Edition 7

Version 6
 Contents
Page
Contents 2-3
Using the Programmers’ Guide 4
Chapter Section 1 - General information on PAF®
1 Structure of a PAF® address 8
2 Structure of PAF® database 22
3 Formatting a PAF® address for printing 27
4 Information on files and tables 43
Section 2 - PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format
5 MainfileTM – 29million addresses at Delivery Point level 46
6 AliasTM- postally not required data 65
7 KeychainTM - add-on to the Combined PAF® Changes product 73
8 Changes & Single Changes™ - for updating Mainfile 77
Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format
9 Compressed StandardTM – text version of Mainfile 96
10 RangesTM – Delivery Point numbers are ranged 104
Expanded & Expanded Single Changes™ - for updating Compressed
11 112
Standard & Ranges
Section 4 – Other products
12 Postcode Information File (PIFTM) - useful for barcoding 123
13 Postcode Information File (PIFTM) Changes – update product 130
Unique Delivery Point Reference Number (UDPRNTM) – free
14 134
referencing data to be used in conjunction with Mainfile & Compressed Standard
BFPO Postcode data – available free of charge at the point of extract with any
15 145
PAF product
16 Not Yet BuiltTM - planned new developments 148
17 Just BuiltTM – newly activated Delivery Points 161
18 Multiple ResidenceTM - homes behind the doors 173
19 PostzonTM 100m – grid references, Ward & NHS codes for UK Postcodes 184

Section 5 – Products available in CSV

20 CSV PAF® 191
21 CSV PAF® Changes 193
22 CSV AliasTM 197
23 CSV Multiple ResidenceTM 200
24 CSV Multiple ResidenceTM Changes 202
25 CSV Just BuiltTM 205

Programmers’ Guide: Using the Programmers’ Guide Page 2 of 237

 26 CSV Not Yet BuiltTM 207
27 CSV Postcode Information File 209
28 CSV British Forces Postcode Data (BFPO) 212
29 CSV Postzon 215
Appendices
a) ASCII character tables & punctuation in PAF® 220
b) PAF® Address Key rules 222
c) Cross-border Postcodes 223
d) Media options 225
e) Index of tables 232
Contact us, Your comments, Data Protection Act 1998 236

Programmers’ Guide: Using the Programmers’ Guide Page 3 of 237

Using the Programmers’ Guide
Introduction
This is the technical guide to all Royal Mail’s raw data products based on the Postcode Address File (PAF®) or
PostzonTM. Computer programmers need this information to incorporate raw data into their computer system.
This guide describes all the raw data formats available. It is structured in six sections.

Section 1 - General information

We recommend you always read Section 1 alongside the information on the products you’re interested in,
because it
 describes the structure of a Postcode and a PAF address
 talks about the PAF file and the structure of PAF database
 explains the use of Address and Organisation Keys
 gives the formatting rules that can be applied to PAF addresses for printing of labels.

Sections 2 - 4

These sections describe all the raw data products, including full product descriptions and file structures. We
have split the sections to keep related products together.

Section 2 - PAF products in a RELATIONAL format

‘Relational’ means products based on PAF Mainfile™ There is a chapter on Mainfile itself, plus chapters on
other products in the same format which may be of interest to Mainfile users, i.e.:
 Alias®
 Keychain TM
 Changes and Single ChangesTM

Section 3 - PAF products in a TEXT BASED format

‘Text-based’ means products based on the Compressed Standard™ file. There is a chapter on the
Compressed Standard file, plus chapters on other products in the same format, which may be of interest to
Compressed Standard file users, i.e.:
 Ranges™
 Expanded Changes and Expanded Single Changes™

Programmers’ Guide: Using the Programmers’ Guide Page 4 of 237

 Section 4 – other products
This section includes all other products which can be bought as stand-alone, or which can be bought
alongside either Mainfile or Compressed Standard:
 Postcode Information File (PIFTM) and PIF Changes
 Unique Delivery Point Reference Number (UDPRNTM)
 BFPO Postcode data

And those products which aren’t based on PAF®:

 Just BuiltTM
 Multiple ResidenceTM
 Not Yet BuiltTM
 PostzonTM 100m

Sections 5

This section describes all products that are available in CSV format.

Section 6 – Appendices
This section lists appendices and useful references.

Edition 7, version 6
This is edition 7, version 6 of the PAF® Digest, now renamed the Programmers’ Guide. The information it
contains is correct at the time of publication in 2013.

New products added

 BFPO Postcode Data
 All products now available in CSV format

Information deleted on products no longer available:

 No deletions since previous version

Programmers’ Guide: Using the Programmers’ Guide Page 5 of 237

What is PAF®?
PAF® stands for Postcode Address File. It’s a database containing all known addresses and Postcodes in the
United Kingdom, including England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, Jersey, Guernsey, and the Isle of Man.
PAF® holds over 29 million addresses and 1.8 million Postcodes.

 PAF® includes Small User Residential, Small User Organisation and Large User Organisation details

 PAF® excludes the Republic of Ireland and some of the Delivery Point information in a small part of
Northern Ireland. British Forces Post Office addresses, along with addresses which do not have a
Delivery Point (i.e. letterbox) are not held on PAF®. Examples of those not held on PAF® are churches,
telephone exchanges, substations etc.

Who supplies PAF®?

Royal Mail Group Ltd owns and maintains PAF® data in which it has copyright. The data is available to external
organisations as raw data.

Software applications are also available from third party suppliers who provide a variety of products and services
using PAF data. Find out more about the range of products and services available at www.poweredbypaf.com.

Programmers’ Guide: Using the Programmers’ Guide Page 6 of 237

Section 1
General information on PAF®
Chapter 1 Structure of a PAF® address
Chapter 2 Structure of the PAF® database
Chapter 3 Formatting a PAF® address for printing
Chapter 4 Information on files & tables

General information on PAF® Structure of a PAF® address Page 7 of 237

Structure of a PAF® address
Introduction
PAF® gives you direct access to essential information about Delivery Points.

This chapter describes each of the different address elements. No one single address has all elements populated
on PAF®. This chapter is in two parts:
1. Names (including surnames, complexities of residential addresses, Organisation Names and PO Boxes)
2. Address details (including premises, Thoroughfares, localities and Postcode)

Please note that address text on PAF® is always in upper case.

The examples of different types of address in this guide are fictional unless otherwise stated.

The numbered tables show the name of each PAF® field in the left hand column, an example of that field in the
right hand column and, below that, how the address example would look on an envelope.

Surnames
You won’t find the names of private individuals on PAF®, except in instances where they’re the only method of
identifying a Delivery Point. Any surnames on PAF® will be in brackets (-) in the Building or Sub Building Name
fields.

Tables 1 and 2 below show how surnames are held on PAF®:

 Table 1 with the surname in the Sub Building field
 Table 2 with the surname in the Building field.

Table 1: Surname in Sub Building field

Field on PAF® Fictional example
Sub Building (SMITH)
Building ROSE COTTAGE
Thoroughfare PACKHOUSE LANE
Post Town BIRMINGHAM
Postcode B39 0DH

(Smith)
Rose Cottage
Packhouse Lane
BIRMINGHAM
B39 0DH

General information on PAF® Structure of a PAF® address Page 8 of 237

Table 2: Surname in building field
Field on PAF® Fictional example
Building Name (HYNES)
Thoroughfare CROMPTON ROAD
Post Town BRADLEY HEATH
Postcode S64 5BB

(Hynes)
Crompton Road
BRADLEY HEATH
S64 5BB

Residential addresses
Some residential addresses don’t receive a direct delivery of mail; for example, buildings sub-divided into two or
more apartments, but with only one front door. If we have an address structure for these premises, they are
captured on PAF® with a count of how many households are behind the front door. This figure is known as
‘Multi-occupancy’. If we have additional address details for these types of premises (e.g. Flats 1-24), this
information is available as a separate product called Multiple Residence. See the Multiple Residence chapter in
this guide for more information.

Table 3: Typical residential address

Field on PAF® Fictional example
Building Number 16
Thoroughfare VIXEN ROAD
Post Town BRADOCK
Postcode KT6 5BT

16 Vixen Road
BRADDOCK
KT6 5BT

Section 1: General information on PAF® Structure of a PAF® address Page 9 of 237

Organisations
PAF® holds the name of the Organisation. The maximum field length is 60 characters.

Delivery Points with organisation details are divided into Small or Large User Organisations:

 Small User Delivery Points are split into two parts: organisation and address. A number of Small User
organisations and/or residential addresses can share a single Postcode. The minimum number of
Delivery Points on a Postcode is one, the average is fifteen, and the maximum is ninety-nine.

 Large User Organisations are defined as receiving a minimum of a thousand or more items of mail a
day. Large User Organisations have their own Postcode.

A new business moving into premises will either use the Small User Postcode, which is shared with other
Delivery Points, or have their own unique Large User Postcode. For example, if company A with their own Large
User Postcode moved to a new address, the new proprietors will not automatically assume the Postcode used by
the previous occupant. Likewise, if company A relocates, it will not automatically retain the Large User Postcode.

Table 4 below shows an example of an organisation address.

Table 4: Typical Organisation address

Field on PAF® Fictional example
Organisation Name KATH'S CAKES
Building Name VICTORIA HOUSE
Thoroughfare HIGH STREET
Post Town PORTSMOUTH
Postcode PO1 1AF

Kath's Cakes
Victoria House
High Street
PORTSMOUTH
PO1 1AF

PO Box addresses
With a PO Box service, the customer receives a shortened, easy-to-remember address that provides a degree of
anonymity. Customers either collect their own mail from their local delivery office or can arrange delivery. All
PO Box Postcodes are classed as ‘Large User’ Postcodes (PO Box field has a maximum field length of 6)

Tables 5 and 6 below are examples of PO Box addresses – Table 5 using a name, and Table 6 without a name:

General information on PAF® Structure of a PAF® address Page 10 of 237

Table 5: PO Box address with a name
Field on PAF® Fictional example
Name ROBINSONS
PO Box 61
Post Town FAREHAM
Postcode PO14 1UX

Robinsons
PO Box 61
FAREHAM
PO14 1UX

Table 6: PO Box address without a name

Field on PAF® Fictional example
PO Box 22
Post Town FAREHAM
Postcode PO14 3XH

PO Box 22
FAREHAM
PO14 3XH

Address details
This section explains the format of each of the address elements on our products, along with typical examples.

An address is composed of four basic elements:

 Premises
 Thoroughfare
 Locality
 Postcode

General information on PAF® Structure of a PAF® address Page 11 of 237

Not all of the above are present for every address. Addresses on PAF® may be composed of different subsets of
the elements. However, the Post Town (locality) and Postcode will be represented in all PAF addresses.

The table below shows all basic and sub-set address elements, an example of each, PAF® maximum field length
of each and specifies whether it is required for mailing purposes.

Table 7: Address elements of PAF®

Max.
Required
Address elements field
for mailing
length
Premises elements
Sub Building Name (e.g. ‘Flat 1’) 30 Yes, if applicable
Not required if there’s a Building
Building Name (e.g. ‘Rose Cottage’) 50
Number
Building Number (e.g. ‘22’) 4 Yes, if available
Organisation Name (e.g. ‘Kath’s Cakes’) 60 Yes, if applicable
PO Box number 6 Yes, if applicable
Thoroughfare elements
Dependent Thoroughfare Name (e.g. ‘Cheshunt’) 60 Yes, if applicable
Dependent Thoroughfare Descriptor (e.g. ‘Mews’ or ‘Court’) 20 Yes, if applicable
Thoroughfare Name (e.g. ‘Cypress’) 60 Yes, if applicable
Thoroughfare Descriptor (e.g. ‘Road’ or ‘Street’) 20 Yes, if applicable
Locality elements
Double Dependent Locality (e.g. ‘Tyre Industrial Estate’) 35 Yes, if applicable
Dependent Locality (e.g. ‘Blantyre’) 35 Yes, if applicable
Post Town (e.g. ‘GLASGOW’) 30 Yes, always
County * (e.g. ‘Surrey) 30 No
Postcode (e.g. SW1P 3UX’) 7 Yes, always

* The County is no longer required as part of a correct postal address provided the Post Town and Postcode are
included – see County section of this chapter for more information on this.

Premises elements
The residential premises elements of a PAF® address are:
 Sub Building Name
 Building Name
 Building Number

A combination of these elements may be present, but a Sub Building Name cannot be present on its own. When
a Sub Building is present, there will always be Building Name or Building Number data present.

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In our products a zero may be present in the Building Number field. The table below shows an example of this,
where PAF® lists ‘Flat 1’ in the Sub Building field, ‘Holly House’ in the Building Name field and a zero in the
Building Number field.

Table 8: Building Number in the Building Name field

Field on PAF® Fictional example
Sub Building Name FLAT 1
Building Name HOLLY HOUSE
Thoroughfare OAK AVENUE
Locality BIDDENDEN
Post Town ASHFORD
Postcode TN27 8BT

Flat 1, Holly House

Oak Avenue
Biddenden
ASHFORD
TN27 8BT

If the address relates to an Organisation Name or a PO Box there may be no premises elements present at all –
see PO Box examples in Tables 4 and 5 above.

The tables below show how PAF holds addresses with Sub Building Name and Building Name addresses:

Table 9: Address with Sub Building Name and Building Name

Field on PAF® Fictional example
Sub Building Name FLAT 20
Building Name VICTORIA HOUSE
Building Number 15
Thoroughfare THE STREET
Post Town CHRISTCHURCH
Postcode BH23 6AA

Flat 20
Victoria House
15 The Street
CHRISTCHURCH
BH23 6AA

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Table 10: Address with Sub Building Name, & using a range in Building Name field
Field on PAF® Fictional example
Sub Building Name CARETAKERS FLAT
Building Name 110-114
Thoroughfare HIGH STREET WEST
Post Town BRISTOL
Postcode BS1 2AW

Caretakers Flat
110-114 High Street West
BRISTOL
BS1 2AW

Thoroughfare elements
The four Thoroughfare elements on PAF are:

 Dependent Thoroughfare Name and Dependent Thoroughfare Descriptor

 Thoroughfare Name and Thoroughfare Descriptor

There should only be one Thoroughfare on a Postcode, although there are some anolmalies where existing
Postcodes may contain more than one Thoroughfare. These will be corrected over time.

Dependent Thoroughfares
When a Dependent Thoroughfare is present, there will always be Thoroughfare data as well. A Dependent
Thoroughfare cannot be present on its own.

The table below gives an example:

General information on PAF® Structure of a PAF® address Page 14 of 237

Table 11: Address with Dependent Thoroughfare
Field on PAF® Fictional example
Building Name 1A
Dependent Thoroughfare SEASTONE COURT
Thoroughfare STATION ROAD
Post Town HOLT
Postcode NR25 7HG

1a Seastone Court
Station Road
HOLT
NR25 7HG

Thoroughfares
The ‘Name’ part of the Thoroughfare and Dependent Thoroughfare applies to the first part of the text, for
example:

Acacia the first part of ‘Acacia Avenue’

High the first part of ‘High Street’
Tye Valley Business the first part of ‘Tye Valley Business Centre’

The 'Descriptor' part of the Thoroughfare and Dependent Thoroughfare applies to the last word in the
Thoroughfare text. PAF contains a standard list of approximately 200 Descriptor words, which are held
separately from the rest of the text. For example:

Avenue the last part of ‘Acacia Avenue’

Street the last part of ‘High Street’
Centre the last part of ‘Tye Valley Business Centre’.

The Descriptor list doesn’t include ‘North’, ‘South’, ‘East’ or ‘West’. The Descriptor won’t be split from the
Thoroughfare text if this would result in the single word 'The' being held as the Thoroughfare (e.g. ‘The Lane’).

A Descriptor can’t be present on its own – there must be a Thoroughfare or Dependent Thoroughfare present.

The table below shows an example of an address with a Thoroughfare Name and Descriptor.

General information on PAF® Structure of a PAF® address Page 15 of 237

Table 12: Address with Thoroughfare Name and Descriptor
Field on PAF® Fictional example
Building Number 16
Thoroughfare Name ANGELICA
Thoroughfare Descriptor WAY
Post Town EMSWORTH
Postcode NR25 7HG

16 Angelica Way
EMSWORTH
NR25 7HG

Addresses with no Thoroughfare information

For some addresses there may be no Thoroughfare information present at all. This usually occurs in rural areas,
when the Locality information identifies the location of the address. The tables below show two examples – one
with a house name and one with an Organisation Name:

Table 13: Address with HOUSE name and no Thoroughfare information

Field on PAF® Fictional example
Building Name THE MANOR
Dependent Locality NORWOOD
Post Town HORLEY
Postcode RH6 0HP

The Manor
Norwood
HORLEY
RH6 0HP

General information on PAF® Structure of a PAF® address Page 16 of 237

Table 14: Address with ORGANISATION name and no Thoroughfare information
Field on PAF® Fictional example
Organisation LEDA ENGINEERING LTD
Dependent Locality APPLEFORD
Post Town ABINGDON
Postcode OX14 4PG

Leda Engineering Ltd

Appleford
ABINGDON
OX14 4PG

Locality elements
The combination of the following four elements identifies a geographical area known as a Locality:
 Double Dependent Locality
 Dependent Locality
 Post Town
 County (although postally not required)

Currently PAF holds details of just over 30,000 Localities in the UK.
There can be only one Locality per Postcode. This means all addresses in a Postcode have the same Locality.

Dependent Localities and Double Dependent Localities

If need be, Dependent Localities and Double Dependent Localities further define the geographic area. A Double
Dependent Locality can be present only when a Dependent Locality is present. For example:

Double Dependent Locality - Netherthong

Dependent Locality - Lockwood
Post Town - HUDDERSFIELD

Post Towns
There are 1661 Post Towns. A Post Town is mandatory for delivery of mail to a Delivery Point. This is not
necessarily the nearest town geographically, but a routing instruction to the Royal Mail delivery office sorting
mail for that Delivery Point. A Post Town will always be present in every address, and for some Localities the
Post Town will be the only locality element present.

General information on PAF® Structure of a PAF® address Page 17 of 237

Counties
The county is not required as part of a correct postal address. We removed the Former Postal County field from
PAF raw data products in December 2000.

Former Postal County, Traditional County and Administrative County data is still available on our Alias product.
The Alias chapter gives further details on counties.

The Postcode

What is a Postcode?
The Postcode is part of a coding system created and used by the Royal Mail across the United Kingdom for
sorting mail. In other words, Postcodes are an abbreviated form of address, and enable a group of Delivery
Points to be specifically identified.

When originally created, the Postcode was ‘designed’ around the capability of Royal Mail sorting equipment to
read and interpret typed or handwritten text on mail. This is why Royal Mail prefers the Postcode to be separate
and on the last line of an address. The format and rules concerning Postcode layout, in particular which letters
can or cannot be used, stem from the fact that certain letters or combinations of letters could be confused (e.g.
‘O’ and ‘Q’, or ‘V’ next to ‘V’ being misread as ‘W’).

Breakdown of a Postcode
A Postcode is a combination of letters and numbers (see Table 15 below – Valid Postcode formats). A Postcode
defines four different levels of geographic unit (see Table 14 below – Breakdown of a Postcode). Each Postcode
consists of two parts, called the Outward Code (e.g. ‘PO1’) and the Inward Code (e.g. ‘1AF’). The first part, or
Outward Code, is separated from the second part, the Inward Code, by a single space.

Outward Code
 Enables mail to be sorted to the correct local area for delivery. This part of the code contains the area and
the district to which the mail is to be delivered, e.g. ‘PO1’, ‘SW1A’ or ‘B23’
 The letters Q, V and X are not used in the first alpha position
 The letters I and Z are not used in the second alpha position
 The only letters to appear in the third alpha position are A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, J, K, P, R*, S, T, U, V, W and X.

* = R in the third position is only used in one Postcode, namely GIR 0AA, which is the traditional Postcode
of Girobank, now part of the Santander group. This Postcode appears on the Postzon product but not on
PAF® nor on other raw data products.

Inward Code
 The second part is known as the Inward Code because it is used to sort the mail INTO the local area
delivery office
 This part is one number followed by two letters. The number identifies the sector in the postal district.
The letters then define one or more properties in that sector.
 The letters C I K M O V are not used in the second part of the Postcode.

General information on PAF® Structure of a PAF® address Page 18 of 237

Using ‘PO1 1AF’ as an example, the table below explains each part of the Postcode.

