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OS Emergency Services Gazetteer

The OS ESG product offers a national view for Great Britain and supports the Emergency Services with incident response, incident reporting and situational awareness.

The OS Emergency Services Gazetteer (OS ESG) provides a national, consistent, and maintained view of the locations and names of places and objects.

This product is updated monthly.

Easy to filter and apply features

The OS ESG is easily filterable so you can select the features that you are interested in based on the classifications allocated to those features.

Enhanced data for incident response and reporting

The gazetteer provides a single centralised source of information which allows for easier, faster and more precise identification of incident locations.

Supporting in emergencies

Using our ability to analyse and collate information, the OS ESG provides Emergency Services with the data they need to estimate emergency response times.

Aiming to improve the recording of road traffic incidents

Analysing trends and patterns of road traffic collisions to both help identify risk and support incident planning.

Working to improve public safety

The OS ESG enables emergency responders to be more accurately informed, improving response times and public safety:

Quick and accurate gazetteer searches
Support incident reporting
Enhanced data sharing across emergency services
Supports incident analysis and modelling
Operational reporting

Access: Download
Data theme: Geographical Names
Data structure: Vector – Points
Coverage: Great Britain
Format: CSV, GeoPackage
Ordering area: All of Great Britain or custom ordering options (areas of interest – AOIs) available for both formats
OS Data Hub plan: Premium Plan, Public Sector Plan

How to get this product

Access to this product is free for PSGA (Public Sector Geospatial Agreement) Members. Find out if you are a PSGA Member or try out a sample of OS ESG data by accessing the OS ESG product page on the OS website where you will find links to all of the relevant resources.

The OS ESG product is supplied as an online download from the OS Data Hub.

OS ESG Overview

This overview introduces the OS ESG and gives context for all users – highlighting key features, providing examples of potential uses, and listing details such as supply formats, currency, etc.

The OS Emergency Services Gazetteer (OS ESG) is a single centralised source of critical information that allows first responders to precisely identify locations when the need is greatest.

It was developed in collaboration with the Emergency Services, who provided invaluable feedback. It provides enhanced data, such as road and motorway junctions, that improves incident response, incident reporting and situational awareness.

The OS ESG offers a national view for Great Britain (i.e. England, Wales and Scotland). It is published in the AddressBase Premium format and aligns fully with requirements specified during extensive user engagement.

The OS ESG does not provide data for Northern Ireland, the Isle of Man, Jersey or Guernsey.

Key features

The key features of the OS ESG product are:

Easy to filter and apply features: The OS ESG is easily filterable so you can select the features that you are interested in based on the classifications allocated to those features.
Enhanced data for incident response and reporting: The gazetteer provides a single centralised source of information which allows for easier, faster and more precise identification of incident locations.

Product applications

The OS ESG enables emergency responders to be more accurately informed, improving emergency response times and public safety:

Quick and accurate gazetteer searches
Supports incident reporting and planning (for example, giving more accurate emergency response times)
Enhanced data sharing across emergency services
Supports incident and risk analysis and modelling (for example, analysing trends and patterns of road traffic collisions to both help identify risk and support incident planning)
Improves operational reporting

Data source

The OS ESG is published in the AddressBase Premium format, aligning with requirements specified during user engagement. This is to ensure ease of use for the Emergency Services already consuming OS Address data in this format.

The OS ESG only includes the BasicLandPropertyUnit (BLPU), LandPropertyIdentifier (LPI) and Classification components, not the full AddressBase Premium model.

Datasets available

The following datasets are available within the OS ESG:

This contents of this table are subject to change with future releases of the product.

Index

This overview includes the following section:

Product supply

Useful resources

A helpful introductory Lightning Talk on the OS ESG is available on our 'More than Maps' site (a self-serve platform that provides a one-stop shop for all your OS technical geospatial support, including tutorials, demonstrators and case studies).

Product supply

Available formats

The OS ESG is available in two formats:

GeoPackage – Full Supply only
Comma-separated values (CSV) – Full Supply and Change-Only Updates (COU)

The GPKG and CSV formats conform to the AddressBase Premium specification.

It is not available in Geography Markup Language (GML) format.

GeoPackage overview

GeoPackage is an open standard data format as defined by the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC). GeoPackage is designed to be a lightweight format that can contain large amounts of varied and complex data in a single, easy-to-distribute and ready-to-use file.

Please be advised that older versions of GIS software may need updating before being able to display and interact with GeoPackage files.

COUs are not available in GeoPackage format.

The ordering area is all of Great Britain for GeoPackage format or you can select areas of interest (AOIs).

GeoPackage offers users the following benefits:

The single file is easy to transfer and offers the end-user a rich experience.
Attribute names are not limited in length, making it user-friendly.
The file size limit is very large at 140TB, so lots of data can be easily accommodated (please note that a file size limit may be imposed by the file system to which the file is written).
It supports raster, vector and database formats, making it a highly versatile solution.
It is an OGC standard.
In most cases, it is a plug and play format.

CSV overview

CSV files are a delimited text file that uses commas or other characters to separate individual elements of a feature. It is used to store data, often in the form of a table. These tables can be freely loaded into databases and programs, allowing for the easy loading and updating of data holdings.

Full Supply and COUs are available in CSV format.

The ordering area is all of Great Britain for CSV format or you can select AOIs.

In the CSV supply of OS ESG:

There is one record per line in each file.
Fields are separated by commas.
String fields are delimited by double quotes.
No comma is placed at the end of each row in the file.
Records are terminated by Carriage Return / Line Feed.
Double quotes inside strings are escaped by doubling.
COUs are available in this format.

Where a field has no value in a record, two commas are placed together in the record (one for the end of the previous field and one for the end of the null field). Where the null field is a text field, double quotes are included between the two commas, for example -, “”,

The CSV data is transferred using Unicode encoded in UTF-8. Unicode includes all the characters in ISO-8859-14 (Welsh characters).

The transfer is normally in a single file, but the data can be split into multiple files using volume numbers. The OS ESG records are provided within continuous files cut at approximately 1 million lines, as referred to above.

CSV header files

Supply mechanism

Currency

The product will be refreshed on a monthly basis.

