William Kent

Royal Mail introduced the humble postcode to every UK address almost 40 years ago to help it route and deliver mail. Since then every property in the UK has been given a Royal Mail Postal Address, which includes a range of information including your Postcode. The sum total of all the addresses is a database called the Royal Mail Postal Address File (PAF). The PAF gives the Royal Mail the most accurate, up-to-date and complete address database in the UK. It contains 28 million addresses and, typically receives 1.5 million updates a year. While we may all be aware of the full postcode for our homes, we may not understand how it works or how the Royal Mail use it in the emerging digital age.

Why Does The PAF Matter?

The Postcode Address File is now a vital part of the way that the Royal Mail delivers us letters and parcels and is crucial piece of information for the homeowner. At Chimni we believe that homeowners need to understand (and if possible control) how every aspect of their homes digital profile is used on the web. Homeowners need to understand that their Postal Address, and its online manifestation in the PAF, is now at the core of a wide range of online systems and solutions used by businesses and industries. The way these companies can use your PAF entry are controlled by the Post Office Regulator via a PAF Code of Practice <ref>PAF Code of Practice</ref>. Suffice to say, these range from online retailing to financial services, estate agency to emergency services, local and central government as well as Satellite Navigation systems. There is also a PAF Advisory Board <ref>[http://www.pafboard.org.uk%7C PAF Advisory Board]</ref> looking after the interests of business users. The PAF is another example of our homes developing a digital life of their own.

What Makes Up A Postal Address?

The Postal Address is a sorting and routing instruction to Royal Mail’s staff and not always a geographically accurate description of where a property is located. As mail is circulated via Post towns it may, for example, include the name of that town which could be several miles away, as that is where your mail is processed.

The formal Postal Address entry for any home in the PAF (which is the format we are meant to use when we write letters<ref>|How To Address UK Mail Correctly To Ensure It Gets Delivered To The Correct Address First Time</ref>) includes the following info: Name of Addressee(title, initials, surname), Company/Organisation (for commercial property and is not required if building name or number present), Building Name (again, not required if building name or number present), Building Number & Name of Street or Road, Additional Locality/Townland Information Post Town (capital letters), County and Postcode (written in capital letters).

Can I Change My PAF Entry or PostCode?

A building owner can request any aspect of their Postcode Address be changed. Some details (eg surname) are reasonably easy to change via the Royal Mail web site. Some details (eg road names) are more complicated, and often require input from, or consultation with a wider group of users who may be affected. The most complex bit of an address to change is the Postcode itself. The Royal Mail will make changes to the last two characters of an individual Postcode in exceptional circumstances. To do this, they require evidence that all those affected by the change are in favour of the change and it is for the person requesting the change to provide this information.

Sometimes the Royal Mail have to change a building's Postcode for operational reasons, for instance as a result of running out of Postcodes for a particular area, or new development areas being added to existing towns. They will always notify a homeowner if this happens and all changes, once implemented, are posted on the Royal Mail website <ref>Postcode Updates</ref>.

Strange Post Codes

Apart from the normal house and building Postcodes, there are groups of more strange ones that you will see from time to time. The British Forces Post Office (BFPO) have codes such as "BFPO 801" serve the same function as postal codes for civilian addresses. There are also a series of non-geographic codes used for direct marketing and PO boxes.

Non-geographic postcode area BX is used solely for non-geographic addresses, with codes independent of the location of the recipient. Prominent users include and HM Revenue and Customs which has BX41 and Lloyds Bank which has BX42. There are also some 'specials' such as Girobank's headquarters in Bootle which has postcode GIR 0AA. Most importantly there is a special postcode for letters to Father Christmas, which is SAN TA1.

See Also In Chimni

Unique Property Reference Numbers (UPRN) Unique Property Reference Numbers (UPRN)

National Land and Property Gazetteer National Land and Property Gazetteer

Other Interesting Web Sites

Wikipedia Page: Postcodes In The United Kingdom

Wikipedia Page: Postcode Address File

References

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