Table 15: Breakdown of a Postcode

Postcode
Outward Code Inward Code
P0 1 1 AF
Postcode Area Postcode District Postcode Sector Unit Postcode

PO refers to the Postcode PO1 refers to the PO1 1 refers to the PO1 1AF The last two
Area Postcode District Postcode Sector letters define the ‘Unit
Postcode’, which identifies
An Area Code can be one There are approximately There are one or more Small User
or two letters, e.g. ‘B’ or 2,980 Postcode Districts approximately 11,159 Delivery Points or an
‘BA’ Postcode Sectors individual Large User

There are 124 Postcode There are approximately

Areas on PAF 1.8million Unit Postcodes in
the UK

The table below gives an example of each valid Postcode format, where A = alpha character and N = numeric
character.

Table 16: Valid Postcode formats

First Part or Second Part or
Example
Outward code Inward code
AN NAA M1 1AA
ANN NAA M60 1NW
AAN NAA CR2 6XH
AANN NAA DN55 1PT
ANA NAA W1P 1BB
AANA NAA EC1A 1BB

Types of Postcode

Large User Postcodes

These are assigned to one single address either due to the large volume of mail received at that address, or
because a PO Box or Selectapost service has been set up.

Small User Postcode

These identify a group of Delivery Points. On average there are 15 Delivery Points per Postcode. However this
can vary between 1 and, in some cases, 100. There will never be more than 100 Delivery Points on a Postcode.

General information on PAF® Structure of a PAF® address Page 19 of 237

Non-Geographic Postcodes
Although, when the UK Postcode system was set up in the early 1970s, sufficient capacity was built in to cater
for twenty years of development, it became obvious during the 1990s that in some areas demand for Postcodes
was outstripping the availability of Postcode combinations. This meant recoding these areas to provide the
additional capacity. Recoding was inconvenient for both customers in the affected areas and database users
nationwide. So, as an alternative solution, we’ve introduced dedicated non-geographic Postcodes and sectors.
The dedicated non-geographic sectors are used for PO Boxes and Postal Voting, and non-geographic Postcodes
are allocated to the few large organisations which receive such high volumes of mail that they need to be
extracted at the outward sorting stage, bagged and sent separately.

Here’s a live example of a non-geographic Postcode:

Driver & Vehicle Licensing Agency

Driving Licence Renewals
Driver & Vehicle Licensing Centre
SWANSEA
SA99 1AA

An example of an address using a non-geographic PO Box postcode sector is shown below. In this case, the
PO21 9 sector covers the PO21 and PO22 Outward Code areas of the Bognor Regis Post Town, both areas
served by the Bognor Regis Delivery Office.

PO Box 276
BOGNOR REGIS
PO21 9AA

In some areas a non-geographic PO Box postcode sector may cover more than one Post Town.

The current list of non-geographic Postcodes and non-geographic PO Box sectors is on our webpage:
www.poweredbypaf.com.

General information on PAF® Structure of a PAF® address Page 20 of 237

Postcode anomalies on PAF®

There are approximately 850 Postcodes on PAF® containing either a multiple Thoroughfare or Locality. Here’s
what this means:

Thoroughfares
The general principle for PAF® is that each Thoroughfare Name will have a separate Postcode, as will each
individual number range on a Thoroughfare. Longer Thoroughfares with high number ranges often have
multiple Postcodes covering the entire length of the road, with breaks at suitable points e.g. junctions or natural
breaks in the road. However, there are some historic instances where a Postcode may contain more than one
Thoroughfare.

Here’s a live example of two separately numbered Thoroughfares on the same Postcode, HD8 8UF:

Coal Pit Lane Denby Lane

Upper Denby Upper Denby
HUDDERSFIELD HUDDERSFIELD
HD8 8UF HD8 8UF

Locality names
The general principle for PAF® is that a Postcode won’t have more than one Locality name (unless it requires a
combination of a Dependent and Double Dependent Locality to make the address unique within a Post Town).
However, there are a small number of instances where a Postcode contains more than one Locality.

Here’s a live example of a locality boundary splitting the Postcode DN6 8BP:

17 Edward Road 13 Edward Road

Carcroft Skellow
DONCASTER DONCASTER
DN6 8BP DN6 8BP

If we make major address changes in any Postcode areas where these anomalies exist, we remove them.

General information on PAF® Structure of a PAF® address Page 21 of 237

 ®
Structure of the PAF database
General information

The PAF® database structure is reflected in the structure of the Mainfile™ product.

Address and Organisation details are held separately. Each Address is identified by a numeric key, as is
each Organisation. A Delivery Point is identified by the combination of the Address Key, Organisation Key and
Postcode Type.

Addresses are held on PAF® in a relational format, i.e. they are held not as text but as a series of alpha-numeric
keys, or pointers, which relate to supporting files of Address element text. The supporting text files are:

 Localities File
 Thoroughfares File
 Thoroughfare Descriptor File
 Building Names File
 Sub Building Names File
 Organisations File

Each record on these files has a numeric key. With the exception of the Localities file, the key started at 1 for
the first record on a file. The key is incremented by 1 for each subsequent record. Within a file record numbers
will not always be consecutive; there may be gaps in the sequence.

During the course of address maintenance new address elements are added to the text files. Address elements
may be amended or deleted but, with the exception of the Organisations File, this is not a normal part of
maintenance.

The chapter on Mainfile has more information on the reference files.

The Compressed Standard and Ranges products contain Address data in 'expanded' format. The keys to the
supporting text files have been replaced by the Address element text.

However, the combination of the Postcode type, the Address key and the Organisation key will always uniquely
identify a Delivery Point.

Here we describe the application of address keys for Small and Large Users.

General information on PAF Structure of PAF Database Page 22 of 237

Small users

Address keys

Each address on PAF® has an 8-digit number associated with it, known as the Address Key. When used in
conjunction with the Organisation Key & Postcode Type the address can be uniquely identified. This number
started at 1 for the first Address loaded onto PAF and is incremented by 1 for each subsequent Address added
to PAF®.

When a Small User Address is deleted the Address Key is deleted; it cannot be reused for a different address.
There is no correlation between address keys and Postcode. The addresses belonging to a Postcode may be
added to or deleted from PAF® over a long period of time, as premises are built or demolished. Hence there
may be a wide range of address keys associated with a Postcode. If an Address is recoded, i.e. the Postcode
changes, then the Address Key is unaffected by the change in Postcode.

Here’s an example:

PAF® holds two Small User addresses for Postcode NG6 8AL. Address Key 00001000 identifies this
address in this example:

10 Smith Street
Bulwell
NOTTINGHAM
NG6 8AL

and Address Key 02341509 identifies this address in this example:

12 Smith Street
Bulwell
NOTTINGHAM
NG6 8AL

General information on PAF Structure of PAF Database Page 23 of 237

The Organisation key

There may be a number of Small User Organisations present at an address. The Address is held on PAF® only
once. Each Organisation is given its own 8-digit Key. As with the Address Key, this is a number which
started at 1 for the first Organisation loaded to PAF®, and which is incremented by 1 for each subsequent
Organisation added to PAF®. When an Organisation is deleted then the Organisation Key is deleted from PAF; it
cannot be reused for a different Organisation.

For Organisations with the same name that exist at a number of different addresses, e.g. Boots the Chemists
Ltd, a new Organisation Key will be created each time the organisation is added to PAF®. They will not all share
the same Organisation Key.

The combination of keys

A combination of the Address Key and the Organisation Key uniquely identifies each Small User Delivery Point on
PAF®. If there is no Organisation associated with an Address then the Address appears once only on a PAF
product with the Organisation Key set to zero. If there is a Small User Organisation associated with an Address
then the Address Key is paired with the Organisation Key. An Address Key may occur several times, each time in
combination with a different Small User Organisation Key.

To take the previous example of Postcode NG6 8AL, assume the following Small User Organisations are present
on PAF

D.H.Wilson & Son - Organisation Key of 00001150

Adclif Engineers Ltd - Organisation Key of 00456120

Both Organisations are based at 10 Smith Street; there are no Organisations present at 12 Smith Street.

On a PAF product Address Key 00001000 would appear twice, once in combination with Organisation Key
00001150, and once in combination with Organisation Key 00456120. Address Key 02341509 would appear
once in combination with an Organisation Key of zero.

General information on PAF Structure of PAF Database Page 24 of 237

An 'S' in any Postcode type indicates a Small User. Here’s an example:

Table 17: Small User Address & Organisation keys

Address File Organisation File
Address Post-
Address Organisation Organisation Postcode Organisation
example code
Key Key Key Type Key
Type
12 Smith Street
Bulwell
02341509 00000000 S N/A N/A Residential
NOTTINGHAM
NG6 8AL
D H Wilson & Son
10 Smith Street
Small User
Bulwell 00001000 00001150 S 00001150 S
Organisation
NOTTINGHAM
NG6 8AL
Adclif Engineers Ltd
10 Smith Street
Small User
Bulwell 00001000 00456120 S 00456120 S
Organisation
NOTTINGHAM
NG6 8AL

Large Users

For all Large Users the Address Key in the Address File will form the reference to the Organisation Key in the
Organisation File. The Organisation Key in the Address File will be set to zero and the Postcode Type will be set
to ‘L’. Here’s an example:

Table 18: Large User Address & Organisation keys

Address File Organisation File
Address Organisation Postcode Organisation Postcode Organisation
Key Key Type Key Type Key

Large User
0032156 00000000 L 00032156 L
(see Note)

Please note that in the Organisation File the uniqueness of a Large User is determined by the combination of the
Organisation Key (in the Organisation File) and Postcode Type. The same Organisation Key may occur in the
Organisation File for both a Small and Large User.

The Address Key for a Large User can be reused. The Large User can be deleted and re-inserted without the
Key changing because the Address Key for a Large User remains unchanged when a Postcode is not in service.

General information on PAF Structure of PAF Database Page 25 of 237

Address key change events

There are four events which cause PAF® address keys to change.

1. When a Large User Delivery Point has its Postcode recoded. This is because the Address key for a Large
User Delivery Point is the Postcode key.

2. When an Organisation is added to a Small User Residential Delivery Point so that it becomes a Small User
Organisational Delivery Point. The Delivery Point will now gain an Organisation key and may have a
different Address key.

3. When an Organisation is removed from a Small User Organisational Delivery Point so that it becomes a
Small User Residential Delivery Point. The Delivery Point will now lose its Organisation key and may have a
different Address key.

4. When the Premises on a Small User Organisational Delivery Point is amended and other Organisations exist
within the Postcode on the old or new Premises. The Address key and/or Organisation key will be changed.

As you can see, it’s not a case of losing the address keys, so much as the definition changing when the elements
change. This then means that a different set is applicable, e.g. in the residential to organisation example.
Address keys were never intended to be absolutely permanent to an address, hence the introduction of the
Unique Delivery Point Reference Number™ (UDPRN). See the UDPRN chapter for further information on this.

Delivery Points

Each Delivery Point held on PAF is identified by the combination of the Address Key, the Organisation Key and
the Postcode Type (Large or Small User).

Small and Large User address keys alone are not unique as they use entirely different key sequences, which are
not related to each other.

It is possible therefore for a Small and a Large User to have matching values for both the Address key and the
Organisation key. This will occur if the address key values are the same and there is no organisation associated
with the Small User (thereby giving an Organisation key of zero).

General information on PAF Structure of PAF Database Page 26 of 237

Formatting a PAF® address for
printing
This chapter explains where each element of a PAF® address should appear on an envelope or address label.

Text on PAF®
All text on PAF® products is held in upper case.

Elements of a Delivery Point

A Delivery Point is composed of a combination of the elements listed below. Not all elements are present for
each Delivery Point. Postcode and Post Town are the only two elements that are mandatory. County is no
longer required as part of a correct postal address - the chapter on Structure of a PAF® address has further
information on this.

Here are the elements which make up a Delivery Point:

Table 19: Delivery point elements

NOTES
Premises elements Sub Building Name (a)
Building Name
Building Number
Organisation Name (b)
Department Name (c)
PO Box Number (d)

Thoroughfare elements Dependent Thoroughfare Name

Dependent Thoroughfare Descriptor
Thoroughfare Name
Thoroughfare Descriptor

Locality elements Double Dependent Locality

Dependent Locality
Post Town

Postcode element Postcode

NOTES overleaf

General information on PAF® Formatting a PAF® address for printing Page 27 of 237
NOTES to Table 19: Delivery point elements
(a) - The ‘Combinations of premises elements’ table below shows the rules which apply depending on the
combination of premises elements which occurs.
(b) - If an Organisation Name is present, it should appear on the first address line
(c) - If a Department Name is present, this should appear on the second line
(d) - If a PO Box number is present, this should appear on the first line if there aren’t any Organisation/
Department details present. Otherwise, it should appear on the third line. The PO Box number itself
must be preceded by the text ‘PO Box’.

Table 20: Combinations of premises elements

Sub Building Building Building
(e) (e)
Rules which apply in different circumstance
Name Name Number

None None None 1 – Organisation Name

None None Occurs 2 - Building Number only

None Occurs None 3 – Building Name only

None Occurs Occurs 4 - Building Name & Building Number

Occurs None Occurs 5 - Sub Building Name & Building Number

Occurs Occurs None 6 - Sub Building Name & Building Name

Occurs Occurs Occurs 7 - Sub Building Name3, Building Name & Building Number

How to read this table:

Taking the first line of the table as an example: if the address has no Sub Building name, building name nor
building number, then ‘Rule 1 – Organisation Name’ applies.
Taking line two: if the address has neither Sub Building name nor building name, but DOES have a building
number then ‘Rule 2 – building number only’ applies.

NOTES & EXPLANATION OF RULES in Table 20

(e) Exception Rule. Some of these Building and Sub Building Names can appear on the same line as other
address elements. They are identified by these three indicators:
Exception Rule indicators:
i) First and last characters of the Building Name are numeric (eg ‘1to1’ or ’100:1’)
ii) First and penultimate characters are numeric, last character is alphabetic (eg 12A’)
iii) Building Name has only one character (eg ‘A’)

Here are some examples illustrating the Exception Rule indicators:

General information on PAF® Formatting a PAF® address for printing Page 28 of 237
 Table 21: Exception Rule indicator i) First and last characters of the Building Name
are numeric
Field on PAF® Actual example
Building Name 1-2
Thoroughfare NURSERY LANE
Dependent Locality PENN
Post Town HIGH WYCOMBE
Postcode HP10 8LS

1-2 Nursery Lane

Penn
HIGH WYCOMBE
HP10 8LS

Table 22: Exception Rule indicator ii) First and penultimate characters are
numeric, last character is alphabetic
Field on PAF® Actual example
Building Name 12A
Thoroughfare UPPERKIRKGATE
Post Town ABERDEEN
Postcode AB10 1BA

12A Upperkirkgate
ABERDEEN
AB10 1BA

General information on PAF® Formatting a PAF® address for printing Page 29 of 237
 Table 23: Exception Rule indicator iii) Building Name has only one
character
Field on PAF® Actual example
Building Name K
Thoroughfare PORTLAND ROAD
Post Town DORKING
Postcode RH4 1EW

K, Portland Road
DORKING
RH4 1EW

Table 24: Exception Rule indicator iv) Where the building name has a
numeric range or a numeric alpha suffix, and is prefixed by the following
keywords:
Back of, Block, Blocks, Building, Maisonette, Maisonettes, Rear Of, Shop, Shops, Stall, Stalls,
Suite, Suites, Unit, Units.
Note: It is possible that other prefixes will need to be added to this list and as a result, you will
need to ensure that your system is capable of processing any additional prefixes.

Example 1

Field on PAF® Actual example

Organisation The Tambourine Warehouse
Building Name Unit 1-3
Dependant Thoroughfare Industrial Estate
Thoroughfare Tame Road
Post Town LONDON
Postcode E6 7HS

General information on PAF® Formatting a PAF® address for printing Page 30 of 237
 The Tambourine Warehouse
Unit 1-3
Industrial Estate
Tame Road
LONDON
E6 7HS

Example 2
Field on PAF® Actual example
Organisation Quirky Candles Ltd
Building Name Stall 4-5
Thoroughfare Market Square
Post Town LIVERPOOL
Postcode L8 1LH

Quirky Candles Ltd

Stall 4-5
Market Square
LIVERPOOL
L8 1LH

General information on PAF® Formatting a PAF® address for printing Page 31 of 237
 Example 3

Field on PAF® Actual example

Organisation The Fudge Factory
Building Name Unit 1a
Thoroughfare Dyce Industrial Park
Dependant Locality Dyce
Post Town GLASGOW
Postcode G21 7EZ

The Fudge Factory

Unit 1a
Dyce Industrial Estate
Dyce
GLASGOW
G21 7EZ

Example 4

Field on PAF® Actual example

Organisation Fiona’s Flowers
Building Name Rear Of 5a
Thoroughfare High Street
Post Town GATESHEAD
Postcode NE8 1BH

Fiona’s Flowers
Rear Of 5a
High Street
GATESHEAD
NE8 1BH

General information on PAF® Formatting a PAF® address for printing Page 32 of 237
 Example 5

Field on PAF® Actual example

Organisation Platinum Finance
Building Name Suite 1-3
Thoroughfare Station Road
Post Town MUSSELBURGH
Postcode EH21 7PB

Platinum Finance
Suite 1-3
Station Road
MUSSELBURGH
EH21 7PB

Explanation of Rules from Table 20: Combinations of premises elements

Rule 1 - Organisation name. This condition may occur when an Organisation Name is used to
uniquely identify a Delivery Point.
Here’s an example:

Table 25: Premises elements Rule 1: Organisation Name

Field on PAF® Fictional example

Organisation LEDA ENGINEERING LTD
Dependent Locality APPLEFORD
Post Town ABINGDON
Postcode OX14 4PG

Leda Engineering Ltd

Appleford
ABINGDON
OX14 4PG

General information on PAF® Formatting a PAF® address for printing Page 33 of 237
Rule 2 - Building Number only. The Building Number should appear at the beginning of the first
Thoroughfare line. If there is no Thoroughfare information then the Building Number should
appear at the beginning of the first Locality line.

Here’s an example:

Table 26: Premises elements Rule 2: Building Number only

Field on PAF® Fictional example

Building Number 1
Thoroughfare ACACIA AVENUE
Post Town ABINGDON
Postcode OX14 4PG

1 Acacia Avenue
ABINGDON
OX14 4PG

Rule 3, Building Name only. Check format of Building Name (see note (a) above). If the
Exception Rule applies, the Building Name should appear at the beginning of the first
Thoroughfare line, or the first Locality line if there is no Thoroughfare information.

Here’s an example:

Table 27a: Premises elements Rule 3: Building Name only

Field on PAF® Fictional example

Building Name 1A
Dependent Thoroughfare SEASTONE COURT
Thoroughfare STATION ROAD
Post Town HOLT
Postcode NR25 7HG

General information on PAF® Formatting a PAF® address for printing Page 34 of 237
 1a Seastone Court
Station Road
HOLT
NR25 7HG

Otherwise the Building Name should appear on a line preceding the Thoroughfare and Locality
information.

Here’s an example:

Table 27b: Premises elements Rule 3: Building Name only

Field on PAF® Fictional example

Building Name THE MANOR
Thoroughfare UPPER HILL
Post Town HORLEY
Postcode RH6 OHP

The Manor
Upper Hill
HORLEY
RH6 0HP

When a building has a name AND a number range, both must be held in the Building Name
field because the Building Number field can only hold numeric characters.

If an address has a building name with text followed by a space and then completed by
numerics/numeric ranges with the numeric part an exception (see Note (a) above), the
numerics/numeric range are treated as a building number, and the text part is treated as the
Building Name and the numerics/numeric range are split off to appear at the beginning of the
first Thoroughfare line, or the first Locality line if there is no Thoroughfare.

General information on PAF® Formatting a PAF® address for printing Page 35 of 237
 Here’s an example:

Table 27c: Premises elements Rule 3: Building Name only

Field on PAF® Fictional example
Organisation S D ALCOTT FLORISTS
Building Name FLOWER HOUSE 189A
Thoroughfare PYE GREEN ROAD
Post Town CANNOCK
Postcode WS11 5SB

S D Alcott Florists
Flower House
189a Pye Green Road
CANNOCK
WS11 5SB

However, there is an exception to this rule. The Building Name is NOT split if the numeric part
is simply a number between 1 and 9999 (i.e not a range like ‘1-77’ and containing no letters
such as ‘7a’). This is because the building number field would have been populated if it were a
true building number, so it is assumed that this is an integral part of the building name.