The OS ESG references unique street reference numbers (USRNs) in AddressBase Premium; however, there is a disconnect in publication schedules between the two products, with the OS ESG publishing monthly and AddressBase Premium publishing every six weeks.

The following table shows the corresponding publication schedule alignments between the two products:

Please note that the publication schedule alignments between the two products MAY change for future releases, especially as we add more datasets to the OS ESG.

OS ESG Technical Specification

This technical specification provides detailed technical information about the OS ESG. It is targeted at technical users and software developers.

Product overview

The OS Emergency Services Gazetteer (OS ESG) is a product that offers a national view for Great Britain (i.e. England, Wales and Scotland). The product was designed to support the Emergency Services with incident response, incident reporting and situational awareness by providing pivotal features such as road and motorway junctions.

The OS ESG is structured as a series of relational tables:

, which shows fixed locations.
, which identifies the BLPUs.
, which provides feature codes.

Index

This technical specification includes the following sections:

Feature type

These pages describe the single feature type (BLPU (Type 21 Record)) available for the OS Emergency Services Gazetteer (OS ESG).

The attributes associated with the feature type are listed on the following page. The following information can be found about each attribute:

Name and Definition

The name of the attribute and what it is describing.

Data Types

The values the attribute can take. For example, a numeric value or a string. This is provided for both data formats – GeoPackage and CSV.

Precision

The maximum total number of decimal digits to be stored. This number includes both the left and the right sides of the decimal point. The precision must be a value from 1 through the maximum precision of 38. The SQL Server default precision is 18.

Scale

Scale (s) is the number of decimal digits that are stored to the right of the decimal point. This number is subtracted from precision (p) to determine the maximum number of digits to the left of the decimal point. Scale must be a value from 0 through p, and can only be specified if precision is specified. The default scale is 0 and so 0 <= s <= p. Maximum storage sizes vary, based on the precision.

Code List Name

The name of the code list used in association with the attribute (if applicable) and a hyperlink to the page displaying that code list.

Max Length

Values are given here to indicate the maximum length that you will find in the attribute, to aid in developing applications.

Nullable

A True or False value to denote whether the attribute always has to be populated with a value (False) or can be NULL (True).

Data Schema Version

The schema version the data above applies to.

BLPU (Type 21 Record)

The Basic Land and Property Unit (BLPU) Feature Type is a real-world object that is an area of land, property or structure of fixed location, having uniform occupation, ownership or function.

Temporal filtering

The earliest date on which you can request a one-off snapshot of a date in the past for data in this feature type is 27 March 2024.

Feature type attributes

The following sub-sections provide details about the attributes included with this feature type, their data types in the different output formats, and other important metadata about them.

Please note, the following attributes will not be populated within the OS ESG: Parent_UPRN and Multi_Occ_Count.

fid 

A non-persistent integer which is autogenerated and is required within the OGC GeoPackage format.

Attribute Name: fid (GKPG), Not provided (CSV)
Data Types: Integer  (GKPG), Integer (CSV)
Nullable:  false 
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Record ID

Identifies this record as a BLPU Record (type 21). 

Attribute Name: Not provided (GKPG), RECORD_IDENTIFIER (CSV)
Data Types: Integer  (GKPG), Integer (CSV)
Max Length: 2
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Change type

The type of record change.

Attribute Name: change_type (GKPG), CHANGE_TYPE (CSV)
Max Length: 1
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Processing order

The order in which the records were processed in to create the data supply. 

Attribute Name: Not provided (GKPG), PRO_ORDER (CSV)
Data Types: Integer  (GKPG), Integer (CSV)
Max Length: 16
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

UPRN

Unique Property Reference Number (UPRN) assigned by Ordnance Survey. 

Attribute Name: uprn (GKPG), UPRN (CSV)
Data Types: Integer  (GKPG), Integer (CSV)
Max Length: 12
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Logical status

Logical status of this record as given by Ordnance Survey. This attribute shows whether the record is currently live or historic. 

Attribute Name: logical_status (GKPG), LOGICAL_STATUS (CSV)
Max Length: 1
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

BLPU state

A code identifying the current state of the BLPU. 

Attribute Name: blpu_state_date (GPKG), BLPU_STATE_DATE (CSV)
Max Length: 1
Nullable:  true
Data Schema Version: 1.0

BLPU state date

Date at which the BLPU achieved its current state as defined in the BLPU State field. 

Attribute Name: blpu_state_date (GKPG), BLPU_STATE_DATE (CSV)
Condition: BLPU State Date must be present if BLPU State is present. 
Data Types: Date (GKPG), Date (CSV)
Nullable:  true
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Parent UPRN

UPRN of the parent Record if a parent-child relationship exists. 

Attribute Name: parent_uprn (GKPG), PARENT_UPRN (CSV)
Data Types: Integer (GKPG), Integer (CSV)
Max Length: 12
Nullable:  true
Data Schema Version: 1.0

X coordinates

A value in metres defining the x location in accordance with the British National Grid.  

Attribute Name: x_coordinate (GKPG) , X_COORDINATE (CSV)
Data Types: Double (GKPG), Real (CSV)
Precision: X_COORDINATE 8
Scale: 2
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Y coordinates

A value in metres defining the y location in accordance with the British National Grid.  

Attribute Name: y_coordinate (GKPG) , Y_COORDINATE (CSV)
Data Types: Double (GKPG), Real (CSV)
Precision: Y_COORDINATE 9
Scale: 2
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Latitude location

A value defining the Latitude location in accordance with the ETRS89 coordinate reference system.

Attribute Name: latitude (GKPG), LATITUDE (CSV)
Data Types: Double  (GKPG), Real  (CSV)
Precision: LATITUDE 9
Scale: 7
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Longitude location

A value defining the Longitude location in accordance with the ETRS89 coordinate reference system.

Attribute Name: longitude (GKPG), LONGITUDE (CSV)
Data Types: Double  (GKPG), Real  (CSV)
Precision: LONGITUDE 8
Scale: 7
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

RPC

Representative Point Code. This describes the accuracy of the coordinate that has been allocated to the BLPU as indicated by Ordnance Survey. 

Attribute Name: rpc (GKPG), RPC (CSV)
Max Length: 1
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Local custodian ID

Unique identifier of the authority responsible for the maintenance of this record. 

