eZine: July 2010

In this edition:
General (contains 15 articles)
- 1 Registration for the NLPG NSG Conference Now Open
- 2 Local Government Group Rebranding
- 3 Value of Geospatial Information
- 4 Constituency Maps in Under a Minute
- 5 TfL Makes Data Freely Available for Smart Development
- 6 Proposed Amendment to UK GEMINI2 Standards
- 7 Danish Address Data Free
- 8 1st European Address Conference Presentations and Video Available
- 9 Locating Incidents and Responding to 999 Calls
- 10 BS7666:2006, Its Impact and Use Within Local Government
- 11 A New Reseller for the NLPG
- 12 VOA Matching
- 13 IA Recent Recruits
- 14 Cambridge Seek LLPG Custodian
- 15 Rutland Seek LLPG & GIS Custodian

NLPG (contains 3 articles)

- 1 IA Launch Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP)
- 2 Classification/XREF Comparison Reports
- 3 New Search Facility Live on NLPG Website

NSG (contains 2 articles)

- 1 New Street Works Management Permit Schemes
- 2 Highways Agency Validation
1. General

1.1. Registration for the NLPG NSG Conference Now Open

This year's 'new look' Awards are already attracting interest. With a new focus on the
things that will really help to attract attention from heads of service; the citizen,
money, green issues, as well as technology and integration, the Awards will help to
raise the profile of your LLPG and/or LSG.

See the [1]NLPG and [2]NSG websites for more information.

All custodians, ALOs and street naming and numbering officers should have by now
received a brochure about the conference, together with the 'Your time is valuable' -
why you should come along flyer.

The conference is designed to be extremely cost effective - free to attend, thanks to

the sponsorship of the exhibitors, and due to a partnership with South Yorkshire
Tourism, there are discounted rail and accommodation deals available.

This conference is a celebration of the work that you do in your local authority -
contributing to the wider community. Please do come along, especially if you haven't
been before. Great to see that registrations are already coming in!

You can register on the [3]NLPG and [4]NSG websites.

If there is someone at your authority that you would like to bring with you to the
conference, or feel that they should get an invite, email ggander@intelligent-
addressing.co.uk with their contact details (email and postal) and we will get a
special invite to them.

This could be your line manager, someone from another directorate thinking about using
your LLPG/LSG, your head of information, a partner in your local police or fire
service, or with this year's focus on efficiency savings, your finance director.
Please use this opportunity to show why the LLPG/LSG is important in your authority.
[1] http://www.nlpg.org.uk
[2] http://www.thensg.org.uk
[3] http://www.nlpg.org.uk
[4] http://www.thensg.org.uk

1.2. Local Government Group Rebranding

The Local Government Group recently launched its new branding. The reasons for the new
branding are to:
give clarity to councils about what the LG Group can offer
deliver better value for money
consolidate and ensure efficiency savings
develop a stronger position with more direction and the ability to exert more influence
on government departments.

As part of the rebranding, the name for the Improvement and Development Agency (IDeA)
has been changed to Local Government Improvement and Development (LG Improvement and
 Development for short). Further details can be found on the following website
[1]www.local.gov.uk. It is important to note that Local Government Information House
(LGIH) has not changed its branding.

Old Name
New Name
New Abbreviations

Local Government Association Group (LGA Group)Local Government GroupLG Group

Local Government Association (LGA)Local Government AssociationLGA or LG Association
Improvement and Development Agency (IDeA)Local Government Improvement and DevelopmentLG
Improvement and Development
Local Government Employers (LGE)Local Government EmployersLG Employers
Local Authorities Coordinators of Regulatory Services (LACORS)Local Government
RegulationLG Regulation
Leadership Centre for Local GovernmentLocal Government LeadershipLG Leadership
[1] http://www.local.gov.uk/lgv2/core/page.do?pageId=1

1.3. Value of Geospatial Information

The LG Group has commissioned research to find out more about the value of geospatial
information in local public service delivery and as a public good. The research
suggests that geospatial information has contributed over £230 million to efficiency
gains in local public service delivery in 2008/09. An analysis of the value of NLPG
data sharing shows net benefits over a 5 year period in the range £15 million -
£24million. The research has been published, along with a shorter summary paper on the
LGA Analysis and Research web pages on: [1]www.lga.gov.uk/.
[1] http://www.lga.gov.uk/lga/core/page.do?pageId=12079357

1.4. Constituency Maps in Under a Minute

Opening up geographic data is beginning to bear fruit. MySociety's Matthew Somerville
has just unveiled MaPit, 'our database and web service that maps postcodes and

points to current or past administrative area information and polygons for all the
United Kingdom.' What that means in practice is, postcode lookups and boundary

data are now just a URL away. See [1]Puffbox blog

[1] http://puffbox.com/2010/07/27/mysociety-mapit-constituency-maps/

1.5. TfL Makes Data Freely Available for Smart Development

Transport for London (TfL) has lifted restrictions on commercial data use in a move to
harness the innovative ideas in the developer community and to provide improved
information.