Here’s an example:

Table 27d: Premises elements Rule 3: Building Name only

Field on PAF® Fictional example

Organisation JAMES VILLA HOLIDAYS
Building Name CENTRE 30
Thoroughfare ST. LAURENCE AVENUE
Post Town GRAFTON
Postcode ME16 0LP

James Villa Holidays

Centre 30
St. Laurence Avenue
GRAFTON
ME16 0LP

General information on PAF® Formatting a PAF® address for printing Page 36 of 237
Rule 4, Building Name and Building Number. The Building Name should appear on the line
preceding the Thoroughfare and/or Locality information. The Building Number should appear
at the beginning of the first Thoroughfare line. If there is no Thoroughfare information then the
Building Number should appear at the beginning of the first Locality line. Here is an example:

Table 28: Premises elements Rule 4: Building Name and Building

Number

Field on PAF® Fictional example

Building Name VICTORIA HOUSE
Building Number 15
Thoroughfare THE STREET
Post Town CHRISTCHURCH
Postcode BH23 6AA

Victoria House
15 The Street
CHRISTCHURCH
BH23 6AA

Rule 5, Sub Building Name and Building Number. The Sub Building Name should appear on
the line preceding the Thoroughfare and Locality information. The Building Number should
appear at the beginning of the first Thoroughfare line. If there is no Thoroughfare information
then the Building Number should appear at the beginning of the first Locality line. Here’s an
example:

Table 29a: Premises elements Rule 5: Sub Building Name and Building
Number
Field on PAF® Fictional example
Sub Building Name FLAT 1
Building Number 12
Thoroughfare LIME TREE AVENUE
Post Town BRISTOL
Postcode BS8 4AB

General information on PAF® Formatting a PAF® address for printing Page 37 of 237
 Flat 1
12 Lime Tree Avenue
BRISTOL
BS8 4AB

For Mainfile Product addresses, where the Concatenation Indicator is set, prefix the Sub
Building Name with the Building Number. This should then appear at the beginning of the
Thoroughfare line or the first Locality line if there is no Thoroughfare information. Here’s an
example:

Table 29b: Premises elements Rule 5: Sub Building Name and Building
Number

Field on PAF® Fictional example

Sub Building Name A
Building Number 12
Thoroughfare HIGH STREET NORTH
Dependent Locality COOMBE BISSETT
Post Town SALISBURY
Postcode SP5 4NA

12A High Street North

Coombe Bissett
SALISBURY
SP5 4NA

For a full explanation of the Concatenation Indicator please see the Address File details in the
Mainfile chapter.

Rule 6, Sub Building Name and Building Name

Sub Building Name

Check the format of Sub Building Name (see Note (a) above). If the Exception Rule applies, the
Sub Building Name should appear on the same line as, and before, the Building Name.

General information on PAF® Formatting a PAF® address for printing Page 38 of 237
 Here’s an example:

Table 30: Premises elements Rule 6: Sub Building Name and Building
Name
Field on PAF® Fictional example
Sub Building Name 10B
Building Name BARRY JACKSON TOWER
Thoroughfare ESTONE WALK
Post Town BIRMINGHAM
Postcode B6 5BA

10B Barry Jackson Tower

Estone Walk
BIRMINGHAM
B6 5BA

Otherwise, the Sub Building Name should appear on a line preceding the Building Name,
Thoroughfare and Locality information

Building Name
Check format of Building Name (see note (a) above) If the Exception Rule applies, the Building
Name should appear at the beginning of the first Thoroughfare line, or the first Locality line if
there is no Thoroughfare information.

Here’s an example:

Table 31a: Building Name

Field on PAF® Fictional example

Sub Building Name CARETAKERS FLAT
Building Name 110-114
Thoroughfare HIGH STREET WEST
Post Town BRISTOL
Postcode BS1 2AW

General information on PAF® Formatting a PAF® address for printing Page 39 of 237
 Caretakers Flat
110-114 High Street West
BRISTOL
BS1 2AW

Otherwise, the Building Name should appear on a line preceding the Thoroughfare and Locality
information.

Here’s an example:

Table 31b: Building Name

Field on PAF® Fictional example

Sub Building Name STABLES FLAT
Building Name THE MANOR
Thoroughfare UPPER HILL
Post Town HORLEY
Postcode RH6 OHP

Stables Flat
The Manor
Upper Hill
HORLEY
RH6 OHP

Rule 7, Sub Building Name, Building Name and Building Number. Check format of Sub
Building Name (see note (a) above).

If the Exception Rule applies, the Sub Building Name should appear on the same line as and
before the Building Name.

General information on PAF® Formatting a PAF® address for printing Page 40 of 237
 Here’s an example:

Table 32a: Premises elements Rule 7: Sub Building Name, Building Name
and Building Number

Field on PAF® Fictional example

Sub Building Name 2B
Building Name THE TOWER
Building Number 27
Thoroughfare JOHN STREET
Post Town WINCHESTER
Postcode SO23 9AP

2B The Tower
27 John Street
WINCHESTER
SO23 9AP

Otherwise, the Sub Building Name and the Building Name should appear on separate lines.
Here’s an example:

Table 32b: Premises elements Rule 7: Sub Building Name, Building Name
and Building Number

Field on PAF® Fictional example

Sub Building Name BASEMENT FLAT
Building Name VICTORIA HOUSE
Building Number 15
Thoroughfare THE STREET
Post Town CORYTON
Postcode BP23 6AA

General information on PAF® Formatting a PAF® address for printing Page 41 of 237
 Basement Flat
Victoria House
15 The Street
CORYTON
BP23 6AA

The Building Number should appear at the beginning of the first Thoroughfare line, or the first
Locality line if there is no Thoroughfare information.

General information on PAF® Formatting a PAF® address for printing Page 42 of 237
Information on files & tables
Introducing record definition tables
Raw data products are not formatted or processed, they are provided as files. The majority of files have data
fields of fixed record length, but the length of the record is different for each product.

At the end of each product chapter in this guide are tables defining the record lengths for that particular product
or file. This chapter explains the layout of these tables and any terms common to all products and chapters.
Product-specific file and record formats are dealt with in the relevant product chapter.

Each product/file contains three types of records:

1. Header Record – sits at the front of the raw data and describes the contents
2. Data record or record type – these records hold the ‘meat on the bones’ i.e. the addresses, aliases, etc.
3. Trailer Record - comes at the end & basically summarises specific information about the data e.g. a
record count.

Each header, data or Trailer Record has a record definition table of five columns containing one or more field
descriptions.

Explaining record definition tables

We’ll use the example below to explain the different parts of the record definition table.

Table 33: Typical record definition table with several fields

(a)
RECORD NAME : Trailer Record
(b)
RECORD LENGTH : 16

(c) (g) (h) (i) (j)

Field Name Level Data Type Size Occurs
(d)
First Field 1

Sub field 1 2 Alpha-numeric 4 1

Sub field 2 2 Alpha-numeric 3 1

(e)
Second Field 1 Alpha-numeric 1 1
(f)
Third Field 1 Numeric 8 5

NOTES are overleaf

General information on PAF Information on files and tables Page 43 of 237

NOTES to Table 33

(a) - ‘Record Name’ e.g. Address Record, Trailer Record, etc. applies to that particular table
(b) - ‘Record Length’ is the sum of all the numbers in the ‘Size’ column
(c) - Field Name column: The names appear in the same order as they occur in a physical record. The name
given to the field is the name stored in the file e.g. Thoroughfare Name. Field names may be nested,
which means the label appearing in the first column of a field description may be the name of a
composite field containing two or more sub-fields. This is the case in the example table here:
(d) - ‘First Field’ is a composite field comprising two alphanumeric data items of length four characters and
three characters respectively
(e) - ‘Second Field’ is a single character field
(f) - ‘Third Field’ is an 8-digit field, which is repeated five times in each record occurrence.
(g) - ‘Level’ column. This information tells the programmer which position the data sits in the hierarchy. The
level numbers show the position of each field in this hierarchical structure (e.g. a ‘level 1’ field may be
composed of two or more ‘level 2’ fields, which may be further divided into two or more ‘level 3’ fields
etc.)
(h) - ‘Data type’ column refers to whether the type of data is:
 numeric (also known as integers)
 characters (which can be letters or symbols)
 or alpha-numeric (a combination of the two above)
(i) - ‘Size’ column. Refers to the number of characters in each field
(j) - ‘Occurs’ column indicates the number of times the field is repeated in each record.

Information common to all tables in this guide

Numeric fields - are held right justified zero padded, non-numeric fields are held left justified space padded.
Numeric fields that are not required for an address will be zero filled. Non-numeric fields that are not required
for an address will be space filled.

Sequence - all PAF® products are supplied in ascending sequence of Postcode Area, Postcode District, Postcode
Sector. The Changes products are the only exception to this.

Record count - this is a field in the Trailer Record which contains the number of records on the file including
the header and Trailer Records.

Values - ‘Low values’ are represented by the HEX value 00, ‘High values’ are represented by the HEX value FF.

General information on PAF Information on files and tables Page 44 of 237

Section 2
PAF products in a RELATIONAL format
Chapter 5 Mainfile™
Chapter 6 Alias®
Chapter 7 Keychain™
Chapter 8 Changes & Single Changes

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Mainfile Page 45 of 237

 ™
Mainfile
In simple terms
The PAF® Mainfile™ is a master database containing complete Postcode and address information for over 28
million UK addresses. Mainfile contains no software; the raw data within it must be processed for use in IT
applications.

A relational database means that addresses are held not as text but as a series of keys, or pointers, which relate
to files of address element text. Mainfile is therefore supplied as a series of files:

Table 34: Mainfile file sizes

Product file names Sample record size Sample file size
(April 09 data) (April 09 data)
Localities 41,314 625Kb
Thoroughfare 205,900 2.19Mb
Thoroughfare Descriptor 212 1.84Kb
Building Names 2,255,653 23.4Mb
Sub Building Names 151,434 1.39Mb
Organisation 1,390,433 22.5Mb
Address 28,524,452 360Mb
Business Mail (optional) 10,589 37.2Kb
Welsh Data (optional) 1,432,368 18.3Mb
Total Mainfile = 34,012,355 / 428Mb (approx.)

 Relational database format

 Each record at Delivery Point level
 Efficient database structure
 Uses the Changes or Single Changes Files to update (daily, monthly or quarterly)

Product description
Mainfile contains complete PAF® address data, and holds each record at Delivery Point level (i.e. one record for
every Delivery Point on the file – circa 29 million). It also contains the Business Mail® Standard Selection code for
each Delivery Point and Delivery Point Suffix information (which is explained in the Notes to the Address File
data record, further on in this chapter).

Mainfile contains PAF data in relational database format. Taking as an example ‘High Street’, which is a
Thoroughfare. On PAF it is held like this. The PAF database includes one file that describes Thoroughfares (e.g.
‘Acacia Avenue’, ‘Longton Lane’ etc.). This Thoroughfare file has one column for Thoroughfare Names (e.g. ‘High’
and ‘Main’). Another file holds Thoroughfare Descriptors with columns for Thoroughfare Descriptors (e.g. ‘Street’
and ‘Road’) and Approved Abbreviations (e.g. ‘St’ and ‘Rd’). To describe ‘High Street’ as part of the address the
record on the Address File will point to the entry for ‘High’ in the Thoroughfares File and to the entry for ‘Street’
in the Thoroughfare Descriptors File.

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Mainfile Page 46 of 237

Taking the example address ‘South Lanarkshire Council, Head Start, Unit 1, Block 3, Third Road, Blantyre
Industrial Estate, Blantyre, GLASGOW, G72 0UP’:

This will be held on PAF as follows:

Table 35: Mainfile relational database format

Field on PAF® Fictional example
Organisation SOUTH LANARKSHIRE COUNCIL
Department HEAD START
Sub Building name UNIT 1
Building Name BLOCK 3
Thoroughfare Name THIRD
Thoroughfare Descriptor ROAD
Double Dependent Locality BLANTYRE INDUSTRIAL ESTATE
Dependent Locality BLANTYRE
Post Town GLASGOW
Postcode G72 0UP

On the Mainfile this would be held across a series of appropriate relational files, but in the Address File record
itself the address would be represented as a string of alpha and alphanumeric characters referring to each
element of the address, each held in a fixed width format. Here’s an example:

G720UP1818182203925800000213000100000000000000000000521600676849000101899785S2BY

Selectability/media
Available via:

CD-Rom
FTP

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Mainfile Page 47 of 237

File details
The series of files on PAF Mainfile are described in more detail below:

Localities file
This file contains one record for each Locality held on PAF. The file is held in ascending sequence by Locality
Key. The Post Town ‘London’ is held as one Locality for each London postal district.

Thoroughfares file
This file contains one record for each Thoroughfare on PAF. The file is held in ascending sequence by
Thoroughfare Key.

Thoroughfare Descriptors file

This file contains one record for each Thoroughfare Descriptor held on PAF. The file is held in ascending
sequence by Thoroughfare Descriptor Key.

Building Names file

This file contains one record for each Building Name held on PAF. The file is held in ascending sequence by
Building Name Key.

Sub Building Names file

This file contains one record for each Sub Building Name held on PAF. The file is held in ascending sequence by
Sub Building Name Key.

Organisations file
This file contains one record for each occurrence of an Organisation held on PAF. The file is held in ascending
sequence of Postcode type followed by Organisation Key. The unique key to the Organisation File is the
Organisation Key and Postcode Type fields.

Address file
This file contains one record for each Delivery Point held on PAF. The file is held in ascending sequence by
Postcode/Address Key/Organisation Key. The unique key to the Address File is the Address Key, Organisation Key
and Postcode Type fields.

Business Mail® file (optional)

Business Mail data is used by customers who pre-sort their mail to achieve discounts via products like Royal Mail’s
Business Mail and publishing mail®. The file contains one record for each Postcode sector. The record
contains the sector and its associated Business Mail Standard Selection Code. The file is held in ascending sequence
by Postcode Sector. This is a reference file only, i.e. no updates are provided with Changes files.

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Mainfile Page 48 of 237

Welsh alternative file
If you require Welsh alternative addresses, use the Welsh Mainfile in combination with the standard Mainfile.
This means that you use one set of reference files and the two address files, and note the following points:

 All the reference data for the Standard and Welsh Address files are held on the same set of reference
files.

 The Welsh address file contains identical data to the Standard file for those addresses within the Welsh
Principality for which no Alternative address exists.

 The addresses on the Welsh address file are only those in Sectors defined as being part of the Welsh
principality. Appendix c) Cross-border Postcodes shows which sectors these are.

 For the addresses on the Welsh address file the one-to-one relationship between the standard and the
Welsh files and PAF Key (Address Key, Organisation key, Postcode type) will allow the one-to-one match
to be made between the two files.

 Where a Welsh Alternative address is defined on PAF the Standard Mainfile will contain the address as
held on PAF, and the Welsh Mainfile will contain the same address with the Locality Key, Thoroughfare
Key, Thoroughfare Descriptor Key, Dependent Thoroughfare Key, Dependent Thoroughfare Descriptor
Key replaced as appropriate. The Welsh address files do not contain any Alternative Organisation,
Department, Building Name and Sub Building Name information.

 Generally, it is anticipated that the Thoroughfare Descriptor on the Alternative address will not exist and
this field will therefore be space filled. This is because there is no proposal to add any Descriptors and,
in the case of Welsh Thoroughfares, the Descriptor element is at the start of the string.

 The file name for the Welsh Alternative Mainfile is WFMAINFL

Overleaf is an example:

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Mainfile Page 49 of 237

 Table 36: Welsh alternative addresses
Localities Thoroughfares
3518 Northop Mold 2 High
3495 Mold 180670 Maes Ty Gwyn
39389 Llaneurgain Yr Wyddgrug 112538 Nant Y Glyn
11947 Llanrug Caernarfon 54 Church

Standard Address File

Depend.
Address Org. Th’fare Depend.
Postcode Type Locality Th’fare Th’fare
Key Key Descr. Th’fare
Descr.
CH7 1AZ 16334377 0 S 3495 2 2 0 0
LL55 4AH 22016190 0 S 11947 112538 0 0 0
CH7 6BS 19885162 0 S 3518 54 1 0 0

Welsh Address File

Depend.
Address Org. Th’fare Depend.
Postcode Type Locality Th’fare Th’fare
Key Key Descr. Th’fare
Descr.
CH7 1AZ 16334377 0 S 37342 180670 0 0 0
LL55 4AH 22016190 0 S 11947 112538 0 0 0
CH7 6BS 19885162 0 S 39389 54 1 0 0

Descriptor
2 Street
1 Road

This example defines 3 addresses:

1. High Street, Mold, Clwyd* CH7 1AZ (where an alternative locality of ‘Yr Wyddgrug’ has been defined
and for this ‘High Street’ an Alternative thoroughfare of ‘Maes Ty Gwyn’ has been defined. This is
reflected in the changed keys between the two address files).

2. Nant Y Glyn, Llanrug, Caernarfon, *Gwynedd LL55 4AH (has no Welsh Alternative address details
defined, because the address is already held in Welsh, so the standard values are present in both files)

3. Church Road, Northop, Mold, *Clwyd, CH7 6BS (where an alternative locality of ‘Llaneurgain, Yr
Wyddgrug’ is defined, but no alternative thoroughfare).

* Please note that this information is not postally required

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Welsh File Address examples

Note that not every Welsh address has alternative data.

In this example there is a Welsh alternative for both the Thoroughfare & Locality. This is reflected in the
changed keys for the two address files.

Table 37: Welsh alternatives for both Thoroughfare and Locality

Field on PAF® Fictional example
Thoroughfare 1 Castle Street
Post Town CARDIFF
Postcode CF10 1BT

1 Heol y Castell
CAERDYDD
CF10 1BT

In this example there is an alternative Thoroughfare and Locality, both with Welsh alternatives:

Table 38: Welsh alternative Thoroughfare but no Welsh Locality

Field on PAF® Fictional example
Thoroughfare Church Street
Post Town PORTHMADOG
Postcode LL49 9HW

Stryd y Llan
PORTHMADOG
LL49 9HW

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In this example there is a Welsh alternative Locality but no Welsh alternative Thoroughfare.

Table 39: Welsh alternative Locality but no Welsh Thoroughfare

Field on PAF® Fictional example
Thoroughfare Church Road
Locality Northop
Post Town MOLD
Postcode LL49 9HW

Church Road
Llaneurgain
YR WYDDGRUG
LL49 9HW

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Record definitions

Mainfile - Localities File

RECORD NAME : Header Record

RECORD LENGTH : 151

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Numeric 8 1 (a)

File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (b)

Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 129 1

NOTES
(a) - Record Identifier = zeroes, (b) - File Identifier = LOCALITY

RECORD NAME : Data Record

RECORD LENGTH : 151

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS

Locality Key 1 Numeric 6 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 15 1
Post Town 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Double Dependent
1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Locality

RECORD NAME : Trailer Record

RECORD LENGTH : 151

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Numeric 8 1 (a)
Record Count 1 Numeric 8 1 (b)
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 135 1

NOTES
(a) - Record Identifier = 99999999
(b) - Record count contains the number of records on file including header and trailer.

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Mainfile Page 53 of 237

Mainfile - Thoroughfare File

RECORD NAME : Header Record

RECORD LENGTH : 68

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Numeric 8 1 (a)

File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (b)

Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 46 1

NOTES

(a) - Record Identifier = zeroes

(b) - File Identifier = THOROUGH

RECORD NAME : Data Record

RECORD LENGTH : 68

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS

Thoroughfare Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Thoroughfare Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1

RECORD NAME : Trailer Record

RECORD LENGTH : 68

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Numeric 8 1 (a)
Record Count 1 Numeric 8 1 (b)

Filler 1 Alphanumeric 52 1

NOTES

(a) - Record Identifier = 99999999

(b) - Record count contains the number of records on file including header and trailer.

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Mainfile - Thoroughfare Descriptors File

RECORD NAME : Header Record

RECORD LENGTH : 30

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Numeric 8 1 (a)

File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (b)

Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 8 1

NOTES
(a) - Record Identifier = zeroes
(b) - File Identifier = THDESCRI

RECORD NAME : Data Record

RECORD LENGTH : 30

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Thoroughfare Descriptor
1 Numeric 4 1
Key
Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 20 1
Approved Abbreviation 1 Alphanumeric 6 1 (a)

NOTES
(a) - Approved abbreviation is space filled.

RECORD NAME : Trailer Record

RECORD LENGTH : 30

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Numeric 8 1 (a)

Record Count 1 Numeric 8 1 (b)

Filler 1 Alphanumeric 14 1

NOTES
(a) - Record Identifier = 99999999
(b) - Record count contains the number of records on file including header and trailer.

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Mainfile - Building Names File

RECORD NAME : Header Record

RECORD LENGTH : 58

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Numeric 8 1 (a)

File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (b)

Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 36 1

NOTES

(a) - Record Identifier = zeroes

(b) - File Identifier = BUILDING

RECORD NAME : Data Record

RECORD LENGTH : 58

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS

Building Name Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 50 1

RECORD NAME : Trailer Record

RECORD LENGTH : 58

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Numeric 8 1 (a)
Record Count 1 Numeric 8 1 (b)

Filler 1 Alphanumeric 42 1

NOTES

(a) - Record Identifier = 99999999

(b) - Record count contains the number of records on file including header and trailer.