Attribute Name: local_custodian_code (GKPG), LOCAL_CUSTODIAN_CODE (CSV)
Data Types: Integer  (GKPG), Integer (CSV)
Max Length: 4
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Start date

The date on which the record was inserted into the database. 

Attribute Name: start_date (GKPG), START_DATE  (CSV)
Data Types: Date  (GKPG), Date (CSV)
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

End date

The date on which the record was closed in the database. 

Attribute Name: end_date (GKPG), END_Date (CSV)
Data Types: Date (GKPG), Date (CSV)
Nullable:  true
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Last update date

The date on which any of the attributes on this record were last changed. 

Attribute Name: last_update_date (GKPG), LAST_UPDATE_DATE (CSV)
Data Types: Date (GKPG), Date (CSV)
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Entry date

The date on which this record was inserted into the database. 

Attribute Name: entry_date (GKPG), ENTRY_DATE (CSV)
Data Types: Date (GKPG), Date (CSV)
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Multi-Occupation count

 A count of all of the child UPRNs for this record where a parent-child relationship exists. 

Attribute Name: multi_occ_count (GKPG), MULTI_OCC_COUNT (CSV)
Data Types:  Integer (GKPG), Integer (CSV)
Max Length: 4
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Addressbase postal

This field will be populated with ‘N’ within the OS ESG; all the BasicLandPropertyUnit features are considered as 'Not a postal address'.

Attribute Name: addressbase_postal (GKPG), ADDRESSBASE_POSTAL (CSV)
Max Length: 1
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Structured data types

These pages describe the two data types available for the OS Emergency Services Gazetteer (OS ESG):

The attributes associated with each data type are listed on the following pages. The following information can be found about each attribute:

Name and Definition

The name of the attribute and what it is describing.

Data Types

The values the attribute can take. For example, a numeric value or a string. This is provided for both data formats – GeoPackage and CSV.

Precision

Scale

Code List Name

The name of the code list used in association with the attribute (if applicable) and a hyperlink to the page displaying that code list.

Size / Max Length

Values are given here to indicate the maximum length that you will find in the attribute, to aid in developing applications.

Nullable

A True or False value to denote whether the attribute always has to be populated with a value (False) or can be NULL (True).

Data Schema Version

The schema version the data above applies to.

LPI (Type 24 Record)

The Land Property Identifier (LPI) Data Type defines a structured entry that identifies a BLPU. The AddressBase Premium data structure provides the facility to describe a BLPU by more than one LPI. In England and Scotland there is one Approved LPI (English), whereas in Wales there are two Approved LPIs (English and Welsh).

Temporal filtering

The earliest date on which you can request a one-off snapshot of a date in the past for data in this data type is 27 March 2024.

Data type attributes

The following sub-sections provide details about the attributes included with this data type, their types in the different output formats, and other important metadata about them.

Please note, the following attributes will not be populated within the OS ESG: SAO Start Number, SAO Start Suffix, SAO End Number, SAO End Suffix, SAO Text, PAO Start Number, PAO Start Suffix, PAO End Number, and PAO End Suffix.

fid

 A non-persistent integer which is autogenerated and is required within the OGC GeoPackage format.

Attribute Name: fid (GKPG), Not provided (CSV)
Data Types:  Integer (GKPG), Integer (CSV)
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Record ID

Identifies this Record as an LPI Record (type 24). 

Attribute Name: Not provided (GKPG), RECORD_IDENTIFIER (CSV)
Data Types: Integer (GKPG), Integer (CSV)
Size: 2
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Change type

The type of record change.

Please see the 'Available formats' section in the OS ESG Overview for more information

Attribute Name: change_type (GKPG), CHANGE_TYPE (CSV)
Code List Name: ChangeTypeCode 
Size: 1
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Processing order

The order in which the records were processed to create the data supply. 

Attribute Name: Not provided (GKPG), PRO_ORDER (CSV)
Data Types:  Integer (GKPG), Integer (CSV)
Size: 16
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

UPRN

The Unique Property Reference Number (UPRN). This is a foreign key used to reference the LPI to the corresponding BLPU. 

Attribute Name: uprn (GKPG), UPRN (CSV)
Data Types:  Integer (GKPG), Integer (CSV)
Size: 12
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

LPI key

The unique key for the LPI and primary key for this table. A 14-character string, prefixed with '7655L' then a nine-digit sequential number.

Attribute Name: lpi_key (GKPG), LPI_KEY (CSV)
Data Types: String (CSV), String  (GKPG) 
Max Length: 14
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Language

A code that identifies the language used for the LPI record (the names and / or descriptions in PAO_text and SAO_text).

Attribute Name: language (GKPG), LANGUAGE (CSV)
Code List Name:  LanguageCode
Size: 3
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Logical status

The logical status of this record. 

Attribute Name: logical_status (GKPG), LOGICAL_STATUS (CSV)
Code List Name:  LogicalStatusCode
Size: 1
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Start date

The date on which this LPI record was inserted into the database. 

Attribute Name: start_date (GKPG), START_DATE (CSV)
Data Types:  Date (GKPG), Date (CSV)
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

End date

The date on which this record ceased to exist in the database.   

Attribute Name: end_date (GKPG), END_DATE  (CSV)
Data Types:  Date (GKPG), Date (CSV)
Nullable:  true
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Last update date

The date on which any of the attributes on this record were last changed. 

Attribute Name: last_update_date (GKPG), LAST_UPDATE_DATE (CSV)
Data Types:  Date (GKPG), Date (CSV)
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Entry date

The date on which the record was inserted into the database. 

Attribute Name: entry_date (GKPG), ENTRY_DATE (CSV)
Data Types:  Date (GKPG), Date (CSV)
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

SAO start number

The number of the secondary addressable object (SAO) or the start of the number range. 

Attribute Name: sao_start_number (GKPG), SAO_START_NUMBER (CSV),
Data Types:  Integer (GKPG), Integer (CSV)
Size: 4
Nullable:  true
Data Schema Version: 1.0

SAO start number suffix

The suffix to the SAO_START_NUMBER.

Attribute Name: sao_start_suffix (GKPG), SAO_START_SUFFIX  (CSV)
Data Types: String (GKPG) , String (CSV)
Max Length: 2
Nullable:  true
Data Schema Version: 1.0

SAO end number

The end of the number range for the SAO, where the SAO_START_NUMBER contains the first number in the range. 

