Use of Unique Property Reference Numbers surges beyond the public sector
It’s no secret the public sector has been reaping the rewards of using Unique Property Reference Numbers (UPRN) and Unique Street Reference Numbers (USRN) ubiquitously across their organisations for some time. From improved and better-tailored service delivery, precise detection of fraud, and reduced response times for emergency services, use of UPRNs and USRNs has not only improved outcomes for citizens, it has also driven vast cost-savings.
In fact, a report commissioned by GeoPlace shows that the widespread use of address and street data, complete with the UPRNs and USRNs that underpin every location and street, could generate £384m savings for local authorities alone over 2022–2026, with an improved ROI of 6:1. That is impressive.
But these efficiencies aren’t just earmarked for the public sector – they are available for any organisation that requires pinpoint address accuracy at the heart of their business, whether you’re a utility, logistics company, insurance or finance operation.
So, what exactly is a UPRN or USRN?
Like every car has a registration number or every finger has its own fingerprint, every street and property has its own unique reference number. Local authorities are mandated by the government to allocate a UPRN to every property and other non-addressable locations, such as electricity sub-stations or bus stops, and a USRN to every street – both of which are provided by the national hub GeoPlace. These unique identifiers underpin Great Britain’s address data and are frequently referred to as the golden thread for linking disparate location-based datasets.
How can you source the UPRNs and USRNs?
The most comprehensive British Standard address dataset is Ordnance Survey’s AddressBase Premium (ABP), which provides a wealth of classifications including the UPRNs, USRNs, and geographic coordinates for its 40 million plus addresses.
ABP provides the full life cycle of an address from development to demolition – critical information for utilities, insurance, and property markets. It also holds all the numerous historical addresses linked to a UPRN, so even when you are searching against an old address, it will retrieve the most up-to-date address for that location. This helps more precise detection of fraud, in addition to ensuring accurate, efficient service delivery.
ABP’s granular address data also breaks properties down into parent and child properties, which is essential for buildings such as blocks of flats. With this example, the shell of the building is the parent with its own UPRN, and each individual flat is classified as a child with its own allocated UPRN. Specific, precise address data at your fingertips ensures the right services are being delivered to the right place, and residents are being billed accurately for the services they receive.
Are UPRNs suitable for any complex organisation?
Any organisation using address data at the heart of its business needs accurate, high-quality data. Postcodes are useful, but as each one can cover anywhere between 15 and 100 properties, it can take time to find the exact location. UPRNs, on the other hand, provide absolute precision every time, enabling efficient delivery routes, easier detection of fraud, or more granular understanding of insurance risks – after all, one end of a postcode boundary might register highly as a flood risk, while the other does not.
Any large organisation will have different teams working with addresses in different ways, from billing teams to maintenance, surveyors to product delivery – depending on the organisation, this could be a complex web of location data users. To ensure accuracy and consistency, these organisations can maximise the use of the UPRNs and USRNs by managing the data centrally.
Maximised benefits through centralised management
Organisations that manage their addresses centrally are able to control the quality and ubiquity of their data. By using a corporate gazetteer, or in other words an address management system (AMS), an organisation can consume OS’s AddressBase Premium, along with its six-weekly updates, to ensure only the most up-to-date data is being used across the whole organisation.
Idox’s AMS hosted, managed service takes all the data updates and system patches and upgrades off your hands, leaving you with more time to deliver services more effectively to your customers.
Beyond address management
Unique to Idox’s AMS, our solution allows you to create your own locally known/temporary addresses in the British Standard, complete with UPRNs and USRNs supplied by GeoPlace, to sit alongside AddressBase Premium. Such addresses could include outbuildings hosting utility meters or new building sites for deliveries. And that’s not all – you can add risk data or location intelligence, such as flood risk or resident vulnerability data, enabling deeper insight into the locations and the residents you service.
Managing your spatial and location data centrally improves efficiency, access, and connectivity. One of our emergency services’ customers Nicola Smith, Information Manager at Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service recently told us,
“Up-to-date, accurate address data in the British Standard is the starting point from which we can deliver an effective service. Using the UPRNs to link the wealth of location-based information we have around the organisation helps to inform the best use of our resources.”
Up-to-date, accurate address data in the British Standard is the starting point from which we can deliver an effective service. Using the UPRNs to link the wealth of location-based information we have around the organisation helps to inform the best use of our resources.
Improved efficiency and greater location analysis are not reserved for the public sector only. Any organisation with address data sitting at the heart of its operations can utilise the UPRNs to connect location intelligence and improve service delivery.
Find out more
To find out more, visit the Address Management Solutions for commercial organisations page