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Mainfile – Sub Building Names File

RECORD NAME : Header Record

RECORD LENGTH : 38

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Numeric 8 1 (a)

File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (b)

Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 16 1

NOTES

(a) - Record Identifier = zeroes

(b) - File Identifier = SUBBUILD

RECORD NAME : Data Record

RECORD LENGTH : 38

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS

Sub Building Name Key 1 Numeric 8 1

Sub Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 30 1

RECORD NAME : Trailer Record

RECORD LENGTH : 38

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Numeric 8 1 (a)

Record Count 1 Numeric 8 1 (b)

Filler 1 Alphanumeric 22 1

NOTES

(a) - Record Identifier = 99999999

(b) - Record count contains the number of records on file including header and trailer.

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Mainfile – Organisations File

RECORD NAME : Header Record

RECORD LENGTH : 153

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Numeric 8 1 (a)
File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (b)

Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 131 1

NOTES

(a) - Record Identifier = zeroes

(b) - File Identifier = ORGANISA

RECORD NAME : Data Record

RECORD LENGTH : 153

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS

Organisation Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Organisation Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Department Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 24 1

RECORD NAME : Trailer Record

RECORD LENGTH : 153

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (a)
Record Count 1 Numeric 8 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 137 1

NOTES

(a) - Record Identifier = 99999999

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Mainfile Page 58 of 237

Mainfile – Address File

RECORD NAME : Header Record

RECORD LENGTH : 88

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1

Postcode 2 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)

Address Key 2 Numeric 8 1 (b)

File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (c)

Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1

Filler 1 Alphanumeric 59 1

NOTES

(a) - Postcode = Low values (except for CD-Rom where Postcode = Spaces)
(b) - Address Key = zeroes
(c) - File Identifier = ADDRESS

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Mainfile Page 59 of 237

Mainfile – Address File

RECORD NAME : Data Record

RECORD LENGTH : 88

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Postcode 1
Outward Code 2 Alphanumeric 4 1
Inward Code 2 Alphanumeric 3 1

Address Key 1 Numeric 8 1

Locality Key 1 Numeric 6 1 (a)

Thoroughfare Key 1 Numeric 8 1 (b)

Thoroughfare Descriptor Key 1 Numeric 4 1 (c)

Dependent Thoroughfare Key 1 Numeric 8 1

Dependent Thoroughfare Descriptor Key 1 Numeric 4 1

Building Number 1 Numeric 4 1 (d)

Building Name Key 1 Numeric 8 1 (e)

Sub Building Name Key 1 Numeric 8 1 (f)

Number of Households 1 Numeric 4 1 (g)

Organisation Key 1 Numeric 8 1 (h)

Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (i)

Concatenation Indicator 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (j)

Delivery Point Suffix 1 Alphanumeric 2 1 (k)

Small User Organisation Indicator 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (l)

PO Box Number 1 Alphanumeric 6 1 (m)

NOTES

(a) - Locality Key refers to a record in the Localities File.

(b) - Thoroughfare Key and Dependent Thoroughfare Key both point to records in the Thoroughfares File. If
equal to zero there is no Thoroughfare/Dependent Thoroughfare present.

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NOTES TO MAINFILE DATA RECORD cont.

(c) - Thoroughfare Descriptor Key and Dependent Thoroughfare Descriptor Key both point to records in the
Thoroughfare Descriptors File. If equal to zero there is no Descriptor present.
(d) – Building number - when equal to zero this indicates that a Building Number is not required for this
address.
(e) - Building Name Key points to a record in the Building Names File. If equal to zero there is no Building
Name.
(f) – Sub Building Name Key points to a record in the Sub Building Names File. If equal to zero there is no Sub
Building Name.
(g) - Number of Households field contains multi-occupancy information. When equal to one it indicates
that there is one household at the address, when greater than one the field contains the number of
households present.
(h) - Organisation Key for a Small User refers to a record in the Organisations File. If equal to zero there is no
Organisation present. For a Large User the Address Key points to a record in the Organisation file. Since
Small and Large User records are on different key sequences the Postcode Type (S or L) must also be
used when accessing the Organisation file to ensure that the correct record is retrieved.
A Delivery Point which has a PO Box and is a Large User Organisation will always have a corresponding
entry in the Organisation reference file, even if the Organisation and Department Names are blank.
(i) - Postcode Type is 'S' for Small Users and 'L' for Large Users.
(j) - Concatenation indicator is either 'Y' or space. When equal to 'Y' this indicates that the Building Number
and the Sub Building Name should appear concatenated on the same address line.

Here’s an example where the address line should read 12A SMITH STREET

Thoroughfare Name = SMITH

Thoroughfare Descriptor = STREET
Building Number = 12
Sub Building Name = A
Concatenation Indicator = Y

(k) - The Delivery Point Suffix (DPS) is a unique Royal Mail 2-character code (the first numeric & the second
alphabetical – e.g. 2B), which, when added to the Postcode, enables each live Delivery Point to be uniquely
identified. Once the Delivery Point is deleted from PAF the DPS may be reused (although they aren’t
reused until all remaining Delivery Points in the range have been allocated). The DPS for a Large User is
always '1A' as each Large User has its own Postcode. The chapter on the Compressed Standard file, Note
(d) of the Record definition table for ‘Type 3 – Delivery Point details’ has an explanation of the DPS format
and its use
(l) - Small User Organisation Indicator can have the values 'Y' or space. A value of 'Y' indicates that a Small
User Organisation is present at this address
(m) - When the PO Box Number field is populated it will contain PO BOX nnnnnn where n represents the PO
Box number. Please note that the PO Box details can occasionally consist of a combination of numbers
and letters e.g. HK860. PO Box Numbers are only allocated to Large Users.

WELSH MAINFILE
If no Welsh Alternative address exists for the Delivery Point the Locality Key, Thoroughfare Key, Thoroughfare
Descriptor Key, Dependent Thoroughfare Key and Dependent Thoroughfare Descriptor Key will be identical to
the standard Mainfile keys. If an Alternative address exists the keys will be replaced by keys pointing to elements
of the Alternative Address. However the reference information for all fields is in the standard Mainfile reference
files.

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Mainfile Page 61 of 237

Mainfile – Address File

RECORD NAME Trailer Record

RECORD LENGTH : 88

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 1
Postcode 2 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)

Address Key 2 Numeric 8 1 (b)

Record Count 1 Numeric 8 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 65 1

NOTES

(a) - Postcode = High values (except for CD-Rom where Postcode = Spaces)
(b) - Address Key = 99999999

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Mainfile Page 62 of 237

Mainfile – Business Mail® File

RECORD NAME Header Record

RECORD LENGTH : 10

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 4 1 (a)

Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1

NOTES

(a) - Record Identifier = Low values (except for CD-Rom where record Identifier = Spaces)

RECORD NAME Data Record

RECORD LENGTH : 10

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS

Postcode Sector 1
Outward Code 2 Alphanumeric 4 1
Sector 2 Numeric 1 1
Standard Selection Code 1
Residue Identifier 2 Numeric 3 1
Direct Within Residue Indicator 2 Numeric 2 1

RECORD NAME : Trailer Record

RECORD LENGTH : 10

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 4 1 (a)

Record Count 1 Numeric 6 1 (b)

NOTES

(a) - Record Identifier = High values (except for CD-Rom where record Identifier = Spaces)
(b) – Record Count contains the number of records on file including header and trailer

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Mainfile Page 63 of 237

Related products/links

PAF data in different structures

Compressed Standard™
Ranges™

If you take Mainfile, you might be interested in these additional products:

Alias®
Changes and Single Changes
Keychain
Just BuiltTM
Multiple ResidenceTM
Not Yet BuiltTM
UDPRNTM
BFPO Postcode data

Pricing/licensing

For pricing, licensing & ordering details for this product, please visit www.poweredbypaf.com

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Mainfile Page 64 of 237

 ®
Alias
In simple terms

Alias™ data is information the public choose to use when addressing mail, but which isn’t actually required for
delivery purposes. Here are some examples:
• house names on numbered properties (e.g. ‘Rose Cottage’ at ‘2 High Street’)
• county names (e.g. ‘Surrey’ or ‘Lincs’)
• businesses operating from home (‘Jones Plumbing’ at ‘2 The Avenue’).

Alias data makes a great add-on to a PAF®-based system, helping locate correct postal addresses from ‘postally-
not-required’ data. It is only available with a PAF product, not as a stand-alone product.

 relational database format (ideal for use with the MainfileTM)

 full editions only (there are no Changes files)
 postally not required address data
 useful for advanced address searching

Alias is supplied as a single file, this being:

Table 40: Alias file size

Sample record size Sample file size
Product file names
(April ‘09 data) (April ‘09 data)
Alias file 2,891,757 32.1Mb

Product description
The Alias file contains the following:

Locality records old short forms, local names and Postally Not Required (PNR) Localities

Thoroughfare records replacement Thoroughfare names for a given Locality, Thoroughfare,

Dependent Thoroughfare combination

Delivery Point Alias information additional Delivery Point Information e.g. Trading Names, Building Name
details where a Building Number is the official building identifier

County records Traditional, Administrative and Former Postal County information. Note
(b) to the Record Definition Table ‘Record Type 4 – County Name’ later in
this chapter contains more information on the different types of counties

Alias is not, however, a comprehensive listing and the nature of the data is such that Royal Mail cannot
guarantee its accuracy. Alias information may be used by the public when addressing mail but is not required as
part of PAF address.

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Alias File Page 65 of 237

Selectability/media

Available as a full fixed field ASCII file on the following media:

CD-Rom
FTP

Please note that it is only available as a full UK file only (no selections) and alongside a PAF product.

File details
The file is approximately 175Mb in size and contains around 2.5 million records of the following types:

Type 1 - Locality Alias

2 - Thoroughfare Alias
3 - Delivery Point Alias
4 - County Name
5 - County Alias

The sequence of the Delivery Point Alias information is in ascending organisation key, ascending address key.
The sequence of the County Alias File is ascending Postcode.

Further information
For pricing, licensing & ordering please visit www.poweredbypaf.com.

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Alias File Page 66 of 237

Record definitions

Alias File

RECORD NAME : Header Record

RECORD LENGTH : 75

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

File Header 1 Alphanumeric 8 1
File Name 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (a)

Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 53 1

NOTES

(a) - File Name = ALIASFLE

RECORD NAME : Record Type 1 - Locality Alias

RECORD LENGTH : 75

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Type 1 Numeric 1 1 (a)

Locality Key 1 Numeric 9 1

Postcode Sector 1
Outward Code 2 Alphanumeric 4 1
Inward Code 2 Alphanumeric 1 1
Alias Name 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Alias Type 1 Alphanumeric 3 1 (b)
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 22 1

NOTES

(a) - Record Type = 1

(b) - Alias type can be ‘SYS’, ‘LOC’, ‘PNR’ or ‘REQ’. ‘SYS’ and ‘LOC’ are short and local names. ‘PNR’ are Postally
Not Required Localities. PNRs have sectors allocated to them in addition to a Locality Key. REQs are
Postally Required applied to those Localities that are held on the Mainfile, with the exception of Post
Towns. For other types the Sector field is blank.

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Alias File Page 67 of 237

Alias File

RECORD NAME : Record Type 2 - Thoroughfare Alias

RECORD LENGTH : 75

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Type 1 Numeric 1 1 (a)
Alias Name 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Alias Descriptor 1 Numeric 4 1
Thoroughfare Key 1 Numeric 9 1
Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Numeric 4 1
(b)
Key
Dependent Thoroughfare
1 Numeric 9 1
Key
Dependent Thoroughfare
1 Numeric 4 1
Descriptor Key
Locality Key 1 Numeric 9 1

NOTES

(a) - Record Type = 2

(b) – Alias Name = The Alias Text (with Alias Descriptor expanded from the Mainfile Thoroughfare Descriptor file
if appropriate) is a local alias for a specific Location. (The location is defined as Locality, Thoroughfare,
Thoroughfare Descriptor, Dependent Thoroughfare, Dependent Thoroughfare Descriptor as defined on the
Mainfile layout.)

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Alias File Page 68 of 237

Alias File

RECORD NAME : Record Type 3 - Delivery Point Alias

RECORD LENGTH : 75

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Type 1 Numeric 1 1 (a)
Address Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Organisation Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (b)
Category 1 Alphanumeric 2 1 (c)
Currency 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (d)
Alias Text 1 Alphanumeric 50 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 4 1

NOTES

(a) - Record Type = 3

(b) – Postcode Type = The Postcode type for Small Users is ‘S’ and for Large Users is ‘L’.
(c) – Category = Each Delivery Point alias may be assigned a category; the current allowable categories are in
the table below:

Table 41: Allowable Alias Delivery Point categories

CATEGORY DESCRIPTION
AK Also Known As

BN Building Name

DT Department

OD Organisation Description

OR Organisation at a Residential

TN Trading Name

UK Unknown / Miscellaneous

WA Welsh Alternative

(d) – Currency = Each Delivery Point alias can also be given a currency indicator. These are

C = current
P = past
Z = default.

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Alias File

RECORD NAME : Record Type 4 - County Name

RECORD LENGTH : 75

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Type 1 Numeric 1 1 (a)

County Key 1 Numeric 4 1

County Name 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
County Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (b)
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 39 1

NOTES

(a) - Record Type = 4

(b) – County Type will be T (Traditional County), P (Former Postal County) or A (Administrative County). Here’s
some more information on County Types:

Former Postal was used for the distribution of mail before the Postcode system was introduced in the
1970s. It helped differentiate between similar and same-sounding place names (e.g.
‘Caistor’ in Lincolnshire and ‘Caistor St Edmund’ in Norfolk, or ‘Newport’ in Shropshire
and ‘Newport’ on the Isle of Wight). The Former Postal County was the Administrative
County at the time. This data rarely changes.

Traditional provided by the Association of British Counties. It’s historical data, and can date from
the 1800s.

Administrative A Unitary Authority name, where one is present. If there is no Unitary Authority, the
County name is used. This data is provided by the Office for National Statistics. This
information is not static, because County boundaries may change due to administrative
changes. In some circumstances, it would be nonsensical to use the Administrative
County in an address. For example in Portsmouth, the Administrative County is also
‘Portsmouth’

Here’s one of a few examples where the Formal Postal County, the Traditional County and the
Administrative County are all different:

Organisation and premises 47 FIELD REGIMENT ROYAL ARTILLERY/BAKER BARRACKS

Dependent Locality THORNEY ISLAND
Post Town EMSWORTH
County - Former Postal HAMPSHIRE
County – Traditional SUSSEX
County – Administrative WEST SUSSEX
Postcode PO10 8DH

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Alias File Page 70 of 237

Alias File

RECORD NAME : Record Type 5 - County Alias

RECORD LENGTH : 75

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Type 1 Numeric 1 1 (a)

Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 7 1
Former Postal County 1 Numeric 4 1
Traditional County 1 Numeric 4 1
Administrative County 1 Numeric 4 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 55 1

NOTES

(a) – Record Type = 5

Some county names are abbreviated on PAF. Here’s a list of those abbreviations.

Table 42: County abbreviations on Alias

County name Abbreviation County name Abbreviation
Bedfordshire Beds North Humberside N Humberside
Berkshire Berks North Yorkshire N Yorkshire
Buckinghamshire Bucks Northamptonshire Northants
Cambridgeshire Cambs Northumberland Northd
County Antrim Co Antrim Nottinghamshire Notts
County Armagh Co Armagh Oxfordshire Oxon
County Down Co Down South Glamorgan S Glam
County Durham Co Durham South Humberside S Humberside
County Fermanagh Co Fermanagh South Yorkshire S Yorkshire
County Tyrone Co Tyrone Staffordshire Staffs
East Sussex E Sussex Tyne and Wear Tyne & Wear
Gloucestershire Glos Warwickshire Warks
Hampshire Hants West Glamorgan W Glam
Hertfordshire Herts West Midlands W Midlands
Lancashire Lancs West Sussex W Sussex
Leicestershire Leics West Yorkshire W Yorkshire
Lincolnshire Lincs Wiltshire Wilts
Mid Glamorgan M Glam Worcestershire Worcs
Middlesex Middx

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Alias File

RECORD NAME : Trailer Record

RECORD LENGTH : 75

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

File Trailer 1 Alphanumeric 9 1 (a)
Record Count 1 Numeric 10 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 56 1

NOTES

(a) – File trailer = 999999999

Related products/links

If you take Alias, you might be interested in these additional products:

Mainfile

Pricing/licensing

There is a charge for the supply of the Alias data and customers will also need a valid PAF Licence. See
www.poweredbypaf.com for details.

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Alias File Page 72 of 237

Keychain™
In simple terms
The KeychainTM file is a raw data file that is supplied with PAF® Changes. It allows you to keep track of Address
& Organisation Keys.

 Supplied as part of PAF Changes

 Address and Organisation Key information
 New edition available every month
 Covers all 124 Postcode Areas

Keychain consists of a single file, this being:

Table 43: Keychain file size

Sample record size Sample file size
Product file names
(April 09 data) (April 09 data)
Keychain File 12,718 256Kb

Product description
The Keychain file records the link between old and new address or organisation keys.

There are many reasons for a Delivery Point acquiring different keys and the Keychain product records the
changes.

These changes can fall into two types: where a Delivery Point is deleted and re-input, and where a Delivery Point
is amended.

1. Where a Delivery Point is deleted and re-input, PAF doesn’t differentiate whether it’s a completely
new Delivery Point or whether it’s an old deleted Delivery Point being re-input. So new address keys
are allocated.
2. Where a Delivery Point is amended, PAF keeps the address keys unless forced to change keys under
one of PAF database address rules – see PAF Address key rules in the Appendices section.

Selectability/media
Keychain is supplied with PAF Changes via:

CD-Rom
FTP

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Keychain Page 73 of 237

File details
Here are the situations where key changes are NOT captured on the Keychain product:

a) Deletion of a Delivery Point followed by the insertion of a Delivery Point which doesn’t match the
deleted Delivery Point.

b) Deletion of a Delivery Point followed by the insertion of an identical Delivery Point, when the logically
deleted Delivery Point is no longer held (i.e. it has been tidied up at month end after more than three
months).

The Keychain product will contain time-sequenced data for all identified re-keys.

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Keychain Page 74 of 237

Record definitions

Keychain
RECORD NAME : Header Record
RECORD LENGTH : 56

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

File Header 1 Alphanumeric 9 1 (a)
File Name 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (b)
Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 33 1

NOTES

(a) – File Header = Spaces

(b) – File Name = KEYCHAIN

RECORD NAME : Data Record

RECORD LENGTH : 56

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Time 1 Alphanumeric 14 1 (a)
Old Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 7 1
Old Address Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Old Organisation Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Old Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (b)
New Address Key 1 Numeric 8 1
New Organisation Key 1 Numeric 8 1
New Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (b)
Reason 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (c)

NOTES

(a) – Time = For this file the time is held as CCYYMMDDHHMMSS

(b) – Postcode Type = The Postcode Type for Small Users is ‘S’ and for Large Users is ‘L’.
(c) – Reason = The Reason for Keychain is ‘D’ = Duplicate with logically deleted Delivery Point and ‘G’ for general
rekeys, generated by PAF system.

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Keychain Page 75 of 237

Keychain
RECORD NAME : Trailer Record
RECORD LENGTH : 43

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

File Trailer 1 Alphanumeric 9 1 (a)
Record Count 1 Alphanumeric 10 1 (b)
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 37 1

NOTES

(a) – File Trailer = 99999999

(b) – Record count contains the number of records on file including header and trailer.

Related products/links

If you take Keychain, you might be interested in these additional products:

Mainfile™
Compressed Standard File™
Combined Changes File™

Applications that include Keychain data

None

Pricing/licensing

There is no additional charge for the Keychain data, customers simply need to request it when ordering the Combined
Changes File.

Customers will however need a valid PAF Licence, see www.poweredbypaf.com for costs.

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Keychain Page 76 of 237

Changes & Single Changes
In simple terms
The Changes & Single Changes Product contains files that will update PAF® Mainfile™, Keychain™ & the Welsh
Mainfile (If you use our Ranges™ or Compressed Standard™ products, you’ll need the Expanded Changes or
Expanded Single Changes file). The two Changes files summarise all insertions, deletions & amendments made
to the full dataset since your last update.

The quickest & simplest way to update PAF is not to use Changes files at all, but to take regular refreshes of the
full dataset (e.g. a monthly or quarterly full Mainfile). This means you simply delete the previous files & replace
them with the newer, but identically named refreshes – very simple. This is the ‘low maintenance’ option.