Attribute Name: sao_end_number (GKPG), SAO_END_NUMBER (CSV)
Data Types:  Integer (GKPG), Integer (CSV)
Size: 4
Nullable:  true
Data Schema Version: 1.0

SAO end suffix

The suffix to the SAO_END_NUMBER. 

Attribute Name: sao_end_suffix  (GKPG), SAO_END_SUFFIX (CSV)
Data Types: String (GKPG) , String (CSV)
Max Length: 2
Nullable:  true
Data Schema Version: 1.0

SAO text

Additional location information where transport or water networks interact with the feature to provide the names and / or numbers of those networks. The pipe symbol (|) is used to separate multiple names.

Please note, SAO Text will be in alphanumeric order. Where names are known to be Gaelic in origin, these will appear first in records in Scotland. In Wales, the known Welsh names will be on the Welsh LPI (CYM), and the known English names will be on the English LPI (ENG). Where it is not known, or the name in use is in both languages, the same name may appear on both the English and Welsh LPI.

Attribute Name: sao_text  (GKPG), SAO_TEXT (CSV)
Data Types: String (GKPG) , String (CSV)
Max Length: 400
Nullable:  true
Data Schema Version: 1.0

PAO start number

The number of the primary addressable object (PAO) or the start of the number range.

Attribute Name: pao_start_number (GKPG), PAO_START_NUMBER (CSV)
Data Types:  Integer (GKPG), Integer (CSV)
Size: 4
Nullable:  true
Data Schema Version: 1.0

PAO start number suffix

The suffix to the PAO_START_NUMBER. 

Attribute Name: pao_start_suffix (GKPG), PAO_START_SUFFIX  (CSV)
Data Types: String (GKPG), String (CSV)
Max Length: 2
Nullable:  true
Data Schema Version: 1.0

PAO end number

The end of the number range for the PAO where the PAO_START_NUMBER contains the first number in the range. 

Attribute Name: pao_end_number (GKPG), PAO_END_NUMBER (CSV)
Data Types:  Integer (GKPG), Integer (CSV)
Size: 4
Nullable:  true
Data Schema Version: 1.0

PAO end suffix

The suffix to the PAO_END_NUMBER. 

Attribute Name: pao_end_suffix  (GKPG), PAO_END_SUFFIX (CSV)
Data Types: String (GKPG), String (CSV)
Max Length: 2
Nullable:  true
Data Schema Version: 1.0

PAO text

The proper name(s) used to identify the feature. Where the official name is not known, a default value is given based on the classification. The pipe symbol (|) is used to separate multiple names.

Please note, PAO text will be in alphanumeric order. Where names are known to be Gaelic in origin, these will appear first in records in Scotland. In Wales, the known Welsh names will be on the Welsh LPI (CYM), and the known English names will be on the English LPI (ENG). Where it is not known, or the name in use is in both languages, the same name may appear on both the English and Welsh LPI.

Attribute Name: pao_text (GKPG), PAO_TEXT (CSV)
Data Types: String (GKPG), String (CSV)
Max Length: 90
Nullable:  true
Data Schema Version: 1.0

USRN

The Unique Street Reference Number (USRN). This is a foreign key linking the Street record to the LPI record. 

Attribute Name: usrn (GKPG), USRN (CSV)
Data Types:  Integer (GKPG), Integer (CSV)
Size: 8
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Unique Street Reference Number (USRN) for a Street intersecting or near a junction. BLPUs will be assigned a USRN; these only refer to the USRNs published in AddressBase Premium.

USRN match indicator

This field indicates how the feature was matched to a Street. 1 is matched manually to the most accessible USRN, and 2 is matched spatially to the nearest USRN, which may not be the nearest accessible street.    

Attribute Name: usrn_match_indicator (GKPG), USRN_MATCH_INDICATOR (CSV)
Code List Name: USRNMatchIndicatorCode
Size: 1
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Area name

Additional location information indicating, for example, a city or town and any relevant other named urban areas. Where relevant, island names are included. In non-urban areas, the Lower Tier Local Authority is provided. (NEAR) indicates either within 1km of a settlement onshore, or within 500m of a named island or 1km from a Lower Tier Local Authority offshore.

Attribute Name: area_name (GKPG), AREA_NAME (CSV)
Data Types:  String (GKPG), String (CSV)
Max Length: 100
Nullable:  true
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Please note, settlement boundaries and islands used are an OS geographic depiction of the extent of settlements and should not be mistaken for official administrative or electoral boundaries. Please see Named Features - OS National Geographic Database for further information. Lower Tier Local Authority Areas used are from Boundaries - OS National Geographic Database.

Level

Detail on the vertical position of the property, if known and provided by the authority.

Attribute Name: level (GKPG), LEVEL (CSV)
Data Types: String (GKPG),  String (CSV)
Max Length: 30
Nullable:  true
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Official flag

The status of the feature. 

Attribute Name: official_flag (GKPG), OFFICIAL_FLAG (CSV)
Code List Name: OfficialFlagCode
Size: 1
Nullable:  true
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Classification (Type 32 Record)

The Classification (Type 32 Record) Data Type defines a structured entry that provides the code for the type of feature.

Temporal filtering

The earliest date on which you can request a one-off snapshot of a date in the past for data in this data type is 27 March 2024.

Data type attributes

The following sub-sections provide details about the attributes included with this data type, their types in the different output formats, and other important metadata about them.

fid

 A non-persistent integer which is autogenerated and is required within the OGC GeoPackage format.

Attribute Name: fid (GKPG), Not provided (CSV)
Data Types:  Integer (GKPG), Integer (CSV)
Nullable: false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Record ID

Identifies this record as a Classification Record (type 32). 

Attribute Name: Not provided (GKPG), RECORD_IDENTIFIER (CSV)
Data Types:  Integer (GKPG), Integer (CSV)
Size: 2
Nullable: false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Change type

The type of record change.

Please see the 'Available formats' section in the OS ESG Overview for more information.

Attribute Name: change_type (GKPG), CHANGE_TYPE (CSV)
Code List Name: ChangeTypeCode 
Size: 1
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Processing order

The order in which the records were processed to create the data supply. 