A wealth of new information about London's Tubes, buses and river services is being
 made available online so that web developers can use it to create products such as apps
(mobile phone applications) that help passengers.

By lifting previous restrictions, digital developers can now independently develop and
sell products using TfL data.

Basic information will remain available free of charge to the public on the TfL
website.

By using TfL's Developers' Area web developers are now able to access a number of data
sets and feeds to live London Underground/Tube travel news on London's Datastore.

1.6. Proposed Amendment to UK GEMINI2 Standards

A proposed amendment to the UK GEMINI2 metadata standard is available for comment at
[1]www.gigateway.org.uk/metadata/pdf/GEMINI2.pdf. The amendment covers issues
resulting from experience of use of the Standard and revised Technical Guidelines for
the INSPIRE Metadata Implementing Rules. The principles of the revision are:
to meet the requirements for metadata of the EU INSPIRE Directive - where an element is
mandatory in the INSPIRE Implementing Rules, it is included in UK GEMINI with the same
domain and occurrence, but the element name and description may be different in order
to maintain compatibility with the previous version of GEMINI and to provide greater
clarity;
to be conformant with the International Standard ISO 19115 Geographic information -
Metadata, within the limits of the requirements of INSPIRE;
to be consistent with the GEMINI 1.0 where possible;
to be compatible with the e-Government Metadata Standard where possible;
to correct errors in GEMINI 1.0 and take into account experience of its use
And the main changes are:
removal of some elements that are now considered to be unnecessary;
extension to cover geospatial services;
addition of elements to conform to ISO 19115 mandatory core set and the INSPIRE
Metadata Implementing Rules
[1] http://www.gigateway.org.uk/metadata/pdf/GEMINI2.pdf

1.7. Danish Address Data Free

The Danish Enterprise and Construction Authority (DECA), has now published an analysis
of the social and economic benefits associated with the decision in 2002 to provide the
official Danish address data "free of charge" for public as well as commercial re-use.

The main conclusion of the study is that the direct financial benefits from the
agreement for society in the period 2005-2009 amount to around EUR 62 million (~DKK 471
million). Until 2009 the total costs of the agreement has been around EUR 2 million.

In 2010 it is estimated that social benefits from the agreement will be about EUR 14
million, while costs will total about EUR 0.2 million. About 2.4 million Danish
addresses exists, so the assessed benefit equals to 6 EUR per address per year.

1.8. 1st European Address Conference Presentations and Video Available

 The presentations of the 1st European Address Conference - Addressing the future (June
15th, 2010, Brussels) are now available at the [1]website of the meeting. However, you
will need to login as user to the website to be able to see and access these documents.
[1]
http://www.europeanaddressforum.eu/EAF/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=10:
addressing-the-future-first-european-address-conference&catid=14:meeting&Itemid=15f

1.9. Locating Incidents and Responding to 999 Calls

Published to coincide with the AEA-ACPO annual conference, Michael Wallace, GI Manager
at BTP explains the importance of address management in this [1]article published in
Policing Today.
[1] http://www.iahub.net/docs/1278000184850.pdf

1.10. BS7666:2006, Its Impact and Use Within Local Government

This [1]paper shows how conformance to

British Standards has improved data collation; data management and ultimately the
sharing and use of data across

different local government services.

[1] http://www.iahub.net/docs/1280411500062.pdf

1.11. A New Reseller for the NLPG

Getmapping plc has become the latest reseller for the NLPG. For more information see
[1]www.nlpg.org.uk
[1] http://www.nlpg.org.uk/nlpg/link.htm?nwid=151

1.12. VOA Matching

The current Council Tax match rate is now 99.45%. All 9 regions in England have match
rates over 99%, with 6 regions over 99.5% and more than 85% of authorities have a CTAX
match rate of over 99%. There are no local authorities with a CTAX match rate of less
than 90% and only 3 local authorities with a CTAX match rate of less than 95%.

The current Non Domestic Rates match rate is at an all-time high of 77.87% and
climbing. There are just over 400,000 records left to match for Non-Domestic Rates and
just over 132,000 records left to match for Council Tax.

1.13. IA Recent Recruits

Jonathan Saunders (left) has been appointed as Deputy Gazetteers Support Manager on the
IA Helpdesk to provide support for the NLPG and NSG.

Jon was previously at Cambridge City Council as the LLPG Custodian for nearly four
years where he was responsible for maintaining and integrating the LLPG. Before this
he worked as an Assistant GIS Officer working on data capture projects for the LLPG and
NLIS at Cambridge. Jon can be contacted on [1]jonathans@intelligent-addressing.co.uk.
Telephone number 020 7747 3502.

Matthew Hodgson (right) has been taken on as full time Performance Analyst at IA
responsible for all aspects monitoring and reporting; this followed a short spell, as a
 temporary placement with the Special Projects Team on data matching. Matthew graduated
in 2009 from the University of Southampton with a BSc in Mathematics. Prior to
joining IA he entered into a PGCE Course (Teacher training) but pulled out to make
greater use of his analytic and technological skills.