Applying Changes files regularly is ‘high maintenance’, because applying thousands of changes is a very long &
involved process compared to buying full refreshes. It’s important to apply Changes products regularly and in
the right order. For example: if a new Delivery Point was included in January’s Changes product, and an amend
was made to it which appeared on February’s Changes product, if the January Changes product had not been
applied, then the information contained in the February file would not be logical.

 High maintenance update option

 Sent monthly, quarterly or daily (daily is only an option via internet download)
 Compatible with Mainfile, keychain file & Welsh Mainfile

Product description
This file contains PAF update information. It contains details of additions, deletions, amendments and Postcode
recoding of Delivery Points. The update data is only available at individual Delivery Point level; there are no
group level records to give information at Postcode level. If a Postcode is deleted then the file contains a
deletion record for each Delivery Point within the Postcode.

The product contains addresses in relational format, similar to the Mainfile product. The addresses are held not
as text but as a series of keys, or pointers, which relate to files of address element text. The product is supplied
as two files named Changes1 and Changes2. The size of these files varies depending on the volume of PAF
updates over the issue period.

The Single Changes file is identical in format and layout to the Changes2 file. However, only one pair of records
will appear for each Delivery Point, representing the first and last view of the Delivery Point over the change
period (there will be no record of changes made in between).

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Changes & Single Changes Page 77 of 237
Here’s an example:

Table 44: Changes files Delivery Point views

Product First view of Delivery Changes in between Last view of Delivery Point
Point
Changes2 Rose Cottage Rose Lodge Number 10
Single Changes Rose Cottage Number 10

The Welsh Changes File will have exactly the same format as the Changes2 File. Welsh Changes must be used
in conjunction with the regular Changes2 File.

Please note that

 All record types on the Welsh Changes File are record type 1, i.e. Address details
 For record types 2 & 3 refer to the Changes2 file, i.e. changes such as Organisation Name changes are
only available on the Changes2 file.

Selectability/media

Usually supplied via the Combined PAF Changes product. However customers who take subsets of the data (e.g.
PO, SO and GU) will be supplied with the files separately. Available via:

CD-Rom
FTP

PAF Changes details

PAF Changes consists of 7 files which are:

Table 45: Changes file sizes

Sample record Sample file
Product file names size size Notes
(April 09 data) (April 09 data)
Changes1 (semi-static data) 45,147 606Kb (a)
Changes2 (day-today-changes) 145,434 3.46Mb (b)
Single Changes (no change history) 136,722 3.31Mb (c)
Welsh Changes 5,246 125Kb (d)
Expanded Changes (text, not keys) 145,434 4.7Mb (e)
Expanded Single Changes (text and no change history) 136,722 4.48Mb (e)
Total File = 627,423 / 16.9Mb (approx.)

Keychain™ is also supplied, please see separate chapter.

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Changes & Single Changes Page 78 of 237
NOTES TO TABLE 45: Changes File sizes

(a) - Changes1
The file contains the following record types:

Record Type 1 - Localities

Record Type 2 - Thoroughfares
Record Type 3 - Thoroughfare Descriptors
Record Type 4 - Building Names
Record Type 5 - Sub Building Names

Records are held in ascending sequence by Record Type and Record Key.

On Changes1, the localities file Record Key is 8 characters, whereas the Mainfile localities file is 6
characters. The reason Changes1 differs from Mainfile is to provide continuity between the record types.
It does not imply that the field sizes on the Mainfile are incorrect.

Record keys within record types 1 to 5 will not be consecutive. These records provide a subset of the
Mainfile reference files. The address elements present are those elements that are required to expand
the address Changes2 records e.g. if Locality Key 121 is not present on any of the Changes2 records then
that Locality will not be present in the Changes1 file.

During the course of address maintenance, changes made to the reference file are shown as amendment
types:

A = amendment
D = deletion
I = insertion

There are rarely amendments or deletions to the Mainfile reference tables (i.e. Localities, Thoroughfares,
Thoroughfare Descriptors, Building Names, Sub Building Names). These additions are represented on the
Changes1 File. The addition of a reference file record is shown by a Changes1 record for the new address
element.

Here’s an example:

A Building Name ‘ The Manse’ is added on 030290 at 10:15:01 and is assigned record key 694027. This
is what it looks like on the Changes1 file:

Amendment
Rec Type Rec Key Date Time Building Name
Type

4 00694027 19900203 101501 I THE MANSE

When an address element is present on Changes1 for reference purposes only, the Date and Time fields
are zero filled and the Amendment Type field is space filled.

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Changes & Single Changes Page 79 of 237
(b) - Changes2
The file contains the following record types:

Record Type 1 Address details

Record Type 2 Small User Organisation details (Type 2 records will only be present for
Small User Organisations)
Record Type 3 Large User details (Type 3 records will only be present for Large Users)

Records are held in ascending sequence by:

Date
Time
Postcode
Delivery Point Suffix
Postcode Type
Address Key
Organisation Key
Amendment Type
Record Type

Amendment types are:

B - before view
} Amendment
C - after view

D - deletion
I - insertion

For further information about the Derivation of Amendment Types see end of this section.

Insertions and deletions are represented by a single Type 1 record. If the address is for a Small User
Organisation the Type 1 record will be followed by a Type 2 record. If the address is for a Large User the
type 1 record will be followed by a Type 3 record.

Amendments are represented by a pair of Type 1 records, these being a before and an after view. Each
Type 1 record may be followed by a Type 2 or 3 record.

(c) - Single Changes

The Single Changes product is identical in format and layout to the Changes2 File. However, only one pair
of records will appear for each Delivery Point, representing the first and last view of the Delivery Point
over the change period.

Here’s the example again:

Product First view Changes in Last view

of Delivery Point between of Delivery Point
Changes2 Rose Cottage Rose Lodge Number 10
Single Changes Rose Cottage Number 10

Changes information is available for Small and Large User addresses.

PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Changes & Single Changes Page 80 of 237
(d) - Welsh Changes
The Welsh Changes File will have exactly the same format as the regular Changes2 File. This product
must be used in conjunction with the regular Changes2 file.

Please note that all record types on the Welsh Changes File are Record Type 1, i.e. Address details.
For Record Types 2 and 3 refer to the regular Changes2 file, e.g. changes such as ‘Organisation Name’
changes are only available on the regular Changes2 file.

(e) – Expanded Changes and Expanded Single Changes

These Changes files update the text based products. See separate Chapter in the ‘text based products’
section.

General data information

Date format is YYYYMMDD

Time format is HHMMSS

Derivation of amendment types for PAF Changes products

This section refers to the Amendment Type indicator in the Changes Products.

Amendment types are:

B - before view
} amendment
C - after view

D - deletion
I - insertion

The majority of amendments to PAF are taken using data sourced from actions carried out by Royal Mail
operational staff. The amendments are either added as an ‘I’, or an existing Delivery Point is deleted as a ‘D’.
However, some actions are generated as a result of the processing carried out to maintain PAF keying structure.
This section explains the reasons for choosing certain amendment types and gives examples of the common
occurrences.

Section 2 - PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Changes & Single Changes Page 81 of 237
The keys used in PAF are described in the chapter on PAF database structure. To support this keying structure
a restriction of the use of keys was defined. This definition states that each unique occurrence of Address Details
has a unique Address Key. The ‘Address’ details are the Locality, Thoroughfare, Thoroughfare Descriptor,
Dependent Thoroughfare, Dependent Thoroughfare Descriptor, Building Number, Building Name and Sub
Building Name. Organisations are uniquely identified by the Address Key and the Organisation Key. Several
Organisations at the same ‘Address’ have the same Address Key but different Organisation Keys.

If a residential Delivery Point is added it will be allocated a new Address Key. If a new Organisation is added it
will be allocated a new Organisation Key. Checking is then done to see if another Organisation exists on the
same ‘Address’. If it does, this Address Key is used for the newly inserted Organisation. If it doesn’t, a new
Address Key is allocated. In all cases the Amendment type is an ‘I’.

Only when data is amended on-screen in such a way as to compromise the Key integrity, is an unexpected
amendment type generated. If a simple amendment is done to a residential Delivery Point (e.g. correcting a
spelling mistake on a Building Name), although the ‘Address’ is changed it is still unique so the Address Key does
not need to change. In such a case the Amendment Type is a ‘B and C’.

However, if an Organisation exists in a shared office (i.e. multiple organisations in the same Building) and one of
the organisations has the Delivery Point details changed; this would create a new Delivery Point which then
requires a new key. The old Delivery Point would therefore be deleted (Amendment Type ‘D’). The new
Delivery Point would be inserted (Amendment Type I). The Address Key would have a new value if the new
‘Address’ is unique, or an existing value if the new Delivery Point exists with organisations already on the system.
In this case what appears to be an amendment must be represented as a delete/insert because of the Key
changes.

Here’s an example:

Address Address Organisation

Organisation Thoroughfare Post Town
details Key Key
Bloggs Solicitors George House High Street ANYTOWN 154002 10003
Jones Accountants George House High Street ANYTOWN 154002 10004
George House
Davies Printers High Street ANYTOWN 154003 10005
First Floor

If ‘Jones Accountants’ is amended to include ‘First Floor’ in the address, the entry will be deleted for keys
154002 10004 and inserted for 154003 10004.

Or, if the address is amended to have ‘Ground Floor’ in the details, the inserted entry would be Full 154004
10004, as the address does not yet exist. The Organisation Key will remain the same, and not be re-assigned.

Section 2 - PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Changes & Single Changes Page 82 of 237
Record definitions

Changes & Single ChangesFile - Changes1

RECORD NAME : Header Record

RECORD LENGTH : 169

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 9 1 (a)
File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (b)
Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 146 1

NOTES

(a) – Record Identifier = Low values (except for CD-Rom where record Identifier = Spaces)
(b) – File Identifier = CHANGES1

RECORD NAME : Locality Record

RECORD LENGTH : 169

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Type 1 Numeric 1 1 (a)

Locality Key 1 Numeric 8 1

Date 1 Numeric 8 1
Time 1 Numeric 6 1
Amendment Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 15 1
Post Town 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Double Dependent
1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Locality

NOTES

(a) – Record Type = 1

Section 2 - PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Changes & Single Changes Page 83 of 237
Changes & Single ChangesFile - Changes1

RECORD NAME : Thoroughfare Record

RECORD LENGTH : 169

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Type 1 Numeric 1 1 (a)

Thoroughfare Key 1 Numeric 8 1

Date 1 Numeric 8 1
Time 1 Numeric 6 1
Amendment Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Thoroughfare Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 85 1

NOTES

(a) – Record Type = 2

RECORD NAME : Thoroughfare Descriptor Record

RECORD LENGTH : 169

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Type 1 Numeric 1 1 (a)

Thoroughfare Descriptor
1 Numeric 8 1
Key
Date 1 Numeric 8 1
Time 1 Numeric 6 1
Amendment Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 20 1
Approved Abbreviation 1 Alphanumeric 6 1 (b)
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 119 1

NOTES

(a) – Record Type = 3

(b) – Approved abbreviation is space filled.

Section 2 - PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Changes & Single Changes Page 84 of 237
Changes & Single Changes™ File - Changes1

RECORD NAME : Building Name Record

RECORD LENGTH : 169

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Type 1 Numeric 1 1 (a)
Building Name Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Date 1 Numeric 8 1
Time 1 Numeric 6 1
Amendment Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 50 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 95 1

NOTES

(a) – Record Type = 4

Section 2 - PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Changes & Single Changes Page 85 of 237
Changes & Single Change File - Changes1

RECORD NAME : Sub Building Name Record

RECORD LENGTH : 169

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Type 1 Numeric 1 1 (a)
Sub Building Name Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Date 1 Numeric 8 1
Time 1 Numeric 6 1
Amendment Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Sub Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 115 1

NOTES

(a) – Record Type = 5

Changes & Single Change File - Changes1

RECORD NAME : Trailer Record
RECORD LENGTH : 169

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 9 1 (a)
Record Count 1 Numeric 8 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 152 1

NOTES

(a) – Record Identifier = High values (except for CD-Rom where record Identifier = Spaces)

Section 2 - PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Changes & Single Changes Page 86 of 237
Changes & Single Change File - Changes2
RECORD NAME : Header Record
RECORD LENGTH : 168

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 14 1 (a)
File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (b)
Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 146 1

NOTES

(a) – Record Identifier = Low values (except for CD-Rom where record Identifier = Spaces)
(b) – File Identifier = CHANGES2

Section 2 - PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Changes & Single Changes Page 87 of 237
Changes & Single Change File - Changes2
RECORD NAME : Address Record
RECORD LENGTH : 168

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Date 1 Numeric 8 1 (a)

Time 1 Numeric 6 1
Postcode 1
Outward Code 2 Alphanumeric 4 1
Inward Code 2 3
Delivery Point Suffix 1 2
Alphanumeric 1
(DPS)
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (b)

Address Key 1 Numeric 8 1

Organisation Key 1 Numeric 8 1 (c)

Amendment Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1

Record Type 1 Numeric 1 1 (d)

Locality Key 1 Numeric 8 1 (e)

Thoroughfare Key 1 Numeric 8 1 (f)

Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Numeric 8

1 (g)
Key
Dependent Thoroughfare 1 Numeric 8
1
Key
Dependent Thoroughfare 1 Numeric 8
1
Descriptor Key
Building Number 1 Numeric 4 1 (h)

Building Name Key 1 Numeric 8 1 (i)

Sub Building Name Key 1 Numeric 8 1 (j)

Number of Households 1 Numeric 4 1 (k)

Concatenation Indicator 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (l)

PO Box Number 1 Alphanumeric 6 1 (m)

cont. overleaf

Section 2 - PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Changes & Single Changes Page 88 of 237
Changes & Single Change File - Changes2
RECORD NAME : Address Record (cont.)
RECORD LENGTH : 168

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Small User Organisation 1 Alphanumeric 1
1 (n)
Indicator
Reason for Amendment 1 Numeric 2 1 (o)

New Postcode 1 Alphanumeric

Outward Code 2 4 1 (p)
Inward Code 2 3 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 45 1

NOTES

(a) - Delivery Point Suffix (DPS). The DPS is a unique Royal Mail 2-character code (the first numeric & the
second alphabetical – e.g. 2B), which, when added to the Postcode, enables each live Delivery Point to be
uniquely identified. Once the Delivery Point is deleted from PAF the DPS may be reused (although they
aren’t reused until all remaining Delivery Points in the range have been allocated). The DPS for a Large
User is always '1A' as each Large User has its own Postcode. .
(b) - Postcode Type - Postcode Type is always 'S' for Small Users and 'L' for Large Users. When the Postcode
Type is 'S' and the Small User Organisation Indicator is set, there will be a following Type 2 record
containing Small User Organisation details. When the Postcode Type is 'L', there will be a following Type 3
record containing Large User details.
(c) - Organisation Key. When Organisation Key > zero there will be a following Type 2 record containing
Organisation details.
(d) - Record Type = 1
(e) - Locality Key points to a Type 1 record in the Changes1 File.
(f) - Thoroughfare Key and Dependent Thoroughfare Key both point to Type 2 records in the Changes1 file. If
equal to zero there is no Thoroughfare/Dependent Thoroughfare present.
(g) - Thoroughfare Descriptor Key and Dependent Thoroughfare Descriptor Key both point to Type 3 records in
the Changes1 file. If equal to zero there is no Descriptor present.
(h) - Building Number. If Building Number is equal to zero a Building Number is not required for this address.
(i) - Building Name Key points to a Type 4 record in the Changes1 file. If equal to zero there is no Building
Name.
(j) - Sub Building Name Key points to a Type 5 record in the Changes1 file. If equal to zero there is no Sub
Building Name.
(k) - Number of households contains multi-occupancy information. When equal to one this indicates
that there is one household at the address, when greater than one it contains the number of households
present.
(l) - Concatenation indicator is either 'Y' or space. When equal to 'Y' this indicates that Building Number and
Sub Building Name should appear concatenated on the same address line.

Section 2 - PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Changes & Single Changes Page 89 of 237
 Here’s an example:

Thoroughfare Name = SMITH

Thoroughfare Descriptor = STREET
Building Number = 12
Sub Building Name = A
Concatenation Indicator = Y

The address line will read 12A SMITH STREET.

(m) - PO Box is space filled. The system only allows PO Box numbers against Large User records. All current
PO Box number changes therefore will only appear in a Type 3 (Large User) record. When this field is
populated it will contain PO BOX nnnnnn where n represents the PO Box number. Note that the PO Box
details can occasionally consist of a combination of numbers and letters e.g. HK860.
(n) - Small User Organisation indicator has the values 'Y' or space. A value of 'Y' indicates that a Small User
Organisation is present at this address.
(o) - Reason for amendment – Table 46 below gives the reasons.
(p) - New Postcode will be space filled except for an address amendment due to Postcode revision. In this case
it will be space filled on the before image and will contain the new Postcode on the after image. The
Address Key will not be affected by this.

Section 2 - PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Changes & Single Changes Page 90 of 237
Changes & Single Change File - Changes2
RECORD NAME : Address Record (cont.)
RECORD LENGTH : 168

NOTES cont.

Table 46: Amendment types - codes and reasons

Amend
Reason For Amendment Description of Amendment
Type
01 New Postcode and/or Delivery  Postcode added
Point added to PAF  Larger user added
 Small user added
02 Error Correction  Major address change and/or recode
 Single amendments
 Locality change
 Thoroughfare change
 Large user amendment
 Small user amendment
 Small user deletion
 Building Name amendment (e.g. spelling correction)
 Selective Reallocation *
03 New Postcode and/or Delivery  Postcode deleted
Point deleted to PAF  Larger user deleted
 Small user deleted
04 Coding Revision  Locality amendment
 Thoroughfare amendment
 Selective Reallocation * (building name, recoding)
05 Change of Organisation or  Large user amendment
Business Name  Small user amendment
 Change of Organisation Name
 Selective Reallocation * (building number)
06 Change of Status  Not currently in use
07 Large User Moving or Ceasing  Large user deleted
Trading
08 Change of Building Name,  Small user amendment
Number or Sub Building Name  Selective Reallocation * (building name)
09 Change of Address of a Large  Not currently in use
User

* - Selective Reallocation is a PAF® maintenance process. Delivery Points can be moved to a different Postcode,
retaining the same address keys where possible. If the Delivery Point is re-keyed the change is tracked on
the Keychain File. Other Selective Reallocation functions involve making changes to the Delivery Points, such
as Building Number change.

Section 2 - PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Changes & Single Changes Page 91 of 237
Changes & Single Change File - Changes2
RECORD NAME : Small User Organisation Details
RECORD LENGTH : 168

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Date 1 Numeric 8 1
Time 1 Numeric 6 1

Postcode 1
Outward Code 2 Alphanumeric 4 1
Inward Code 2 Alphanumeric 3 1
Delivery Point Suffix
1 Alphanumeric 2 1
(DPS)
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (a)
Address Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Organisation Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Amendment Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Record Type 1 Numeric 1 1 (b)
Organisation Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Department Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
PO Box Number 1 Alphanumeric 6 1 (c)

NOTES

(a) – Postcode type will always be 'S'.

(b) – Record Type = 2
(c) – PO Box is space filled. The system only allows PO Box numbers against Large User records. All current
PO Box number changes therefore will only appear in a Type 3 (Large User) record. When this field is
populated it will contain PO BOX nnnnnn (where n represents the PO Box number). Note that the PO Box
details can occasionally consist of a combination of numbers and letters e.g. HK860.

Section 2 - PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Changes & Single Changes Page 92 of 237
Changes & Single Change File - Changes2
RECORD NAME : Large User Details
RECORD LENGTH : 168

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Date 1 Numeric 8 1
Time 1 Numeric 6 1

Postcode 1
Outward Code 2 Alphanumeric 4 1
Inward Code 2 Alphanumeric 3 1
Delivery Point Suffix
1 Alphanumeric 2 1
(DPS)
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (a)
Address Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Organisation Key 1 Numeric 8 1 (b)
Amendment Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Record Type 1 Numeric 1 1 (c)
Organisation Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Department Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
PO Box Number 1 Alphanumeric 6 1 (d)

NOTES

(a) - Postcode Type will always be 'L'.

(b) - Organisation Key for a Large User is always zero. This is because a Large User has a unique address key
and will be the only organisation present at that address.
(c) - Record Type = 3
(d) - The words ‘PO Box’ are not held in this field, only the value of the PO Box Number e.g. this file will not
show ‘PO Box 70’ but ‘70’. PO Box Number. When this field is populated it will contain PO BOX nnnnnn
where n represents the PO Box number. Note that the PO Box details can occasionally consist of a
combination of numbers and letters e.g. HK860.

Section 2 - PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Changes & Single Changes Page 93 of 237
Changes & Single Change File - Changes2
RECORD NAME : Trailer Record
RECORD LENGTH : 168

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 14 1 (a)
Record Count 1 Numeric 8 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 146 1

NOTES

(a) – Record Identifier = High values (except for CD-Rom where record Identifier = spaces)

Related products/links

PAF Changes data in different structures

Expanded & Expanded Single Changes (for updating the Compressed Standard™ file or if adapted, the Ranges™
file).