Attribute Name: Not provided (GKPG), PRO_ORDER (CSV)
Data Types:  Integer (GKPG), Integer (CSV)
Size: 16
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

UPRN

The Unique Property Reference Number (UPRN). This is a foreign key used to reference the classification records to the corresponding BLPU. 

Attribute Name: uprn (GKPG), UPRN (CSV)
Data Types:  Integer (GKPG), Integer (CSV)
Size: 12
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Classification key

The unique key for the classification record and primary key for this table. 

Attribute Name: class_key (GKPG), CLASS_KEY (CSV)
Data Types: String (GKPG), String (CSV)
Max Length: 14
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Classification code

Alphanumeric code used to classify the feature.

Attribute Name: classification_code (GKPG), CLASSIFICATION_CODE (CSV)
Data Types: String (GKPG) , String (CSV)
Max Length: 6
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Classification scheme

The name of the classification scheme used for this record.   

Attribute Name: class_scheme (GKPG), CLASS_SCHEME (CSV)
Data Types: String (GKPG), String (CSV)
Max Length: 60
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Scheme version

The classification scheme version number. 

Attribute Name: scheme_version (GKPG), SCHEME_VERSION (CSV)
Data Types: float (GKPG), Real (CSV)
Precision: 2
Scale: 1
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Start date

The date on which this classification record was first loaded into the database. 

Attribute Name: start_date (GKPG), START_DATE (CSV)
Data Types: Date (GKPG), Date (CSV)
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

End date

The date on which this classification record ceased to exist.     

Attribute Name: end_date (GKPG), END_DATE  (CSV)
Data Types: Date (GKPG), Date (CSV)
Nullable:  true
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Last update date

The date on which an attribute on this record was last changed. 

Attribute Name: last_update_date (GKPG), LAST_UPDATE_DATE (CSV)
Data Types: Date (GKPG), Date (CSV)
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Entry date

The date on which the record associated with this classification record was inserted into the database.

Attribute Name: entry_date (GKPG), ENTRY_DATE (CSV)
Data Types: Date (GKPG), Date (CSV)
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Code lists

The code lists for the OS ESG.

A code list is a controlled set of allowable labels or codes represented as an alphanumeric attribute. The pages in this section show the code lists used within the OS Emergency Services Gazetteer (OS ESG). Some of the code lists only apply to attributes of the feature type and both structured data types, whereas others will only apply to attributes of either the feature type or one of the two structured data types.

The pages in this section display the code lists in alphabetical order, with one code list provided per page.

Please note, not all of the code lists listed will be populated within the OS ESG product.

AddressbasePostalCode

The code list describes the record as postal or not, as defined by AddressBase logic. This code list is used in association with the ADDRESSBASE_POSTAL (CSV) / addressbase_postal (GKPG) attribute on the table.

Value

Description

BLPUStateCode

This code list describes the physical nature of the address record. This code list is used in association with the BLPU_STATE (CSV) / blpu_state (GKPG) attribute.

Value

Description

ChangeTypeCode

This code list identifies the type of change that has been made to a feature. Please see the for more information.  This code list is used in association with the CHANGE_TYPE (CSV) / change_type (GKPG) attribute.

Value

Description

ClassificationCode

This code list describes the classification code for each feature. The classification codes will be expanded as necessary for future releases.

The new bridge interaction classification codes that are due to be added to this code list in December 2024 are included (and clearly labelled) in the table below.

Value

Description

CountryCode

The code list describes within which country the feature falls (England, Wales or Scotland). This code list is used in association with the COUNTRY (CSV) / country (GKPG) attribute on the table.

Value

Description

FileTypeCode

This code list allows the identification of either a Change-Only Update (COU) Supply or a Full Supply. This code list is used in association with the FILE_TYPE (CSV) attribute found in the record.

Value

Description

LanguageCode

This code list identifies the language of the feature displayed. This code list is used in association with the LANGUAGE (CSV) / language (GKPG) attribute found in tables, and also the table for CSV supply.

Value

Description

LogicalStatusCode

This code list provides a value to show the lifecycle stage of the features record. This code list is used in association with the LOGICAL_STATUS (CSV) / logical_status (GKPG) attribute found in the BLPU and LPI tables.

Value

Description

OfficialFlagCode

This code list is an indicator of whether a features record corresponds to an entry in the official Street Name and Numbering register. This code list is used in association with the OFFICIAL_FLAG (CSV) / official_flag (GKPG) attribute found on the LPI table.

Value

Description

RPCCode

The code list identifies the accuracy value of the coordinates allocated to the feature. This code list is used in association with the RPC (CSV) / rpc (GKPG) attribute found on the BLPU table.

Value

Description

Implementation notes

USRNMatchIndicatorCode

This code list identifies how the USRN has been allocated to a features record. This code list is used in association with the USRN_MATCH_INDICATOR (CSV) / usrn_match_indicator (GKPG) attribute found on the LPI table.

Value

Description

Dataset metadata

The sub-pages in this section define dataset metadata for the CSV format of OS Emergency Services Gazetteer (OS ESG) data:

Header (Type 10 Record)
Metadata (Type 29 Record)
Trailer (Type 99 Record)

The attributes associated with each data type are listed on the following pages. The following information can be found about each attribute:

Name and Definition

The name of the attribute and what it is describing.

Attribute Type

The nature of the attribute (for example, a numeric value or a code list value).

Size

The maximum length of the values in the attribute.

Nullable

A True or False value to denote whether the attribute always has to be populated with a value (False) or can be NULL (True).

Data Schema Version

The schema version the data above applies to.

Header (Type 10 Record)

Dataset metadata attributes

The following sub-sections provide details about the attributes included with this data type.

Please note, a header record is not provided in GPKG and the attributes that follow refer to only CSV.

Record ID

Identifies the record as a Header Record (type 10). 

Attribute Name: RECORD_IDENTIFIER (CSV)  
Type:  Integer
Size: 2
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Provider organisation

The name of the data provider organisation. 

Attribute Name: CUSTODIAN_NAME (CSV)
Type:  char
Size: 40
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Provider ID

The unique identifier for the data provider code.

Attribute Name: LOCAL_CUSTODIAN_CODE (CSV)
Type:  Integer
Size: 4
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Processing date

The date on which the data supply was generated. 

