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Street naming conventions

Find out about the naming conventions which are applied when suggesting names for streets, including street suffixes (the principles can also be applied to building names)

Street names

The definition of a 'street' includes any highway, public bridge, road, lane, footway, cycle path, square, court alley or passage whether a thoroughfare or not, adopted or not.

Suggestions for street names are usually submitted by the developer. However, proposals in liaison with parish town and ward councils is suggested.

Please check to ensure a street name is not already in use, you can do this on the FIndMyStreet website.  Any new names must also meet the conventions below.

Our Address Management System is then checked to ensure that the proposed road names do not conflict with other names in use in the area.

  • the name(s) should, when possible, have a proven historical connection to the land intended for development
  • the name(s) will not be the same or similar to any existing name(s) in the area. We advise that you check the name(s) by contacting us (our contact details are at the bottom of this page).
  • if the development contains a new network of streets a theme may be chosen, taking care not to repeat a theme already being used locally
  • if no suitable historical name can be found for the land then a historical name related to an adjacent area may be suitable
  • a cul-de-sac must use one of the following suffixes: Close, Court or Yard to avoid any confusion of a through way
  • you must obtain the consent of the Lord Chamberlain's office if you use a name with any reference to the Royal family (or the use of the word 'Royal' is suggested).  

Street names should not be difficult to pronounce or awkward to spell. In general, words of more than three syllables should be avoided as should multiple words.

Preferably, no street should start with 'The'.

The naming of streets after living persons should be avoided.

Subsidiary names (for example, a row of buildings within an already named and numbered road being called '.......Terrace') should not be used.

All new street names should end with one of the following suffixes:

  • 'Street' may be used for any thoroughfare
  • 'Road' may be used for any thoroughfare
  • 'Way' may be used for major roads
  • 'Avenue' may be used for residential roads
  • 'Drive' may be used for residential roads
  • 'Grove' may be used for residential roads
  • 'Lane' may be used for residential roads
  • 'Gardens' may be used for residential roads (subject to there being no confusion with any local open space)
  • 'Place' may be used for residential roads
  • 'Crescent' may be used for a crescent shaped road
  • 'Close' To be used for a cul-de-sac only
  • 'Square' may be used for a square only
  • 'Hill' may be used for a hillside road only
  • 'Circus' may be used for a large roundabout
  • 'Mews' is considered acceptable in appropriate circumstances (for example, where a row of stables exists, usually with carriage houses below and living quarters above)
  • 'Vale' may be used for residential roads (only for exceptional use)
  • 'Dene' may be used for residential roads (only for exceptional use)
  • 'Rise' may be used for residential roads (only for exceptional use)
  • 'Mead' may be used for residential roads (only for exceptional use)
  • 'Court' is considered acceptable in appropriate circumstances.
  • 'Yard' is considered acceptable in appropriate circumstances.

'End', 'Cross', 'Side', 'View', 'Wharf', 'Walk', 'Park', 'Meadow' are not considered to be suitable. However any of these words can be incorporated in a street name provided that it terminates with an appropriate suffix, for example, Fen End Road.

Single or dual names without suffixes can be used in appropriate places, for example 'Broadway' - for a major road where such a description would be appropriate.

The use of 'North', 'East', 'South' or 'West (as in 'Alfred Road North' and 'Alfred Road South') for new streets is only acceptable where the road is continuous and passes over a major junction. It is not acceptable when the road is in two separate parts with no vehicular access between the two.

The use of phonetically similar names within a village / town such as 'Alfred Road' and 'Alfred Close' or 'Churchill Road' and 'Birch Hill Road' must be avoided. You can check for a street name using FindMyStreet

Aesthetically unsuitable names should be avoided such as 'Gasworks Road', 'Coalpit Lane' as should names that are capable of deliberate misinterpretation such as 'Hoare Road', 'Typple Avenue' etc.

Rude, Offensive or names linked to unsavoury activity or persons will not be accepted

All new pedestrian ways should end with either 'Walk', 'Path', 'Way'.

Building names

The definition of 'building' in the context of this guidance about naming is not intended to refer to single dwellings. Therefore this law might be adopted Section 17 of the Public Health Act 1925.

All new building names should end with one of the following:

  • 'House' block offices or residential only
  • 'Lodge' residential only
  • 'Apartments' residential only
  • 'Mansions' residential only
  • 'Court' block offices or residential only
  • 'Point' high block residential only
  • 'Tower' block offices or residential only
  • 'Heights' block offices or residential only

Preferably, no building name should start with 'The'.

The naming of buildings after living persons should be avoided.

Aesthetically unsuitable names should be avoided such as ''Tip House',  as should names that are capable of deliberate misinterpretation such as 'Swag House' etc.

Commercial premises might be prefixed with the word UNIT as deemed appropriate by us.