Comments on: The Royal Mail PAF, that old Chestnut… http://gisconsultancy.com/blog/politics/the-royal-mail-paf-that-old-chestnut A weblog. A website. A geospatial miscellany... Fri, 17 Feb 2012 01:25:54 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9 hourly 1 By: I’m a Mac? http://gisconsultancy.com/blog/politics/the-royal-mail-paf-that-old-chestnut/comment-page-1#comment-13206 I’m a Mac? Sun, 04 Jan 2009 12:12:30 +0000 http://gisconsultancy.com/blog/politics/the-royal-mail-paf-that-old-chestnut#comment-13206 [...] John McKerrell has been posting recently on his experience developing an iPhone application for the ‘Free The Postcode‘ project - the project aims to build a free collection of UK postcodes (why?). [...] [...] John McKerrell has been posting recently on his experience developing an iPhone application for the ‘Free The Postcode‘ project – the project aims to build a free collection of UK postcodes (why?). [...]

]]> By: A Good Postcode Summary « Power of Information Task Force http://gisconsultancy.com/blog/politics/the-royal-mail-paf-that-old-chestnut/comment-page-1#comment-10530 A Good Postcode Summary « Power of Information Task Force Mon, 27 Oct 2008 12:05:38 +0000 http://gisconsultancy.com/blog/politics/the-royal-mail-paf-that-old-chestnut#comment-10530 [...] Jump to Comments Tom Steinberg on the Task Force has drawn my attention to this very good summary of the situation with postcode data in the UK from the Spatial [...] [...] Jump to Comments Tom Steinberg on the Task Force has drawn my attention to this very good summary of the situation with postcode data in the UK from the Spatial [...]

]]> By: Rob http://gisconsultancy.com/blog/politics/the-royal-mail-paf-that-old-chestnut/comment-page-1#comment-6879 Rob Tue, 22 Jul 2008 13:40:05 +0000 http://gisconsultancy.com/blog/politics/the-royal-mail-paf-that-old-chestnut#comment-6879 So that's a contravention of a UN resolution? News today of access of sorts to the PAF over on MP Tom Watson's <a href="http://www.tom-watson.co.uk/?p=2112" rel="nofollow">blog</a>. So that’s a contravention of a UN resolution?

News today of access of sorts to the PAF over on MP Tom Watson’s blog.

]]> By: GeoFiction http://gisconsultancy.com/blog/politics/the-royal-mail-paf-that-old-chestnut/comment-page-1#comment-6695 GeoFiction Thu, 17 Jul 2008 20:03:33 +0000 http://gisconsultancy.com/blog/politics/the-royal-mail-paf-that-old-chestnut#comment-6695 This post raises so many issues. The great advantage of the postcode is that it uniquely provides an accurate and unambiguous spatial reference which individuals actually remember (their own), ensuring its universal usage. Should the Royal Mail hold the country to ransom on this? Or are they just in the lucky position of having thought of it first, ensured its popularity and now reaping the commercial rewards? I find the situation with street-names and place-names more incredible. Whereas you are correct that Local Authorities have the duty to allocate street names and numbers, this is problematic, because there is little guidance provided on this. Some do the job more thoroughly than others. Some simply adopt a developer's naff suggestion of "Cherry Close" rather than trying to research a more vernacular name. However, there is NO authority for deciding on district, settlement and geographical feature names. The UN instructed members to establish national place name authorities (Resolution IV of the UN Conference of Geographic Names (1967)). The USA has the US Board on Geographic Names, the UK has never done this. We are therefore in contravention of a UN resolution. Bizarrely we have an Imperial hangover from the 19th Century: the Permanent Committee on Geographical Names for British Official Use, who's "Principal function is to advise British government departments and agencies on policies and procedures for the proper writing, in official publications, of geographical names for places and features OUTSIDE the United Kingdom, excluding those of the Antarctic". You will find mention of the need for a Geographical Names Authority as part of the GI Strategy for Scotland. This post raises so many issues. The great advantage of the postcode is that it uniquely provides an accurate and unambiguous spatial reference which individuals actually remember (their own), ensuring its universal usage. Should the Royal Mail hold the country to ransom on this? Or are they just in the lucky position of having thought of it first, ensured its popularity and now reaping the commercial rewards?

I find the situation with street-names and place-names more incredible. Whereas you are correct that Local Authorities have the duty to allocate street names and numbers, this is problematic, because there is little guidance provided on this. Some do the job more thoroughly than others. Some simply adopt a developer’s naff suggestion of “Cherry Close” rather than trying to research a more vernacular name. However, there is NO authority for deciding on district, settlement and geographical feature names.

The UN instructed members to establish national place name authorities (Resolution IV of the UN Conference of Geographic Names (1967)).

The USA has the US Board on Geographic Names, the UK has never done this. We are therefore in contravention of a UN resolution.

Bizarrely we have an Imperial hangover from the 19th Century: the Permanent Committee on Geographical Names for British Official Use, who’s “Principal function is to advise British government departments and agencies on policies and procedures for the proper writing, in official publications, of geographical names for places and features OUTSIDE the United Kingdom, excluding those of the Antarctic”.

You will find mention of the need for a Geographical Names Authority as part of the GI Strategy for Scotland.

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