Attribute Name: PROCESS_DATE (CSV)
Type:  Date
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Volume number

The sequential number of the volume in the transfer set. 

For geographic supplies, this number will always be zero (0). 

Attribute Name: VOLUME_NUMBER (CSV)
Type:  Integer
Size: 3
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Entry date

The date of data entry for this volume. 

Attribute Name: ENTRY_DATE (CSV)
Type: Date
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Time stamp

The time of file creation in HH:MM:SS format in a 24-hour clock. 

Attribute Name: TIME_STAMP (CSV)
Type: Time
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Version number

The version number of the product schema, for example, 1.0, 2.0. 

The version number relates to the product schema and not to this Technical specification document.

Attribute Name: VERSION (CSV)
Type: char
Size: 7
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

File type

Indicates whether the data supply is a Full Supply or a Change-Only Updates Supply. 

Attribute Name: FILE_TYPE (CSV)
Type: FileTypeCode 
Size: 1
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Metadata (Type 29 Record)

Dataset metadata attributes

The following sub-sections provide details about the attributes included with this data type.

Please note, a header record is not provided in GeoPackage and the attributes that follow refer to only CSV.

Record ID

Identifies the record as a Metadata Record (type 29). 

Attribute Name: RECORD_IDENTIFIER (CSV)
Type: Integer
Size: 2
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Gazetteer name

The name of the Gazetteer; this will most likely reflect the product name, for example, OS Emergency Services Gazetteer. 

Attribute Name: GAZ_NAME (CSV) 
Type: char
Size: 60
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Gazetteer territory

The geographic domain of the gazetteer, for example, England, Wales and Scotland. 

Attribute Name: TER_OF_USE (CSV) 
Type: char
Size: 60
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Datasets

A list of other datasets used to contribute to the creation of the product.

Attribute Name: LINKED_DATA (CSV) 
Type: char
Size: 100
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Gazetteer owner

The organisation with overall responsibility for the gazetteer. 

Attribute Name: GAZ_OWNER  (CSV)
Type: char
Size: 15
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Frequency

The frequency with which the data is maintained and sent to the customer. 

Attribute Name: NGAZ_FREQ  (CSV)
Type: char
Size: 1
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Custodian name

The organisation or department responsible for the compilation and maintenance of the data.

Attribute Name: CUSTODIAN_NAME (CSV) 
Type: char
Size: 40
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Custodian UPRN

The Unique Property Reference Number (UPRN) of the custodian location.

Attribute Name: CUSTODIAN_UPRN (CSV) 
Type:  Integer
Size: 12
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Custodian code

A four-digit code identifying the gazetteer custodian. 

Attribute Name: LOCAL_CUSTODIAN_CODE (CSV)
Type:  Integer
Size: 4
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Coordinate reference system

The coordinate reference system used in the gazetteer to describe the position, for example, British National Grid. 

Attribute Name: CO_ORD_SYSTEM (CSV) 
Type: char
Size: 40
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Coordinate unit

The unit of measurement of coordinates. 

Attribute Name: CO_ORD_UNIT (CSV) 
Type: char
Size: 10
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Update date

The date on which metadata was last updated.

Attribute Name: META_DATE  (CSV)
Type: Date
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Classification scheme

The classification scheme(s) used in the gazetteer. 

Attribute Name: CLASS_SCHEME (CSV)
Type: char
Size: 60
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Gazetteer current date

The date at which the gazetteer can be considered to be current. 

Attribute Name: GAZ_DATE  (CSV)
Type: Date
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Language

The language used for the descriptors within the gazetteer, for example, ‘ENG’. 

Attribute Name: LANGUAGE  (CSV)
Type: LanguageCode 
Size: 3
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Character set

The character set used in this gazetteer. 

Attribute Name: CHARACTER_SET (CSV) 
Type: char
Size: 30
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Trailer (Type 99 Record)

Dataset metadata attributes

The following sub-sections provide details about the attributes included with this data type.

Please note, a header record is not provided in GeoPackage and the attributes that follow refer to only CSV.

Record ID

Identifies the record as a Trailer Record (type 99). 

Attribute Name: RECORD_IDENTIFIER (CSV)
Type: Integer
Size: 2
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Next volume name

The sequential number of the next volume in the transfer set.

For geographic supply, this will always be zero (0). For non-geographic supply, zero (0) denotes the last file in the transfer set. 

Attribute Name: NEXT_VOLUME_NAME (CSV)
Type:  Integer
Size: 3
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Record count

A count of the number of records in the volume (excluding the header record, metadata and trailer records). 

Attribute Name: RECORD_COUNT (CSV)
Type:  Integer
Size: 16
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Entry date

The date of data entry. 

Attribute Name: ENTRY_DATE (CSV)
Type: Date
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

Time stamp

The time of creation in HH:MM:SS format in a 24-hour clock.

Attribute Name: TIME_STAMP (CSV) 
Type: Time
Nullable:  false
Data Schema Version: 1.0

OS ESG Getting Started Guide

This getting started guide provides instructions for using the OS ESG in different software applications. Users with limited technical knowledge will be able to follow this guide.

Data supply

The OS ESG can be downloaded from the Premium Downloads section of the OS Data Hub.

It comes in two geospatial data formats:

GeoPackage
Comma-separated values (CSV)

The GeoPackage is formed of three tables: LPI, BLPU and Classification. This data does not need pre-processing before it can be used.

The CSV follows the AddressBase Premium data schema and contains rows of data with the following record identifiers: type 21, type 24 and type 32. This schema often requires pre-processing before it can be used. See 'Using the CSV data' on this page for guidance on how to do this.

Using the GeoPackage data

The GeoPackage format of the OS ESG does not require splitting as a GeoPackage can contain multiple tables.

The GeoPackage data supply contains three tables:

BLPU
LPI
Classification

It’s important to understand that only the BLPU table has a geometry field and this may dictate how you use it in your GIS software.

For general guidance on how to work with GeoPackage, please read our Getting Started with GeoPackage guide.

Accessing GeoPackage data via GIS software

The following sub-sections provide step-by-step instructions on how to access GeoPackage data via various GIS software packages; all current versions of these applications support GeoPackage natively.

