Towns Improvement Clauses Act 1847) to display false address signage at a property.

Digital Site Plans

Applications for 5 or more properties will need to be accompanied by a Digital Site Plan.

Digital Site Plans must come in the form of a correctly geo-referenced Drawing (.dwg) File.

Your Architect or Architectural Technologist should be able to provide you with this.

If your application is not submitted with an acceptable Digital Site Plan, your application will be put on hold until an acceptable plan is submitted.