The address of a property is a very important issue. Organisations, postal and emergency services, and the general public need an efficient means of locating and referencing properties. The Council is the Street Naming and Numbering Authority for the area. It carries out these functions under the provisions of Section 22 Greater Manchester Act 1981 and within Department of Transport guidelines.

If a property is already numbered, a property owner can additionally name their property without contacting the Council. The property name in this case will not officially form part of the property address, and the property number must still be displayed by law and referred to in any correspondence; for example:

'My House' (not part of official address)
1 My Road (official address)
Town
County
Postcode

You only need to seek permission from the Council if there is no number allocated in the official address (i.e.. if the property has been allocated a name as part of its official address historically).

If you are a developer of a new property, you should contact us as soon as you receive planning permission. A name and number will be issued and the information then sent to public utilities, emergency services, Land Registry, Ordnance Survey and relevant Council services. You will also be sent a copy of the registered address from which we would ask you to inform your prospective purchasers of their new property address.

Where appropriate, you will be asked to provide new street name plates to British standard design. Further details will be provided at the appropriate time.

On rare occasions it becomes necessary to rename or renumber a street. This is usually only done as a last resort when:

• there is confusion over a street's name and/or numbering
• new properties are built in a street and there is a need for other properties to be renumbered to accommodate the new properties
• the number of named-only properties in a street is deemed to be causing confusion for visitors, the delivery or emergency services

Existing residents will be contacted and their views taken into account. However if you think you have a street naming issue, please contact us at the address below.