ArcGIS Pro

Requirements:

ArcGIS Pro (version 1.1 or later)
OS ESG GeoPackage dataset, for example, OSEmergencyServicesGazetteer_FULL_2024-04-03_001.gpkg

Note: Certain versions of ArcGIS Pro (for example, version 2.5) require a GeoPackage to have a spatial index added before the data can be viewed on the map. This can be done in the Catalog by opening the Feature Class Properties window within the Indexes page.

Instructions:

These instructions were created using ArcGIS Pro version 3.2.0. Versions from 1.1 onwards also support GeoPackage features.

In ArcGIS Pro, open an existing project or create a new project:
- To create a new project, select Map in the New Project section, enter a name, select a location for the project, and then click OK.
In the Add Data dialog, select the GeoPackage to be added into ArcGIS Pro and click Open. This opens the GeoPackage to reveal the individual layers.
Select the layers you want to add and click OK. You can select more than one layer by holding down the Ctrl (control) key and clicking on multiple layers.
The layers added into ArcGIS Pro will appear in the contents pane on the left-hand side of the project.

ArcMap

Requirements:

ArcMap (version 10.2.2 or later)
OS ESG GeoPackage dataset, for example, OSEmergencyServicesGazetteer_FULL_2024-04-03_001.gpkg

Note: Certain versions of ArcMap (for example, version 10.8.1) require a GeoPackage to have a spatial index added before the data can be viewed on the map. This can be done in the Catalog by opening the Feature Class Properties window within the Indexes page.

Instructions:

These instructions were created using ArcMap version 10.5, but versions from 10.2.2 onwards also support GeoPackage features.

In ArcMap, open an existing map or create a new one.
In the Add Data dialog:
- Select the GeoPackage file you want to add into ArcMap and then click Open. This opens the GeoPackage to reveal the individual layers.
- Select the layers you want to upload into ArcMap. You can select more than one layer by holding down the Ctrl (control) key and clicking on multiple layers.
- Click Add to add the layers into the map.
The GeoPackage layers should now be viewable in the layers list in the Table Of Contents on the left-hand side of the workspace.

Cadcorp SIS

Requirements:

Cadcorp SIS (version SIS 9 or later)
OS ESG GeoPackage dataset, for example, OSEmergencyServicesGazetteer_FULL_2024-04-03_001.gpkg

Instructions:

These instructions were created using Cadcorp SIS 9.1 Desktop Express; however, all versions of Cadcorp SIS 9 or later support GeoPackage.

In Cadcorp SIS, open an existing map or create a new one.
Click Add Overlay in the top ribbon.
In the Overlay Types dialog, select Files > File and then click Next.
In the File Browser dialog, select the GeoPackage file and then click Finish.
The data should now appear on the map.

QGIS

Requirements:

QGIS (version 2.10.1 or later)
OS ESG GeoPackage dataset, for example, OSEmergencyServicesGazetteer_FULL_2024-04-03_001.gpkg

Instructions:

These instructions were created using QGIS version 3.28. You can use any version of QGIS from version 2.10.1 onwards.

In QGIS, open an existing project or create a new one.
In the top navigation, select Layer > Add Layer > Add Vector Layer...
In the Data Source Manager | Vector dialog:
- Source: Click ... (three dots) on the right of the Source field, select the GeoPackage file and click Open.
- Click Add. This opens the Select Items to Add dialog.
In the Select Items to Add dialog:
- Select the the layers of the GeoPackage to be added to the map. You can select more than one layer by holding down the Ctrl (control) key and clicking on multiple layers.
- Click Add Layers.
The GeoPackage layers should now be viewable in the layers list on the left-hand side of the workspace.

Converting / Loading a GeoPackage to other data formats

It is possible to use Extract, Transform, Load (ETL) tools to convert the data into different formats and to load into databases.

The following sub-section provides step-by-step instructions for FME:

FME

FME is a data integration platform which can read the GeoPackage format and be used to convert and transform the data into other formats or databases. The following instructions show you how to read a GeoPackage into an FME workbench.

Requirements:

FME Desktop
OS ESG GeoPackage dataset, for example, OSEmergencyServicesGazetteer_FULL_2024-04-03_001.gpkg

Instructions:

These instructions were created using FME Workbench 2023.2.2.0.

In FME, click Reader in the top ribbon.
In the Add Reader dialog:
- Format: Select OGC GeoPackage from the dropdown.
- Dataset: Click ... (three dots) to the right of the field, select the GeoPackage you want to read, and then click Open.
- Coord. System: Select an appropriate coordinate system.
- Parameters: Click this button to open the OGC GeoPackage Parameters dialog:
  - Tables: Click ... (three dots) to the right of the field to open the Select Tables dialog. You can also use the Use Search Envelope option in this dialog to clip the GeoPackage to an extent.
    In the Select Tables dialog, select the layers you want to add into the workbench and click OK.
- Click OK to close the OGC GeoPackage Parameters dialog.
- Click OK to close the Add Reader dialog.
An orange reader will display the name of the GeoPackage table that has been read in.

To use GDAL to load the GeoPackage datasets into a PostgreSQL database using the ETL tool, please read and adapt the instructions in the generic Getting Started with GeoPackage guide > GDAL guide.

Using the CSV data

Pre-processing CSV data

This section guides you through the process of pre-processing the OS ESG CSV data as a stand-alone dataset; this means splitting the data by record identifiers and appending the header files.

The OS ESG header files are available to download from the OS ESG Downloads page.

We have included instructions for two pre-processing options – gawk and Python:

gawk

You can use gawk to split the OS ESG CSV files by their record identifier and append the Header files.

Note: Running the .bat file creates temporary files and requires extra space in the location in which you are creating your files. These files can be much larger than the original CSV files. They are deleted once the process has finished, but the extra space is still required initially.