Pricing/licensing

For pricing, licensing & ordering details for this product, please visit www.poweredbypaf.com

Section 2 - PAF® products in a RELATIONAL format Changes & Single Changes Page 94 of 237
Section 3
PAF products in a TEXT format
Chapter 9 Compressed Standard™
Chapter 10 Ranges™
Chapter 11 Expanded & Expanded Single Changes

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Compressed Standard Page 95 of 237

Compressed StandardTM File
In simple terms

The PAF® Compressed Standard™ file is similar to the Mainfile™ raw data, but the numeric keys on Mainfile are
replaced by text in the Compressed Standard file. This format is known as ‘Expanded’. It makes the file easier to
use than the Mainfile, but is much larger in size.

• Expanded database in text format

• Large size PAF raw data file
• Uses the Expanded Changes Files to update (daily, monthly or quarterly)

The Compressed Standard File is supplied as a series of files, these being:

Table 47: Compressed Standard file sizes

Sample record size (April Sample file size (April
Product file names
09 data) 09 data)
Compressed Standard file 33,652,915 625Kb
Welsh Compressed Standard file 32,035,450 2.19Mb
Total Compressed Standard File = 33,652,915 / 469Mb (approx.)

Product description
Compressed Standard data is supplied to customers as a combined file, containing both the English & the Welsh
address data. Each record is held at Delivery Point level and is held in an ‘Expanded Format’ (i.e. text rather than
keys). There are around 30 million records on the Compressed Standard File (not including the Welsh records).
This makes it the largest of the three PAF formats. The other two formats are PAF Mainfile (with its efficient key
system) at 28m records and the Ranges™ File (which summarises building numbers) at 7.5million records. The
Combined Compressed Standard File is aimed at companies who prefer to hold their data in a text format rather
than the relational format offered by the Mainfile.

Selectability/media
Available via:

CD-Rom
FTP

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Compressed Standard Page 96 of 237

File details

Postcode sequence numbers

The file is held in ascending Postcode sequence. The address data for a Postcode is held in a hierarchical
manner, with the following record types being present for each Postcode:

Record Type 1 - Locality details

Record Type 2 - Thoroughfare details
Record Type 3 - Delivery point details

The sequence of records within a Postcode is:

Record Type 1
Record Type 2(s) - if multiple Thoroughfares exist on a Postcode
Record Type 3(s) – one record for each Delivery Point

There can be only one Locality per Postcode, so there is one Type 1 record per Postcode. The Type 1 record is
followed by Type 2 and Type 3 records.

Thoroughfare sequence numbers

All new Postcodes added to the system will only have one Thoroughfare, although a number of Postcodes still
exist with more than one Thoroughfare. If there is more than one Thoroughfare then the Type 2/Type 3
sequence is repeated for each Thoroughfare. The Type 2 records contain a sequence number, which starts at 1
for the first Thoroughfare within a Postcode and is incremented by 1 for each successive Thoroughfare. The
sequence number is repeated on each of the Type 3 Delivery Point records following that Type 2 record.

Record Type 1
Record Type 2
Record Type 3
Record Type 3
Record Type 2
Record Type 3
Record Type 3
Record Type 3

A small number of Postcodes may contain up to nine Thoroughfares. Where there are more than nine
Thoroughfares for Postcode then the letters A, B and C are used for sequence numbers 10, 11 and 12.

There is one Type 3 record for each Delivery Point held on PAF, which contains PAF address keys and multi-
occupancy information. Within a Postcode/Thoroughfare the sequence of the Type 3 records is:
Numbered Delivery Points
Named Delivery Points
Small/Large User Organisations

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Compressed Standard Page 97 of 237

Miscellaneous
 CD-Roms have spaces and not high values
 All records end with CR LF
 Where the file is split across several files, the files do not contain trailing HEX 1As.

Welsh alternative file

The addresses on the Welsh address file are only those in sectors defined as being part of Wales. See the
Appendices section for Cross-border postcode areas.

For those addresses in Wales for which no Welsh Alternative address exists, this file contains identical data to the
English address file

For the addresses on the Welsh address file there is a one-to-one relationship between the English and the
Welsh files and PAF Key (Address Key, Organisation key, Postcode type) to allow a one-to-one match to be made
between the two files.

The Welsh address files do not contain any Alternative Organisation, Department, Building Name and Sub
Building Name information.

In the case of Welsh Thoroughfares, the Descriptor element is at the start of the string, so in general the
Thoroughfare Descriptor on the Welsh address will not exist. The Thoroughfare Descriptor field will therefore be
space filled. We have no plans to add any Descriptors.

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Compressed Standard Page 98 of 237

Record definitions

Compressed Standard FileTM

RECORD NAME : Header Record

RECORD LENGTH : 251

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (b)
Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 230 1

NOTES

(a) – Record Identifier = Low values. For CD-Rom, Record Identifier = Spaces.
(b) – File Identifier = CSTANDRD. File Identifier for the Welsh Alternative File = WFCOMPST

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Compressed Standard Page 99 of 237

Compressed Standard FileTM

RECORD NAME : Type 1 - Locality Details

RECORD LENGTH : 251

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Postcode Sector 1
Outward Code 2 Alphanumeric 4 1 (a)
Inward Code 2 Alphanumeric 3 1
Record Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (b)
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (c)

Filler 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Post Town 1 Alphanumeric 30 1

Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1

Double Dependent
1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Locality
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 112 1

NOTES

(a) - Postcode. Each Postcode consists of two parts. The first part is the Outward Postcode, or Outward code.
This is separated by a single space from the second part which is the Inward Postcode, or Inward Code.
(b) - Record Type = 1
(c) - Postcode type = 'S' or Small Users and 'L' for Large Users.

Welsh Alternative File - If no Alternative address exists for the Delivery Point, the Post Town, Dependent Locality
and Double Dependent Locality will be identical to the normal Compressed Standard file. If an Alternative
address exists the fields will be replaced by text from elements of the Alternative address.

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Compressed Standard Page 100 of 237
Compressed Standard FileTM

RECORD NAME : Type 2 - Thoroughfare Details

RECORD LENGTH : 251

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Postcode 1
Outward Code 2 Alphanumeric 4 1
Inward Code 2 Alphanumeric 3 1
Record Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (a)

Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (b)

Thoroughfare Sequence
1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (c)
Number
Thoroughfare Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1

Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 20 1

Dependent Thoroughfare
1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Name
Dependent Thoroughfare
1 Alphanumeric 20 1
Descriptor
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 81 1

NOTES

(a) – Record Type = 2

(b) – Postcode Type is 'S' for Small User and 'L' for Large Users.
(c) – Thoroughfare Sequence Number (See ‘File Details Section’ for explanation)

Welsh Alternative File - If no Alternative address exists for the Delivery Point, the Thoroughfare Name,
Thoroughfare Descriptor, Dependent Thoroughfare Name and Dependent Thoroughfare Descriptor fields will be
identical to the normal Compressed Standard file. If an Alternative address exists the fields will be replaced by
text from elements of the Alternative address.

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Compressed Standard Page 101 of 237
Compressed Standard FileTM
RECORD NAME : Type 3 - Delivery Point details
RECORD LENGTH : 251

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Postcode 1
Outward Code 2 Alphanumeric 4 1
Inward Code 2 Alphanumeric 3 1
Record Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (a)
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (b)

Thoroughfare Sequence
1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (c)
Number
Delivery Point Suffix (DPS) 1 Alphanumeric 2 1 (d)
Building Number 1 Numeric 4 1
Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 50 1
Sub Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Organisation Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Department Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
PO Box Number 1 Alphanumeric 14 1
Number of Households 1 Numeric 4 1 (e)

Small User Organisation

1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (f)
indicator
Address Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Organisation Key 1 Numeric 8 1

NOTES

(a) - Record Type = 3

(b) - The Postcode type is 'S' for Small User and 'L' for Large Users.
(c) - Thoroughfare Sequence Number (See ‘File Details Section’ for explanation)
(d) - Delivery Point Suffix (DPS). The DPS is a unique Royal Mail 2-character code (the first numeric & the
second alphabetical – e.g. 2B), which, when added to the Postcode, enables each live Delivery Point to be
uniquely identified. Once the Delivery Point is deleted from PAF the DPS may be reused (although they
aren’t reused until all remaining Delivery Points in the range have been allocated). The DPS for a Large
User is always '1A' as each Large User has its own Postcode. Only numbers 1-9 appear in the numeric
position, and letters C, I, K, M, O V are not used. The maximum DPS can be 9T. So, in total, there are
175 possible DPS allocations per Postcode, from 1A to 9T.

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Compressed Standard Page 102 of 237
NOTES to Record Definition Table: Type 3 - Delivery Point details cont.

(e) - Number of households. Indicates whether there is multi-occupancy at an address. When equal to one it
indicates that there is one household at this address; when greater than one it contains the number of
households present.
(f) - Small User Organisation Indicator. Can have the values ‘Y’ or space. A value of ‘Y’ indicates that there is a
Small User Organisation present at this address.

Welsh Alternative File - None of the fields in the Type 3 record are affected by the Alternative Address details.

RECORD NAME : Trailer Record

RECORD LENGTH : 251

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
Record Count 1 Numeric 8 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 236 1

NOTES

(a) – Record Identifier = High values For CD-Rom: Record Identifier = Spaces

Related products/links
Related datasets

MainfileTM
Ranges File TM
Expanded Changes File TM
Expanded Single Changes File TM

Pricing/licensing

For pricing, licensing & ordering details for Compressed Standard product, please visit www.poweredbypaf.com

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Compressed Standard Page 103 of 237
 TM
Ranges
In simple terms
The Ranges file is a simple-to-use PAF® raw data product. ‘Ranges’ means all building numbers are
summarised as Number Ranges, e.g. 1-99. Building Names are unaffected. The file contains readable text held
at a Postcode level. RangesTM only holds address information. PAF address keys, Multi-occupancy information
and Delivery Point Suffixes are not supplied.

 Expanded database format

 Medium sized PAF raw data
 House numbers are ranged to help save space
 Uses one of the Expanded Changes files to update (daily, monthly or quarterly)

The Ranges File is supplied as a series of files, these being:

Table 48: Ranges file sizes

Product file names Approximate number of Approximate file size
records in Mb
Ranges file 8,255,819 152Mb
Welsh Alternative file 432,062 8.43
Total Ranges File = 8,687,881 / 160Mb (approx.)

Product description
Supplied as a Combined Ranges file. ‘Combined’ means it has both English & Welsh Postcode and address
information.

Ranges data is stored to Postcode level (our other two product options - Mainfile & Compressed Standard File -
both hold data at Delivery Point level). Ranges data is also held as text, rather than as address keys (as on
Mainfile). Ranges file is much bigger than Mainfile because text takes up more space than keys. Because it’s a
bigger file, it’s known as being in an ‘Expanded Format’. Although a larger file, it is easier to use because all of
the data elements are readable & the structure is simpler.

Selectability/media
Available via

CD-Rom
FTP

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Ranges Page 104 of 237

File details
The file contains the following record types:
Record Type 1 - Building Number Ranges
Record Type 2 - Named Delivery Points
Record Type 3 - Small User Organisations/Large User Organisations

The file is held in ascending sequence by Postcode/Thoroughfare. Within a Postcode, Thoroughfare and
Dependent Thoroughfare the sequence is Type 1 records, followed by Type 2 records, followed by Type 3
records.

Type 1 records contain ranges of Building Numbers. These represent Delivery Points that are identified by a
Building Number only, i.e. they have no Building Name, Sub Building Name or Organisation Name. The Building
Numbers are held as odd and even Number Ranges. Individual Building Numbers are held with the Building
Number in the start of range, the end of range being zero. For example, a Thoroughfare with Building Numbers
1 to 12, 14 to 24 and 27 would be represented by the following Number Ranges:-

start end
1 11
2 24
15 23
27 0

Type 2 and Type 3 records contain information on the basis of one record per Delivery Point.
The Type 1 records contain ranges of Building Numbers and so may contain details of many Delivery Points.
Type 2 and Type 3 records contain data on the basis of one record per Delivery Point.

Each record type may occur many times or never at all. For example, a Postcode contains 10 private addresses,
all of which have a Building Name. The Postcode is represented by:

0 Type 1 records
10 Type 2 records
0 Type 3 records

Locality and Thoroughfare information is present for each record type.

Welsh Alternative file

This file contains identical data to the Standard file for those addresses within the Welsh Principality for which no
Alternative address exists. The addresses on the Welsh address file are only those in Sectors defined as being
part of the principality. See the Appendices section for Cross-border Postcodes in Wales. The Welsh address
files do not contain any Alternative Organisation, Department, Building Name and Sub Building Name
information. Generally it is anticipated that the Thoroughfare Descriptor on the Alternative address will not exist
and this field will therefore be space filled. This is because there is no proposal to add any Descriptors and, in
the case of Welsh Thoroughfares, the Descriptor element is at the start of the string.

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Ranges Page 105 of 237

Record definitions

Ranges File
RECORD NAME : Header Record
RECORD LENGTH : 517

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (b)
Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 496 1

NOTES

(a) – Record Identifier = Low values. (except for CD-Rom where record identifier = Spaces)
(b) – File Identifier = RANGES. File Identifier for the Welsh Alternative File = WFRANGES

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Ranges Page 106 of 237

Ranges File

RECORD NAME : Type 1 Record - Number Ranges

RECORD LENGTH : 517

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Postcode 1
Outward Code 2 Alphanumeric 4 1
Inward Code 2 Alphanumeric 3 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Post Town 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Double Dependent 35 1
Alphanumeric
Locality
Thoroughfare Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 20 1
Dependent Thoroughfare 1 60 1
Alphanumeric
Name
Dependent Thoroughfare 1 20 1
Alphanumeric
Descriptor
Record Type 1 Numeric 1 1 (a)
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (b)

Number Ranges 1 18
Start of range 2 Numeric 4 1 (c)
End of range 2 Numeric 4 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 74 1

NOTES

(a) - Record Type = 1. There may be more than one Type 1 record for a Postcode/Thoroughfare.
(b) - The Postcode Type for Small Users is 'S' and for Large Users is 'L'.
(c) - Number Ranges - Numbered properties are represented by ranges of numbers and/or individual Building
Numbers. Ranges of numbers will be held as odd and even Number Ranges. Individual Building Numbers
will be held with the Building Number in the start of range field, the end of range field will be zero.
Unused ranges occurrences will be zero filled.

Welsh Alternative File - If no Alternative address exists for the Delivery Point, the Post Town, Dependent
Locality, Double Dependent Locality, Thoroughfare Name, Thoroughfare Descriptor, Dependent Thoroughfare
Name and Dependent Thoroughfare Descriptor will be identical to the normal Ranges file. If an Alternative
address exists the fields will be replaced by text from elements of the Alternative address.

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Ranges Page 107 of 237

Ranges File

RECORD NAME : Type 2 Record - Named Delivery Points

RECORD LENGTH : 517

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Postcode 1

Outward Code 2 Alphanumeric 4 1

Inward Code 2 Alphanumeric 3 1

Filler 1 Alphanumeric 30 1

Post Town 1 Alphanumeric 30 1

Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1

Double Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1

Thoroughfare Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1

Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 20 1

Dependent Thoroughfare Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1

Dependent Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 20 1

Record Type 1 Numeric 1 1 (a)

Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (b)

Building Number 1 Alphanumeric 4 1

Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 50 1

Sub Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 30 1

PO Box Number 1 Alphanumeric 14 1 (c)

Filler 1 Alphanumeric 120 1

NOTES
(a) – Record Type = 2.
(b) – The Postcode type for Small Users is 'S' and for Large Users is ‘L’.
(c) – PO Box Number is not used and is space filled.

Welsh Ranges file - If no Alternative address exists for the Delivery Point, the fields shaded above will be
identical to the normal Ranges file. If an Alternative address exists the fields will be replaced by text from
elements of the Alternative address.

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Ranges Page 108 of 237

Ranges File

RECORD NAME : Type 3 Record - Small / Large User Organisations

RECORD LENGTH : 517

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Postcode 1

Outward Code 2 Alphanumeric 4 1

Inward Code 2 Alphanumeric 3 1

Filler 1 Alphanumeric 30 1

Post Town 1 Alphanumeric 30 1

Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1

Double Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1

Thoroughfare Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1

Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 20 1

Dependent Thoroughfare Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1

Dependent Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 20 1

Record Type 1 Numeric 1 1 (a)

Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (b)

Building Number 1 Numeric 4 1

Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 50 1

Sub Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 30 1

Organisation Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1

Department Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1

PO Box Number 1 Alphanumeric 14 1 (c)

NOTES are overleaf

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Ranges Page 109 of 237

NOTES to Ranges Type 3 Record - Small / Large User Organisations

(a) - Record Type = 3.

(b) - The Postcode Type for Small Users is 'S' and for Large Users is 'L'.
(c) - The words ‘PO Box’ are not held in this field, only the value of the PO Box Number e.g. this file will not
show ‘PO Box 70’ but ‘70’. PO Box Number. When this field is populated it will contain PO BOX nnnnnn,
where n represents the PO Box number. Please note that the PO Box details can occasionally consist of a
combination of numbers and letters e.g. HK860.

Welsh Alternative File - If no Alternative address exists for the Delivery Point, the Post Town, Dependent
Locality, Double Dependent Locality, Thoroughfare Name, Thoroughfare Descriptor, Dependent Thoroughfare
Name, and Dependent Thoroughfare Descriptor fields will be identical to the normal Ranges file. If an
Alternative address exists the fields will be replaced by text from elements of the Alternative address.

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Ranges Page 110 of 237

Ranges File

RECORD NAME : Trailer Record

RECORD LENGTH : 517

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
Record Count 1 Numeric 8 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 502 1

NOTES

(a) – Record Identifier = High values. For CD-Rom: Record Identifier = Spaces.

Related products/links
Related datasets

MainfileTM
Compressed StandardTM
Expanded Changes
Expanded Single Changes

Pricing/licensing

For pricing, licensing & ordering details for the Ranges product, please visit www.poweredbypaf.com

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Ranges Page 111 of 237

Expanded Changes &
Expanded Single Changes
In simple terms
This product details the additions, deletions and amendments required to update the Compressed Standard™
file. Users who require a low maintenance option should subscribe to the full Compressed Standard files.

 Changes held in ‘Expanded Format’ i.e. text based data

 Provides updates for the Compressed Standard file
 Available at individual Delivery Point level only
 High maintenance update option
 Available daily, monthly or quarterly

Product description
This product contains PAF® Changes information. It contains details of the addition, deletion, amendment and
Postcode recoding of Delivery Points.

Single Changes is identical in format and layout to the Expanded Changes file. However, only one pair of records
will appear for each Delivery Point, representing the first and last view of the Delivery Point over the change
period.

Changes data is only available at individual Delivery Point level; there are no group level records to give
information at a Postcode level. For example, if a Postcode is deleted then the file will contain a deletion record
for each Delivery Point within the Postcode. Changes information is available for Small and Large User
addresses.

PAF Changes consists of 7 files which are:

Table 49: Expanded Changes & Expanded Single Changes file sizes
Sample record ze (April Sample file size
Product file names
09 data) (April 09 data)
Changes1 File 45,147 606Kb
Changes2 File 145,434 3.46Mb
Single Changes File 136,722 3.31Mb
Expanded Changes File 145,434 4.7Mb
Expanded Single Changes File 136.l722 4.48Mb
Welsh Changes 5,246 125Kb
Total File = 627,423 / 16.9Mb (approx.)
Please note that Keychain™ is also supplied, please see separate chapter.

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Expanded & Exp Single Changes Page 112 of 237
Selectability/media
Usually supplied via the Combined PAF Changes, however customers who take subsets of the data (e.g. PO, SO
and GU) will be supplied with the files separately. Available via:

CD-Rom
FTP

File details

Date is held in YYYYMMDD format.

Time is held in HHMMSS format.

Records are held in ascending sequence by:

Date
Time
Postcode
Delivery Point Suffix
Postcode Type
Address Key
Organisation Key
Amendment Type
Record Type

Amendment types are:

B - before view }
C - after view } amendment
D - deletion
I - insertion

For further information about the derivation of Amendment Types see previous chapter ‘Changes & Single
Changes’

Record types are:

Record Type 1 - Address details

Record Type 2 - Small User Organisation Name
Record Type 3 - Large User Name
Type 2 records will only be present for Small User organisations.
Type 3 records will only be present for Large Users.

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Expanded & Exp Single Changes Page 113 of 237
Insertions and deletions are represented by a single Type 1 record. If the address is for a Small User
Organisation the Type 1 record will be followed by a Type 2 record. If the address is for a Large User, the Type
1 record will be followed by a Type 3 record.

Amendments are represented by a pair of Type 1 records, these being a before and an after view. Each Type 1
record may be followed by Type 2 or 3 record.

The Single Changes product is identical in format and layout to the Expanded Changes2 file. However, only one
pair of records will appear for each Delivery Point, representing the first and last view of the Delivery Point over
the change period.

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Expanded & Exp Single Changes Page 114 of 237
Record definitions

Expanded Changes & Expanded Single ChangesTM

RECORD NAME : Header Record

RECORD LENGTH : 444

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 14 1 (a)
File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (b)
Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 416 1

NOTES

(a) – Record Identifier = Low values (except for CD-Rom where Record Identifier = Spaces)
(b) – File Identifier = XCHANGES

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Expanded & Exp Single Changes Page 115 of 237
Expanded Changes & Expanded Single Changes™

RECORD NAME : Address Record

RECORD LENGTH : 444

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Date 1 Numeric 8 1
Time 1 Numeric 6 1

Postcode 1
Outward Code 2 Alphanumeric 4 1
Inward Code 2 Alphanumeric 3 1
Delivery Point Suffix (DPS) 1 Alphanumeric 2 1 (a)
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (b)
Address Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Organisation Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Amendment Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Record Type 1 Numeric 1 1 (c)
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Post Town 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Double Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Thoroughfare 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 20 1
Dependent Thoroughfare 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Dependent Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 20 1
Building Number 1 Numeric 4 1
Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 50 1
Sub Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Number of Households 1 Numeric 4 1 (d)
PO Box Number 1 Alphanumeric 14 1 (e)
Small User Organisation Indicator 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (f)
Reason for Amendment 1 Numeric 2 1 (g)

New Postcode 1
Outward Code 2 Alphanumeric 4 1 (h)
Inward Code 2 Alphanumeric 3 1
NOTES OVERLEAF

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Expanded & Exp Single Changes Page 116 of 237
NOTES to Expanded Changes & Expanded Single Changes Address Record

(a) – Delivery Point Suffix (DPS) - The DPS is a unique Royal Mail 2-character code (the first numeric & the
second alphabetical – e.g. 2B), which, when added to the Postcode, enables each live Delivery Point to be
uniquely identified. Once the Delivery Point is deleted from PAF the DPS may be reused (although they
aren’t reused until all remaining Delivery Points in the range have been allocated). The DPS for a Large
User is always '1A' as each Large User has its own Postcode. DPS may be re-used.
(b) – Postcode Type is 'S' for Small Users and 'L' for Large Users. When the Postcode Type is 'S' and the Small
User Organisation Indicator is set, there will be a following Type 2 record containing Small User
Organisation details.
(c) – Record Type = 1
(d) – Number of Households contains multi-occupancy information. When equal to one this indicates that
there is one household at the address, when greater than one the field contains the number of households present.
(e) – PO Box Number is space filled. The current system only allows PO Box numbers against Large User
records. All current PO Box number changes therefore will only appear in a Type 3 (Large User ) record.
The facility is available to hold PO Box number details against Type 2 (Small User Organisation) records
and residential Type 1 (Address Records). This facility may be utilised in the future. Any changes to Large
User PO Box details will appear in the Large User Type 3 records. Subsequently any changes to Small
User Organisation PO Box details will appear in the Small User Organisation Type 2 records and any
changes to Large User PO Box details will appear in the Large User Type 3 records.
(f) – Small User Organisation Indicator can have the values 'Y' or space. A value 'Y' indicates that a Small User
Organisation is present, i.e. There will be a Type 2 record following.
(g) – Reasons for Amendment table is overleaf
(h) - New Postcode will be space filled except for an address amendment due to Postcode revision. In this case
the Postcode field in the before and after image will hold the old Postcode and the New Postcode field will
be space filled on the before image and will contain the new Postcode on the after image.

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Expanded & Exp Single Changes Page 117 of 237
NOTES to Expanded Changes & Expanded Single Changes Address Record

(g) – Table 50: Reasons for amendment

Amendment Reasons for

Description of amendment
type amendment
 This also includes any Delivery Point that may have
Postcode/Delivery Point been previously omitted from PAF when the
01 Added to PAF Postcode went live.
 Large User Added
 Bulk Recoding
 Single Amendments
 Locality Change
 Thoroughfare Change
02 Error Correction  Large User Amendment
 Small User Amendment
 Small User Deletion
 Building Name Amendment
 Selective Reallocation*
 Postcode Deleted
Postcode/Delivery Point
03 Deleted
 Large User Deleted
 Small User Deleted
 Locality Amendment
 Bulk Recode
04 Coding Revision
 Thoroughfare Amendment
 Selective Reallocation (building name, recoding)
 Large User Amendment
Change of Organisation or  Small User Amendment
05 Business Name  Change of Organisation Name
 Selective Reallocation (building number)
06 Change of Status  Not Currently In Use
Large User Moving or
07 Ceasing Trading
 Large User Deleted
 Small User Amendment
Change of Building Name, or
08 Number
 Selective Reallocation
 (building name)
Change of Address of a
09 Large User
Not Currently In Use

* Delivery Points can be moved to a different Postcode, retaining the same address keys where possible. If the
Delivery Point is re-keyed the change is tracked on the Keychain File. Other Selective Reallocation functions
involve making changes to the Delivery Points, such as Building Number.

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Expanded & Exp Single Changes Page 118 of 237
Expanded Changes & Expanded Single Changes™

RECORD NAME : Small User Organisation Record

RECORD LENGTH : 444

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Date
1 Numeric 8 1

Time
1 Numeric 6 1

Postcode
1
Outward Code
2 Alphanumeric 4 1
Inward Code
2 Alphanumeric 3

Delivery Point Suffix 1 Alphanumeric 2 1

Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (a)
Address Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Organisation Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Amendment Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Record Type 1 Numeric 1 1 (b)
Organisation Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Department Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
PO Box 1 Alphanumeric 14 1 (c)
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 268 1

NOTES

(a) – Postcode Type will always be 'S'.

(b) – Record Type = 2

(c) – PO Box is space filled. The current system only allows PO Box numbers against Large User records. All
current PO Box number changes therefore will only appear in a Type 3 (Large User ) record. The facility
is available to hold PO Box number details against Type 2 (Small User Organisation) records and
residential Type 1 (Address Records). This facility may be utilised in the future.

Subsequently any changes to Small User Organisation PO Box details will appear in the Small User
Organisation Type 2 records and any changes to Large User PO Box details will appear in the Large User
Type 3 records.

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Expanded & Exp Single Changes Page 119 of 237
Expanded Changes & Expanded Single Changes™
RECORD NAME : Large User Record
RECORD LENGTH : 444

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Date
1 Numeric 8 1

Time
1 Numeric 6 1

Postcode
1
Outward Code
2 Alphanumeric 4 1
Inward Code
2 Alphanumeric 3

Delivery Point Suffix 1 Alphanumeric 2 1

Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (a)
Address Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Organisation Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Amendment Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Record Type 1 Numeric 1 1 (b)
Organisation Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Department Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
PO Box 1 Alphanumeric 14 1 (c)
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 268 1

NOTES

(a) - Postcode Type will always be 'L'

(b) - Record Type = 3
(c) - PO Box. The words ‘PO Box’ are not held in this field, only the value of the PO Box Number e.g. this file
will not show ‘PO Box 70’ but ‘70’. When this field is populated it will contain PO BOX nnnnnn where n
represents the PO Box number. Note that the PO Box details can occasionally consist of a combination of
numbers and letters e.g. HK860.

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Expanded & Exp Single Changes Page 120 of 237
Expanded Changes & Expanded Single ChangesTM

RECORD NAME : Trailer Record

RECORD LENGTH : 444

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 14 1 (a)
Record Count 1 Numeric 8 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 422 1

NOTES

(a) – Record Identifier = High values (except for CD-Rom where Record Identifier = Spaces)

Related products/links

Compatible PAF datasets

Compressed Standard File™

Please note that Expanded Changes & Expanded Single Changes™ can be adapted to update the Ranges File™.
The Ranges File was originally designed to be taken as a full file only.

PAF Changes data in different structures

Changes & Single Changes File™ (for updating the Mainfile™)

Applications that include PAF data

Find a third party who can supply this data through our supplier directory www.poweredbypaf.com

Pricing/licensing

For pricing, licensing & ordering details for this product, please visit www.poweredbypaf.com

Section 3 - PAF® products in a TEXT format Expanded & Exp Single Changes Page 121 of 237
Section 4
Other products
Chapter 12 Postcode Information File™ (PIF)
Chapter 13 Postcode Information File Changes
Chapter 14 Unique Delivery Point Reference Number™ (UDPRN)
Chapter 15 BFPO Postcode data
Chapter 16 Not Yet Built™
Chapter 17 Just Built™
Chapter 18 Multiple Residence™
Chapter 19 Postzon® 100m

Section 4 - Other products Postcode Information File (PIF) Page 122 of 237
Postcode Information File (PIF™)
In simple terms
The PIF™ file is used to help the barcoding of mail. Delivery point suffix (DPS) & checksum information is
required to create barcodes on mail and PIF™ supplies these; useful if your database or PAF® product does not
include it.

 Supplies Postcode, DPS information & the checksum digit for delivery points
 Used to barcode mail
 Full or Changes product available

The PIF™ File is supplied as a series of files, these being:

Table 51: PIF file sizes

Sample record size (April Sample file size (April
Product file names
09 data) 09 data)
Postcode Information File 28,524,452 215Mb
PIF™ Changes 101,693 1.65Mb
Total PIF File = 28,626,145 / 216Mb (approx.)

Product description

PIF™ contains information that is unique to a delivery point. It contains the Postcode and Delivery Point Suffix
(DPS), two elements that are sufficient to define a live delivery point.

Delivery point details are provided either just as a Building Number or as a string containing the most significant
50 characters of the Delivery Point description (as held as display text within PAF®).

Delivery Point Suffix (DPS)

The DPS is a unique Royal Mail 2-character code (the first numeric & the second alphabetical – e.g. 2B), which,
when added to the Postcode, enables each live Delivery Point to be uniquely identified. Once the Delivery Point
is deleted from PAF® the DPS may be reused (although they aren’t reused until all remaining Delivery Points in
the range have been allocated).

DPS format: two characters in a numeric alpha format. Only digits 1-9 appear in the numeric position. To allow
the 9U-9Z range to be used as defaults for customer barcoding, DPS allocation is restricted from 1A to 9T (175
occurrences) the alpha characters C, I, K, M, O and V are not used in the DPS. Delivery Point Suffixes on a
Postcode may wrap around when all 175 DPSs have historically been allocated.

Section 4 - Other products Postcode Information File (PIF) Page 123 of 237
If a property currently on PAF® is demolished, its DPS will be erased. If subsequently a new property is
constructed in its place the next available DPS will be allocated.

A Large User Postcode will contain details of one Organisation and its associated Delivery Point details. It will
therefore always have a DPS value of 1A.

PIF allows address data to be linked to the correct DPS and checksum digit. Further information relating to the
use of barcodes and the calculation of the checksum digit can be found in the Business Mail User guide, which
can be downloaded from www.royalmailtechnical.com or by calling 08457 950 950.

Examples showing the contents of PIF are shown below:

Table 52a: contents of PIF

Delivery Checksum
Postcode DPS
Point Data Digit
1 SO31 6XY 1A S
2 SO31 6XY 1B T
3 SO31 6XY 1D V
4 SO31 6XY 1E W
5 SO31 6XY 1F X
6 SO31 6XY 1G Y
9 SO31 6XY 1L 3
10 SO31 6XY 1N 5
11 SO31 6XY 1P 7

Using the above example, if Delivery Point number 3 is demolished then Postcode SO31 6XY 1D will cease to
exist. If, at a later date, a new property is constructed on the same site (e.g. two house or flats 3A and 3B) the
next available DPS will be allocated to each new Delivery Point and the file would change in the following ways:

Section 4 - Other products Postcode Information File (PIF) Page 124 of 237
Table 52b: contents of PIF
Delivery Checksum
Postcode DPS
Point Data Digit
1 SO31 6XY 1A K
2 SO31 6XY 1B L
4 SO31 6XY 1E O
11 SO31 6XY 1P 7
To:
Delivery Checksum
Postcode DPS
Point Data Digit
1 SO31 6XY 1A K
2 SO31 6XY 1B L
3A SO31 6XY 1W E
3B SO31 6XY 1X F
4 SO31 6XY 1E O

At its most simple level the information in the Display Text Field will contain only the house number information.
However, for those properties that do not have a house number then the house Name will appear. Where flats
occur, the relevant flat information from the Postcode Address File will appear. For Organisations which appear
on PAF the Organisation will appear on the PIF.

Selectability/media
CD-Rom
(FTP - PIF itself is not available, only the PIF Changes file)

Section 4 - Other products Postcode Information File (PIF) Page 125 of 237
Record definitions

Postcode Information File™ (PIF)

RECORD NAME : Header Record
RECORD LENGTH : 60

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (b)

Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 39 1

NOTES

(a) – Record Identifier = Low values (except for CD-Rom where Record Identifier = Spaces)
(b) – File Identifier = POSTINFO

RECORD NAME : Data Record

RECORD LENGTH : 60

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 7 1
Delivery Point Suffix (DPS) 1 Alphanumeric 2 1
Check Digit 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Display Text BNR (Redefines display text) 1
Building Number (BNR) 2 Numeric 4 1 (a)
Filler 2 Alphanumeric 46

NOTES

(a) - At its most simple level, the information in the Display Text Field will contain only the house number
information (known as ‘BNR’, which stands for ‘Building Number Range’). However for those properties
without a house number then the house name will appear. Where flats occur, the relevant flat
information from PAF will appear. For Organisations on PAF, the Organisation will appear on PIF.

Section 4 - Other products Postcode Information File (PIF) Page 126 of 237
Here are 5 examples of PIF, showing the most significant 50 characters

Table 53: PIF example 1 – showing an address with an Organisation Name

Field on PAF® Example
Organisation P L C Partnership
Building Name Lansdown House 25-26
Thoroughfare Hampshire Terrace
Post Town PORTSMOUTH
Postcode PO1 2QF

| | | | | |
123456789012345678901234567890123456789012345678901234567890
PO1 2QF2WEP L C PARTNERSHIP, LANSDOWN HOUSE, 25-26

Table 54: PIF example 2 – showing an address with a Building Number

Field on PAF® Example
Building Number 92
Thoroughfare St. Georges Square
Post Town PORTSMOUTH
Postcode PO1 3AR

| | | | | |
123456789012345678901234567890123456789012345678901234567890
PO1 3AR1JX0092

Table 55: PIF example 3 – showing an address with a Building Name

Field on PAF® Example
Building Namer 4A
Thoroughfare Dean Street
Post Town PORTSMOUTH
Postcode PO1 3BH

| | | | | |
123456789012345678901234567890123456789012345678901234567890
PO1 3BH1JI4A

Section 4 - Other products Postcode Information File (PIF) Page 127 of 237
Table 56: PIF example 4 – showing an address with a PO Box Number
Field on PAF® Example
Organisation Zurich Insurance Co
PO Box Number PO Box 20
Building Name Zurich House
Thoroughfare Stanhope Road
Post Town PORTSMOUTH
Postcode PO1 1DU

| | | | | |
123456789012345678901234567890123456789012345678901234567890
PO1 1DU1AYZURICH INSURANCE CO, PO BOX 20, ZURICH HOUSE

Table 57: PIF example 5 – showing an address with a PO Box Number

Field on PAF® Example
Sub Building Name Flat 2
Building Number 18
Thoroughfare Queen Street
Post Town PORTSMOUTH
Postcode PO1 3HL

| | | | | |
123456789012345678901234567890123456789012345678901234567890
PO1 3HL1HQFLAT 2, 18

Section 4 - Other products Postcode Information File (PIF) Page 128 of 237
Postcode Information File (PIF)

RECORD NAME : Trailer Record

RECORD LENGTH : 60

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
Record Count 1 Numeric 8 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 45 1

NOTES:

(a) – Record Identifier = High values (except for CD-Rom where Record Identifier = Spaces)

Related products/links

Related products

PIF Changes
Mainfile™
Ranges™
Compressed Standard™

Pricing/licensing

For pricing, licensing & ordering details for this product, please visit www.poweredbypaf.com

Section 4 - Other products Postcode Information File (PIF) Page 129 of 237
Postcode Information File (PIF)
Changes™
In simple terms
The PIF Changes product simply details the changes to Delivery Point details for Postcode / Delivery Point Suffix
combinations as supplied on the PIF product (see previous chapter).

The PIF Files are supplied as a series of files, these being:

Table 58: PIF Changes file size

Sample record size Sample file size
Product file names
(April 09 data) (April 09 data)
Postcode Information File 28,524,452 215Mb
PIF Changes 101,693 1.65Mb
Total PIF File = 28,626,145 / 216Mb (approx.)

Product description

PIF Changes are supplied in the same sequence and use the same amendment types as the Changes2 product
(see PAF® Changes chapter) but only contain one record type.

Selectability/media
Available via:

CD-Rom
FTP

Section 4 -Other products Postcode Information File Changes Page 130 of 237
File details
The file is produced in ascending sequence by:

Date
Time
Postcode
Delivery Point Suffix
Amendment Type
Date = YYYYMMDD
Time = HHMMSS

Valid amendments types =

B - before view }
C - after view } amendment

D - deletion
I - insertion

Amendments are represented by a pair of records, these being a before and after view.
Insertions and deletions are represented by a single record.

When an amendment has been made due to a Postcode revision there will be a pair of amendment records.
The ‘before’ image will contain the old Postcode, and the ‘after’ image will contain the new Postcode.

Section 4 -Other products Postcode Information File Changes Page 131 of 237
Record definitions

Postcode Information File (PIF) Changes File

RECORD NAME : Header Record
RECORD LENGTH : 75

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (a)
File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (b)
Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 53 1

NOTES

(a) – Record Identifier = zeros

(b) – File Identifier = PIFCHNGS

RECORD NAME : Data Record

RECORD LENGTH : 75

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Date Numeric 8 1
Time Numeric 6 1
Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 7 1
Delivery Point Suffix (DPS) 1 Alphanumeric 2 1
Amendment Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Check Digit 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Display Text BNR (redefines display text) 1 1 (a)
Building Number (BNR) 2 Numeric 4 1
Filler 2 Alphanumeric 46 1

NOTES

(a) – Display Text. The information in the Display Text Field will at its most simple level contain only the house
number information (BNR). However for those properties that do not have a house number then the house
Name will appear. Where flats occur the relevant flat information from PAF will appear. For Organisations
which appear on PAF the Organisation will appear on the PIF.

Section 4 -Other products Postcode Information File Changes Page 132 of 237
Postcode Information File (PIF) Changes File

RECORD NAME : Trailer Record

RECORD LENGTH : 75

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (a)
Record Count 1 Numeric 8 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 59 1

NOTES

(a) – Record Identifier = 99999999

Related products/links

Related products

Postcode Information File™

Mainfile™
Ranges™
Compressed Standard™

Pricing/licensing

For pricing, licensing & ordering details for this product, please visit www.poweredbypaf.com

Section 4 -Other products Postcode Information File Changes Page 133 of 237
Unique Delivery Point Reference
Number (UDPRN)
In simple terms
UDPRN stands for ‘Unique Delivery Point Reference Number’. Each UDPRN is an 8-character code that can be
used instead of the current address keys on PAF®.

UDPRN will only be supplied with PAF Mainfile or Compressed Standard File because it concerns Delivery Points.
There is no UDPRN Ranges file because Ranges is a Postcode level product.

UDPRN has two available formats – Full and Expanded. PAF Mainfile users will need the UDPRN Full format;
Compressed Standard File users will need the UDPRN Expanded Format.

In summary:

 Simple, unique reference number for each Delivery Point

 Far less likely to be reused than the existing PAF Keys
 8-character numeric code
 A new UDPRN is automatically assigned to each new Delivery Point added to PAF

The UDPRN files are supplied as a set, these being:

Table 59: Unique Delivery Point Reference Number (UDPRN) file sizes
Sample record size Sample file size
Product file names
(April 09 data) (April 09 data)
UDPRN Full 28,524,452 258Mb

UDPRN Expanded 28,524,452 604Mb

UDPRN Changes 84,853 1.46Mb

UDPRN Single Changes 82,453 1.44Mb

Product description

The existing PAF address keys change with the normal maintenance of PAF. The combination of the Address
Key, Organisation key and Postcode indicator uniquely identifies an address.

In the main, address keys change when

 An organisational address becomes a residential address
 A residential address becomes an organisation
 A Delivery Point (DP) is deleted in error and later re-input to PAF.

