Street naming and numbering guidance

Over time Dartford Borough Council has set precedents for names that are acceptable for new streets and buildings. While there is no national definitive list of acceptable types of road name, Dartford Borough Council has incorporated advice given by the Royal Mail and the Emergency Services. The focus of this advice is to facilitate speedy and accurate mail delivery and to minimise errors and delays in finding an address for the emergency services.

NAMING

1. If a name refers to a person or event, there should be a connection to the Borough.
2. The names of living people are not normally used to avoid the possibility of any future negative publicity.
3. If family names are to be considered, all efforts should be made to obtain permission to use the name from any relatives living within the borough before submitting the name for consultation if the person has been deceased for less than 50 years.
4. Names which follow a theme (usually in developments with several new roads) should reflect the history or environment, either locally or across Kent.
5. Names which are difficult to pronounce or spell or names which may be deemed offensive in terms of race, faith/religion, gender, disability, age, sexual orientation or are inappropriate language must not be used.
6. Street/building names should not duplicate existing names particularly if they fall within the same postcode sector which is identified by the first character of the second part of a postcode for example, DA2 2**.
7. Phonetically similar names should be avoided for example, Churchill Close and Birch Hill Close.
8. A traditionally descriptive name can be used in certain circumstances. Examples in the Borough are High Street and Station Approach.
9. The street suffix should be appropriate to the road for example, Crescent, Circle and Close should only be used if they reflect the shape of the road. This is in keeping with guidance issued by the Fire Brigade. Suitable suffixes are shown at the end of this guidance.
10. If a road is split, (for example in case of stopping up order) the separate parts of the road should have different names. This avoids the Emergency Services or visitors entering the road from the incorrect end.
11. Using compass points (North, South, East & West) at the end of road names is only acceptable on continuous roads which pass over major junctions, e.g, Marsh Street North.

NUMBERING

1. All street numbers are allocated by Dartford Borough Council
2. Properties will be numbered from the road on which the main property entrance is situated. The only exception to this may be with flat conversions.
3. Numbering should be clockwise in a cul-de-sac. Otherwise, numbering will usually follow odds on the left and evens on the right from the start of the road which is deemed to be the end accessed via the nearest important road.
4. Numbers are allocated in numerical order without exception. Numbers with a superstitious or cultural connotation will not be excluded for example, 4 or 13.
5. For infill developments, if there are no numbers available that maintain a logical number scheme then suffix letters will be used, for example 64A. Suffix letters are usually used on up to 8 properties.
6. Where a block of flats is built within an existing street, it should be named and given a street number then numbered from ‘1’ for example, ‘1 Eglinton House, 108 Swanscombe Street’. Numbering will usually be clockwise within the building unless this does not provide a sensible delivery order for postal services. In a new development which contains both flats and houses, the numbering can be continuous if appropriate.
7. Flat conversion numbering will be based on the Conventions and Best Practice as published by National Land & Property Gazetteer.
8. The word ‘flat’ should only be used when describing a property and not as part of the official allocated address. There may be exceptional situations when this is unavoidable.
9. Any names given to a property as part of the address should be used in conjunction with the street number and not in place of it. Exceptions to this are properties on historically named-only roads
10. On occasion, properties are given names instead of numbers. This is only done in certain circumstances.

POSTCODES

Royal Mail are the sole providers of postcodes. Dartford Borough Council will liaise with Royal Mail to get postcodes allocated for your development but we have no control over what that postcode may be.

DEVELOPMENT MARKETING NAMES

The name used to market a development is not used with the official address unless it is the officially allocated street name

ACCEPTABLE ROAD & BUILDING SUFFIXES

ROADS

BUILDINGS