Instructions:

Add the OS ESG CSV files to an empty folder. It is very important to ensure that the folder does not contain any other CSV files. In addition, the folder name and the file directory path name must not contain any spaces, for example, C:\os_esg\.
Download the OSEmergencyServiceGazetteer-header-files.zip from the OS ESG Download page and extract the ZIP. You should have the following CSV files:
Place the extracted OS ESG header files into the folder containing the OS ESG CSV files (created in step 1).
Go to the OS ESG/gawk GitHub repository.
Open the esg-gawk-split-script.bat file and copy the contents into a text editor, such as TextPad or Notepad++. Save this text file as a .bat file in the same folder as your OS ESG CSV data and header files.
In the OS ESG/gawk GitHub repository (location in Step 4), download and extract the ZIP file named gawk-4.0.2-bin.zip. This will extract a file called Gawk.exe. Place this file in the same folder as your OS ESG data and header files.
Double-click on esg-gawk-split-script.bat file and an MS-DOS window will open. Once the process is complete, the screen will either close automatically or you will have to press any key to continue.
Running the batch file should create additional files with a similar naming convention to that of the header files. The new files should have been generated in the same location as the original data and header files. For example, there should now be an ID24_LPI_RECORDS as well as a Record_24_LPI_Header.csv in the folder.

Python

You can use Python (instead of gawk) to split the OS ESG CSV files by their record identifier and append the header files.

Note:

These instructions are based on Python 3.7.
You do not need to download the header files if you are using Python to split the OS ESG.

Instructions:

Add the OS ESG CSV files to an empty folder. It is very important to ensure that the folder does not contain any other CSV files. In addition, the folder name and the file directory path name must not contain any spaces, for example, C:\EmergencyServicesGazetteer\OS_ESG.
Go to the OS ESG/Python GitHub repository and download the esg-record-splitter-v3_7.py file.
Copy the file into the folder containing the CSV files (created in step 1).
Double click the Python script and it will automatically find the CSVs and split them into the relevant files.
When the file splitting process is complete, the following message will be displayed: 'The program will close in 10 seconds'.
Once the CSVs have been split out, they can be loaded into a GIS using a CSV import tool. There will be three main CSVs: BLPU, LPI and Classification.

Database loading

To load the data into a database, you need to first create the tables and columns required for the data; these can be found in the OS ESG GitHub repository and depend on the type of database you have.

Once you have created the tables, follow the guidance in Loading CSV files to load the data into your database.

Connecting data

Each table in the OS ESG has a UPRN (Unique Property Reference Number). This identifier is what links the rows of data together between tables.

Please follow guidance from your software provider on how to join datasets if using the CSV or GeoPackage directly (without a database load)

If you have the data in a database you can link it in the following way:

Select * from os_esg.blpu 
inner join os_esg.lpi on blpu.uprn = lpi.uprn 
inner join os_esg.classification on blpu.uprn = classification.uprn

OS ESG Classification Scheme

The OS ESG classification scheme is available to download from the OS ESG Downloads page.

Useful resources

A helpful introductory Lightning Talk on the OS ESG is available on our 'More than Maps' site (a self-serve platform that provides a one-stop shop for all your OS technical geospatial support, including tutorials, demonstrators and case studies).
OS Emergency Services Gazetteer (OS ESG) Overview
OS Emergency Services Gazetteer (OS ESG) Technical Specification

OS ESG Known Data Issues

This page lists known data issues in relation to the OS ESG product. As and when we resolve a known data issue, we will remove it from this page.

OS ESG known data issues

Data issue name

Data issue description

OS ESG FAQs

General FAQs

What file formats are available for the OS ESG?

OS ESG data is available in two easy-to-use formats: GeoPackage and CSV (comma-separated values). More information about both formats is available on the Product supply page of the OS ESG Overview.

Is COU data available?

Monthly COU (Change-Only Update) supplies are available for CSV (comma-separated values) files only; they are not available for GeoPackage files. More information about both formats is available on the Product supply page of the OS ESG Overview.

How do I get started with using the OS ESG?

Our OS ESG Getting Started Guide will help you to get started using the product; the guide contains detailed instructions on accessing and / or converting GeoPackage data, using the CSV dataset in a database, and useful links to additional resources for getting the most out of the OS ESG.

A helpful introductory Lightning Talk on the OS ESG is also available on our 'More than Maps' site (a self-serve platform that provides a one-stop shop for all your OS technical geospatial support, including tutorials, demonstrators and case studies).

What OS ESG release aligns to the relevant AddressBase Premium Epoch version?

Please see the table on the Product supply page of the OS ESG Overview for a comparison of publication schedule alignments between the two products for this year.

What are the differences between the OS ESG and AddressBase Premium specifications?

Due to the structure of the datasets and customer feedback, we purposefully ensured that the OS ESG aligns with the AddressBase Premium specification. This meant that we had to tweak the field character limits in both the SAO text and Area name fields in the OS ESG:

sao_text: Has a field character limit of 90 in AddressBase Premium and 400 in the OS ESG.
area_name: Has a field character limit of 40 in AddressBase Premium and 100 in the OS ESG.

The reason for increasing the character limits in these two fields for the OS ESG is to ensure all the information is presented properly and isn't truncated; thereby also accommodating any Gaelic variations for names.

Are the classification schemes in the OS ESG and AddressBase Premium different?

Yes. AddressBase Premium uses the AddressBase Classification Scheme, while the OS ESG uses the OS Emergency Services Gazetteer Classification Scheme. Whilst these classification schemes have different names, they follow the same structure, i.e. Quaternary level classification.

Why are there features with no data present in the SAO text field?

There are a number of features that OS does not have any information for, and these fields will be Null in the data. For example, no intersecting road information is recorded for junctions without any named or numbered roads; as such, the SAO text field will be Null for these junctions.

For road junctions data, why are some streets listed both with and without an apostrophe? For example: CUCKOO LANE | ST STEPHEN'S WALK | ST STEPHENS WALK.

All possible variations of a street name are included in the OS ESG. This information is modelled and created using OS Transport Network data.

OS ESG Downloads

The header files (CSV format only) and classification scheme for the OS ESG are available to download from this page.

OS ESG CSV header files

To follow the separation of record type, the CSV (Comma-Separated Values) headers for each record type are available to download here:

The record types are provided in the following order:

BLPU (Type 21)
LPI (Type 24)
Classification (Type 32)

Information and instructions about how to append the header files is available in the OS ESG Getting Started Guide.

OS ESG Classification Scheme

Download the OS ESG Classification Scheme file below to understand the classification codes used for features and their breakdown:

The new bridge interaction classification codes (listed in the Classification Code code list) will be added to the OS Emergency Services Gazetteer Classification Scheme in December 2024. In the meantime, they are available in the following separate file: