Code-Point with Polygons
Here you will find all documentation for the Code-Point with Polygons product.
Code-Point with Polygons is a dataset that contains the notional area of postcode units, designed to allow customers to display and analyse any data collected at the postcode level. Polygons within this product are derived from georeferenced Royal Mail Postal Address File (PAF) delivery addresses and processed using a Thiessen process to create mathematically consistent boundaries between distinct postcode groups as a notional boundary set.
Visualise postcode extents
Codepoint with Polygons provides notional extents for every postcode unit in GB for easy visualisation and analysis at a national scale.
Vertical street polygons
Vertical street polygons allow easy identification of multiple postcodes within the same building.
Precise polygon data
Postcode polygons created using the addresses we can locate the most precisely creating high confidence in the accuracy of the polygon data.
Manage your risks better
Display postcode boundaries on a map, then add contours and your own claims data. This is a great way to identify low-lying postcodes, so you can quote for insurance at a price that reflects higher flood risks.
You can use the product to:
Analyse geographically based information or statistics by postcode
Display information that has been analysed or sorted by postcode
Access: Download
Data theme: Administrative and Statistical Units
Data structure: Vector – Polygons
Coverage: Great Britain
Scale: 1:1 250 to 1:10 000
Format: Shapefile, MapInfo MID / MIF, MapInfo TAB, vector tiles (MBTiles), GeoPackage (GPKG)
Ordering area: All of Great Britain
Publication months: January, April, July, October
Code-Point accuracy and resolution
Code-Point is created by taking the average of the coordinates of all the individual addresses in a postcode (provided we have any of sufficient quality), then snapping to the nearest of those addresses. Code-Point then delivers the coordinates of that address, as representative of the whole postcode, to a resolution of 1metre.
The accuracy of a Code-Point Open record could be expressed as, that the coordinated position will always be within the notional geographical extent of the postcode. The accuracy of each postcode unit coordinate pair is defined by the positional quality indicator (PQI) which provides a quality statement of a Code-Point record.
How to get this product
Access to this product is free for PSGA (Public Sector Geospatial Agreement) Members. You can check if your organisation is a member of the PSGA on the OS website.
The Code-Point with Polygons product page on the OS website has advice on how to get the product for businesses, developers, OS Partners and PSGA Members (i.e. government and the public sector).
Alternatively, you can try out the full product by applying for a Data Exploration license.
Sample data
Download Code-Point with Polygons sample data
You can download sample data for the product for free from the OS Data Hub. The sample data are available in ESRI Shapefile, MIF and TAB formats and cover three areas (Exeter, Newport and Inverness).
Visualise Code-Point with Polygons sample data online
This product is available to try out free online using one of our three sets of sample data (Exeter, Newport and Inverness) through the OS MasterMap Product Viewer:
What's next?
To access documentation and resources relating to this product, please refer to the following:
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