Matthew has just returned from Italy where he took part in the World Under 23 Ultimate
Frisbee Championships with the Great Britain Mixed squad. The team won the Gold
beating Belgium, Germany into Silver and Bronze positions respectively.

Georgina Carr (left) recently joined IA as Marketing and Administrative Assistant,

where she will be assisting with the events program, looking after web content, and
carrying out office support.

She has previously worked for a PR company on projects such as The Shard, Damien Hirst
and Art on the Underground, as well as presenting and writing for various local media
projects.
[1] mailto:jonathan@intelligent-addressing.co.uk

1.14. Cambridge Seek LLPG Custodian

This role, with a salary range of £22,221 - £30,851 pa (entry zone: £22,221 - £24,646
pa), will give you lead responsibility for developing and maintaining the Council's
Local Land and Property Gazetteer. It is an excellent career opportunity as you can add
to your track record through integrating the Gazetteer, which is our definitive address
list, with all of the Council's key business systems. Crucially, you will also
undertake quality assurance, ensuring the Gazetteer follows relevant data entry
standards and conventions.

You will succeed by drawing on your experience of gazetteer management, which will be
underpinned by a degree or diploma in GIS or a related discipline. Practical experience
in developing and using property terriers and relational databases is a must. It's also
important to have good working knowledge of BS7666, and quality assurance techniques.

For informal enquires please contact Nick Burton on 01223 457388 or email
[1]nick.burton@cambridge.gov.uk .

For an application pack, please contact the Recruitment Team on 01223 458198, email
[2]recruitment@cambridge.gov.uk or apply online at [3]www.jobsincambs.com

Closing date: 18 August 2010.

[1] mailto:nick.burton@cambridge.gov.uk
[2] mailto:recruitment@cambridge.gov.uk
[3] http://www.jobsincambs.com

1.15. Rutland Seek LLPG & GIS Custodian

Rutland County Council is looking to recruit a Corporate LLPG & GIS Custodian. The role
is permanent and Full Time (37 Hours per week) within the pay scale SO2 (£27052 to
£28636)
For further information please contact Rutland County Council - 01572 722577 or visit
the website at [1]www.rutnet.co.uk/pp/jobs/. Or email [2]enquiries@rutland.gov.uk

Closing date for applications is the 6th August 2010 with interviews scheduled for
18th/19th August 2010.
[1] http://www.rutnet.co.uk/pp/jobs/jobsdetail.asp?id=6973
[2] mailto:enquiries@rutland.gov.uk
2. NLPG

2.1. IA Launch Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP)

Intelligent Addressing have recently launched a secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP)
service for the NLPG. The SFTP service allows for files to be sent and received as
encrypted files.

The SFTP service is available upon request; please ask your ALO to email the NLPG
Helpdesk: [1](helpdesk@nlpg.org.uk) if you require a SFTP account. Please note that
the SFTP service will require additional software and configuration by your ICT
department. Please read [2]'Using Intelligent Addressing's SFTP' guidance notes for
more technical information.
[1] mailto:helpdesk@nlpg.org.uk
[2] http://www.iahub.net/docs/1279121827886.pdf

2.2. Classification/XREF Comparison Reports

The NLPG Health Check reports currently provide counts of Residential BLPUs without
CTAX or ER Cross Reference records and Commercial BLPUs without NDR Cross Reference
records. The IA Helpdesk can provide a list of the UPRNs included in each count,
please send requests to [1]helpdesk@nlpg.org.uk.
[1] mailto:helpdesk@nlpg.org.uk

2.3. New Search Facility Live on NLPG Website

A google search facility is now live on the NLPG website, allowing users to search html
and the content of pdfs for relevant content.

Following feedback from users, together with the amount of information on the website,
this facility will be welcomed. The same functionality will also be rolled out across
the NSG website shortly.
3. NSG

3.1. New Street Works Management Permit Schemes

Controlling and coordinating road and street works in order to cut traffic disruption
and reduce inconvenience to the public is a modern challenge that has occupied
government for many years. In 2004 the Traffic Management Act (TMA) was introduced to
tackle congestion and disruption on the road network. The Act places a specific duty on
local traffic authorities to ensure the 'expeditious' movement of traffic on their road
network and those networks of surrounding authorities. The Act gives authorities
additional tools to manage parking policies, enforcement on moving traffic and the
coordination of street works. Amongst these additional tools are the 'Permit Schemes',
provided as an alternative to the notification system set out in the New Roads and
Street Works Act.

This latest article on the NSG website 'New Street Works Management Permit Schemes'
explains how Permit Schemes have been introduced within two areas of England.

3.2. Highways Agency Validation

The Highways Agency have engaged Intelligent Addressing to provide an on-line
validation service which will enable end users of the Trunk Road Street Gazetteer

(TRSG) to load this data into street works systems with confidence. The TRSG is used as
the definitive dataset for any Motorway or Trunk Road record within England.

The validation will ensure that the TRSG meets BS7666:2006 and the currently published
DTF 7.1 specification. This service will be made available to the Highways

Agency in August and a validated TRSG should be available as part of the September
publication of data.