Section 4 - Other products UDPRN Page 134 of 237

In all of the above instances a new Address Key is assigned to the address even though the details may be
identical to the one that had been deleted.

We recognise that some users of PAF develop their own software applications, not only around PAF, but also
using the address keys as a unique reference link to their own information. However, when a PAF record is
deleted, this in turn may remove a record in PAF user’s application, and their local information is consequently
lost. For that reason PAF user would ideally prefer the Address Key only to change when the DP has genuinely
and permanently gone, for example demolished.

Selectability/media
The UDPRN product must be used with the appropriate PAF product. This means that UDPRN Full is used with
the Mainfile, and UDPRN Expanded with the Compressed Standard File. There is no UDPRN Ranges file.

The data is automatically provided with the normal product, similar to the Welsh File. UDPRN data is available
as a monthly refresh of data, or as a monthly Changes product on the following media:

CD-Rom
FTP

A Welsh version of the product is not required because address keys refer to the Welsh address keys on the
Welsh File, which is already supplied on the Mainfile Products.

Section 4 - Other products UDPRN Page 135 of 237

Record definitions

UDPRN Full
RECORD NAME : Header Record
RECORD LENGTH : 35

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 (a)
Postcode 2 Alphanumeric 7 1
Address Key 2 Numeric 8 1 (b)
File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (c)
Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1 (d)
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 6 1

NOTES

(a) – Record Identifier = Low Values or Spaces

(b) – Address Key = zeroes
(c) – File Identifier = UDPRNFUL
(d) – Edition = Y99M99

_______________________________________________________

RECORD NAME : Data Record

RECORD LENGTH : 35

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS

Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 7 1
Address Key 1 Numeric 8 1
UDPRN Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Organisation Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Delivery Point Suffix 1 Alphanumeric 2 1
SU Organisation Indicator 1 Alphanumeric 1 1

Section 4 - Other products UDPRN Page 136 of 237

UDPRN Full
RECORD NAME : Trailer Record
RECORD LENGTH : 35

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1
Postcode 2 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
Address Key 2 Numeric 8 1 (b)
Record count 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (c)
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 6 1

NOTES

(a) – Postcode = High Values or Spaces

(b) – Address Key = 99999999
(c) – Record Count contains the number of records on file including header and trailer

Please note that these products will be sorted by Postcode

Section 4 - Other products UDPRN Page 137 of 237

UDPRN Expanded
RECORD NAME : Header Record
RECORD LENGTH : 518

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 (a)
Postcode 2 Alphanumeric 7 1
Address Key 2 Numeric 8 1 (b)
File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (c)
Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1 (d)
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 489 1

NOTES

(a) – Record Identifier = Low Values or Spaces

(b) – Address Key = zeroes
(c) – File Identifier = UDPRNEXP
(d) – Edition = Y99M99

Section 4 - Other products UDPRN Page 138 of 237

UDPRN Expanded
RECORD NAME : Data Record
RECORD LENGTH : 518

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS

Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 7 1
Address Key 1 Numeric 8 1
UDPRN Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Post Town 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Double Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Thoroughfare 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 20 1
Dependent Thoroughfare 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Dependent Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 20 1
Building Number 1 Numeric 4 1
Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 50 1
Sub Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Organisation Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Department Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
PO Box 1 Alphanumeric 14 1
Number of Households 1 Numeric 4 1
Organisation Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
SU Organisation Indicator 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Concatenation Indicator 1 Alphanumeric 1 1

Section 4 - Other products UDPRN Page 139 of 237

UDPRN Expanded
RECORD NAME : Trailer Record
RECORD LENGTH : 518

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1
Postcode 2 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
Address Key 2 Numeric 8 1 (b)
Record count 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (c)
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 495 1

NOTES

(a) – Postcode = High Values or Spaces

(b) – Address Key = 99999999
(c) – Record Count contains the number of records on file including header and trailer

Please note that these products will be sorted by Postcode

Section 4 - Other products UDPRN Page 140 of 237

UDPRN Changes
RECORD NAME : Header Record
RECORD LENGTH : 50

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 (a)
Postcode 2 Alphanumeric 7 1
Address Key 2 Numeric 8 1 (b)
File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (c)
Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1 (d)
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 21 1

NOTES

(a) – Record Identifier = Low Values or Spaces

(b) – Address Key = zeroes
(c) – File Identifier = UDPRNCHG
(d) – Edition = Y99M99

_______________________________________________

RECORD NAME : Data Record

RECORD LENGTH : 50

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS

Date 1 Numeric 8 1
Time 1 Numeric 6 1
Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 7 1
Address Key 1 Numeric 8 1
UDPRN Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Organisation Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Delivery Point Suffix 1 Alphanumeric 2 1
SU Organisation Indicator 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Amendment Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1

Section 4 - Other products UDPRN Page 141 of 237

UDPRN Changes
RECORD NAME : Trailer Record
RECORD LENGTH : 50

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1
Postcode 2 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
Address Key 2 Numeric 8 1 (b)
Record count 1 Numeric 8 1 (c)
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 27 1

NOTES

(a) – Postcode = High Values or Spaces

(b) – Address Key = 99999999
(c) – Record Count contains the number of records on file including header and trailer

Please note that these products will be sorted by Postcode

Section 4 - Other products UDPRN Page 142 of 237

UDPRN Single Changes
RECORD NAME : Header Record
RECORD LENGTH : 50

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 (a)
Postcode 2 Alphanumeric 7 1
Address Key 2 Numeric 8 1 (b)
File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (c)
Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1 (d)
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 21 1

NOTES

(a) – Record Identifier = Low Values or Spaces

(b) – Address Key = zeroes
(c) – File Identifier = UDPRNSCG
(d) – Edition = Y99M99

____________________________________________

RECORD NAME : Data Record

RECORD LENGTH : 50

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS

Date 1 Numeric 8 1
Time 1 Numeric 6 1
Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 7 1
Address Key 1 Numeric 8 1
UDPRN Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Organisation Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Delivery Point Suffix 1 Alphanumeric 2 1
SU Organisation Indicator 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Amendment Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1

Section 4 - Other products UDPRN Page 143 of 237

UDPRN Single Changes
RECORD NAME : Trailer Record
RECORD LENGTH : 50

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1
Postcode 2 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
Address Key 2 Numeric 8 1 (b)
Record count 1 Numeric 8 1 (c)
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 27 1

NOTES

(a) – Postcode = High Values or Spaces

(b) – Address Key = 99999999
(c) – Record Count contains the number of records on file including header and trailer

Please note that these products will be sorted by Postcode

Related products/links

Related products

 Mainfile™
 Ranges File™
 Compressed Standard File™

Section 4 - Other products UDPRN Page 144 of 237

BFPO (British Forces Post Office) Postcode
Data
In simple terms

Over 100,000 British Forces service personnel and their dependents serve overseas. In many cases, those stationed
abroad don’t have a permanent address in the UK. This creates difficulties for service personnel accessing services
online and with shopping online.

Royal Mail and the BFPO have developed a practical solution to this problem. By creating an address and postcode
structure that is consistent with PAF®, service personnel will no longer experience these difficulties and will enjoy a
number of benefits.

Product description

BFPO Postcode Data has been structured so that it can be used in conjunction with other PAF® based solutions. The
address and postcode structure is entirely consistent with PAF®. We have created a pseudo BF ‘postcode’ which looks
like any other postcode but doesn’t correspond with a geographic location as obviously other postcodes do.

Data is updated monthly and the latest set will be included alongside all updates regardless of frequency. This includes
both PAF® Changes and full refresh products. Data will be available to Daily Changes customers on a monthly basis.
This will appear in the daily folder along with the regular daily update.

BFPO Postcode Data is not part of the core Royal Mail Postcode Address File (PAF®). It is an option available at the
point of data extraction to all recipients of raw PAF®.

How is the data formatted when extracted with the PAF® files?

The data is held in the same fields as normal PAF® addresses. The BFPO Postcode Data will be included as the point of
extract with any PAF® product – unless the option to exclude it is selected. An example BFPO address returned from a
postcode lookup would be:

Thoroughfare / Street: BFPO13

Post Town: BFPO
Postcode: BF1 0AA

The following additional information needs to be captured:

Number, Rank, Name

Sub Unit
Unit

Section 4 – Other products BFPO Postcode Data Page 145 of 237

A fully captured correct BFPO address in the preferred BFPO format should look like this

987456321 Cpl. John Brown

1stBn, The Kings Fusiliers
BFPO
BF1 0AA
BFPO 13

The data from BFPO 13 onwards can be extracted with the PAF® files. The data above BFPO 13 needs to be captured
from the end-user in the same way as non-address elements for other addresses. Those items are as follows:

Number e.g. 98745632

Rank e.g. Cpl
Name e.g. John Brown
Sub Unit e.g. 1stBn
Unit e.g. The Kings Fusiliers

Non-address data is best stored in non-address fields. If there is no other option, the additional data required by BFPO
can be placed into any fields above Street. This is the same as accommodating non-address elements in other
situations where field availability is limited.

For example a BFPO address could be inserted as follows into the following fields:

Name: 987456321 Cpl. John Brown

Property: 1stBn, The Kings Fusiliers
Street: BFPO 13
Locality:
Town: BFPO
Postcode: BF1 0AA

If an application has an Organisation, Sub Building and Building field in the same way as PAF®, those fields could be
used for the BFPO Postcode Data items as follows:

Existing Field Use For

Organisation Number, Rank, Name
SubBuilding Sub Unit
Building Unit

UDPRN & Address Keys

All BFPO addresses have a set of keys just like other PAF® records. This includes UDPRN and Address Key, Locality Key
etc. Key ranges are assigned to avoid future conflicts with PAF®. For example the UDPRN and Address Key start at
99000001. It is important to check that no conflicting arbitrary limit is in place and that these ranges do not cause
difficulty.

Address keys and UDPRN’s are provided for consistency and to make use of the BFPO Postcode Data within existing
processes as easy as possible. It is not a requirement to accommodate them.

Section 4 – Other products BFPO Postcode Data Page 146 of 237

Are there any special cases for BFPO numbers that I should be aware of?

BFPO 105 relates to Isolated Detachments. These require a Box number in addition to the BFPO number. However
the Box number should be specified as the Unit so there is no need to treat this situation any differently. For example:

12345678 Sgt Smith

NTMA, Box 123
BFPO 105
BFPO
BF1 0AX

The Unit here is “Box 123” with the Sub Unit being “NTMA”. If creating or updating fields dynamically it might be
worthwhile considering explicitly asking for the box number when BFPO 105 is entered rather than the unit.

How should I store this data in my database?

The ideal is to accommodate Number, Rank, Name, Sub Unit and Unit elements as either additional fields in the
database or in fields designed for non-address data.

Where this is not possible the data has to be accommodated in the best way possible within the constraints of the
existing system. It is worth checking that field lengths and validation rules are able to accommodate the data correctly.

Where Street, Town and Postcode fields are allocated it makes sense to use them consistently for both BFPO and other
postal addresses. The Property, Organisation and/or Name fields can be used to appropriately store the Unit, Sub Unit,
Number, Rank and Name.

If addresses are stored in the same format as PAF®, then the Sub Unit would be equivalent to Sub Building, Unit to
Building and Number, Rank and Name to Organisation. For consistency and ease of cleaning we would recommend
storing these in the same fields as might be available for normal addresses, for example:

BFPO Field Same as Normal Address Field

Number (Field for BFPO use only)
Rank Title
Name Name or constituent first name, surname fields
Sub Unit Sub Building or Flat
Unit Building or House Name
BFPO Number Street
BFPO Town Town
BFPO Postcode Postcode

Rather than the Number and Rank fields being additional fields, validation on the Name field could be relaxed to allow
this data to be accommodated.

Section 4 – Other products BFPO Postcode Data Page 147 of 237

 ™
Not Yet Built
In simple terms
The Not Yet Built™ file (NYB) is a raw data product, created to identify properties that are at the development
stage.

 Accurate and up-to-date information on the address data of tomorrow

 Supplied as a completely new data set each month
 Valuable planning tool for many industries e.g. utility companies, credit referencing agencies,
retail outlets, education authorities and estate agents
 Great for advanced leaflet drop planning e.g. carpet retailers, conservatory supplies, Satellite
TV Companies, etc.
 UK coverage (excluding Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man).

The Not Yet Built™ files are supplied as a set, these being:

Table 60: Not Yet Built file sizes

Sample record size Sample file size
Product file names
(April 09 data) (April 09 data)
Not Yet Built™ 342,003 6.53Mb
Not Yet Built™ Expanded 342,003 7.13Mb
Not Yet Built™ Ranges 149,724 2.13Mb

Product description

Information relating to new developments is received daily from a number of sources including Local Authorities,
Building developers and Royal Mail staff. Our Address Development Centre in Sunderland reviews this
information and allocates a Postcode accordingly. The address is then added to the Not Yet Built database - a
separate file of Not Yet Built Delivery Points.

Once a property is built and capable of receiving mail, it appears on the Just Built™ database and on PAF.

Selectability/media
Available via:

CD-Rom
FTP

Section4 – Other products Not Yet Built Page 148 of 237

File details
There are three versions to choose from:

 NYB Full – a relational style database to be used in conjunction with PAF Mainfile.
 NYB Expanded – a text file product that gives one record for each Delivery Point listed, e.g. ‘1-20 High Street’
will be shown as 20 separate records. This can be used as a stand-alone product.
 NYB Ranges – a text file product that gives one record for each range of Delivery Points e.g. ‘1-20 High Street’,
‘1-5 Acacia Avenue’ or ‘2-6 Acacia Avenue’.

Section4 – Other products Not Yet Built Page 149 of 237

Record definitions

Not Yet Built™ Full

RECORD NAME : Header Record

RECORD LENGTH : 226

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1
Postcode 2 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
Address Key 2 Numeric 8 1 (b)

File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (c)

Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1 (d)
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 197 1

NOTES

(a) – Postcode = High Values or spaces

(b) – Address Key = zeroes
(c) – File Identifier = NYBUILTK
(d) – Edition = Y99M99

Section4 – Other products Not Yet Built Page 150 of 237

Not Yet Built™ Full

RECORD NAME : Data Record

RECORD LENGTH : 226

DATA
FIELD NAME LEVEL SIZE OCCURS
TYPE
Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 7 1
Address Key 1 Numeric 8 1
UDPRN Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Locality Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Thoroughfare Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Thoroughfare Descriptor Key 1 Numeric 4 1
Dependent Thoroughfare Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Dependent Thoroughfare Descriptor Key 1 Numeric 4 1
Building Number 1 Numeric 4 1
Building Name Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Sub Building Name Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Organisation Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Department Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
PO Box 1 Alphanumeric 14 1
Number of Households 1 Numeric 4 1
Organisation Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
SU Organisation Indicator 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Concatenation Indicator 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Delivery Point Suffix 1 Alphanumeric 2 1

Section4 – Other products Not Yet Built Page 151 of 237

Not Yet Built™ Full

RECORD NAME : Trailer Record

RECORD LENGTH : 776

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1
Postcode 2 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
Address Key 2 Numeric 8 1 (b)

Record Count 1 Numeric 8 1 (c)

Filler 1 Alphanumeric 753 1

NOTES

(a) – Postcode = High Values or spaces

(b) – Address Key = 99999999
(c) – Record Count contains the number of records on file including header and trailer

Section4 – Other products Not Yet Built Page 152 of 237

Not Yet Built™ Expanded

RECORD NAME : Header Record

RECORD LENGTH : 518

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1
Postcode 2 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
Address Key 2 Numeric 8 1 (b)

File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (c)

Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1 (d)
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 489 1

NOTES

(a) – Postcode = High Values or spaces

(b) – Address Key = zeroes
(c) – File Identifier = NYBUILTE
(d) – Edition = Y99M99

Section4 – Other products Not Yet Built Page 153 of 237

Not Yet Built™ Expanded

RECORD NAME : Data Record

RECORD LENGTH : 518

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS

Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 7 1
Address Key 1 Numeric 8 1
UDPRN Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Post Town 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Double Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Thoroughfare 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 20 1
Dependent Thoroughfare 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Dependent Thoroughfare Descrip 1 Alphanumeric 20 1
Building Number 1 Numeric 4 1
Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 50 1
Sub Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Organisation Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Department Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
PO Box 1 Alphanumeric 14 1
Number of Households 1 Numeric 4 1
Organisation Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
SU Organisation Indicator 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Concatenation Indicator 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Delivery Point Suffix 1 Alphanumeric 2 1

Section4 – Other products Not Yet Built Page 154 of 237

Not Yet Built™ Expanded

RECORD NAME : Trailer Record

RECORD LENGTH : 518

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1
Postcode 2 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
Address Key 2 Numeric 8 1 (b)

Record Count 1 Numeric 8 1 (c)

Filler 1 Alphanumeric 495 1

NOTES

(a) – Postcode = High Values or spaces

(b) – Address Key = 99999999
(c) – Record Count contains the number of records on file including header and trailer

Section4 – Other products Not Yet Built Page 155 of 237

Not Yet Built™ Ranges

RECORD NAME : Header Record

RECORD LENGTH : 487

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1
Postcode 2 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
Address Key 2 Numeric 8 1 (b)

File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (c)

Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1 (d)

Filler 1 Alphanumeric 458 1

NOTES

(a) – Postcode = High Values or spaces

(b) – Address Key = zeroes
(c) – File Identifier = NYBRANGE
(d) – Edition = Y99M99

Section4 – Other products Not Yet Built Page 156 of 237

Not Yet Built™ Ranges

RECORD NAME : Data Record

RECORD LENGTH : 518

Record type 1 - Number Range

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS

Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 7 1
Post Town 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Double Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Thoroughfare 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 20 1
Dependent Thoroughfare 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Dependent Thoroughfare Descrip 1 Alphanumeric 20 1
Record Type 1 Numeric 1 1
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Number Ranges 1 18
Start of Range 2 Numeric 4 1
End of Range 2 Numeric 4 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 74 1

Section4 – Other products Not Yet Built Page 157 of 237

Not Yet Built™ Ranges – Data Record cont.
Record type 2 – Named Delivery Points

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS

Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 7 1
Post Town 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Double Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Thoroughfare 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 20 1
Dependent Thoroughfare 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Dependent Thoroughfare Descrip 1 Alphanumeric 20 1
Record Type 1 Numeric 1 1
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Building Number 1 Numeric 4 1
Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 50 1
Sub Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 134 1

Section4 – Other products Not Yet Built Page 158 of 237

Not Yet Built™ Ranges – Data Record cont.
Record type 3 – Small / Large user organisations

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS

Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 7 1
Post Town 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Double Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Thoroughfare 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 20 1
Dependent Thoroughfare 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Dependent Thoroughfare Descrip 1 Alphanumeric 20 1
Record Type 1 Numeric 1 1
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Building Number 1 Numeric 4 1
Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 50 1
Sub Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Organisation Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Department Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
PO Box Number 1 Alphanumeric 14 1

Section4 – Other products Not Yet Built Page 159 of 237

Not Yet Built™ Ranges

RECORD NAME : Trailer Record

RECORD LENGTH : 487

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1
Postcode 2 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
Address Key 2 Numeric 8 1 (b)

Record Count 1 Numeric 8 1 (c)

Filler 1 Alphanumeric 464 1

NOTES

(a) – Postcode = High Values or spaces

(b) – Address Key = 99999999
(c) – Record Count contains the number of records on file including header and trailer

Related products/links

Related products

Multiple Residence™
Just Built™
Mainfile™
Ranges File™
Compressed Standard File™

Pricing/licensing

For pricing, licensing & ordering details for this product, please visit www.poweredbypaf.com

Section4 – Other products Not Yet Built Page 156 of 237

Just Built™
In simple terms
Just Built™ is a raw data product that provides the addresses and Postcodes of all newly built properties capable
of receiving mail.

 Target new addresses straightaway

 Ideal if you’re looking to acquire new customers
 New edition available every month of all properties that have just become active
 Create leaflet drops e.g. carpet retailers, conservatory supplies, satellite TV companies, etc.
 Sample data file available

The Just Built Files are supplied as a set:

Table 61: Just Built file sizes

Sample record size Sample file size
Product file names
(April 09 data) (April 09 data)
Just Built 21,542 265Kb
Just Built Expanded 21,542 606Kb
Just Built Ranges 12,308 270Kb

Product description

Just Built™ is data of newly built properties. It is generally bought as a mailing list, for use in a single mailing,
although additional payments can be made to re-use the same data. ‘Newly built’ means a property has a
letterbox and can receive mail, but the address is not necessarily occupied.

Records are collected quarterly from our postmen and women, so the number of records varies from month to
month, depending on the number of properties reported built. Records are available from July 2010.

Chronologically, Not Yet Built™ is created before the Just Built™ data. The data is then added onto PAF® file.

Selectability/media
Available via:

CD-Rom
FTP

Section4 - Other products Just Built Page 161 of 237

File details
 Available as fixed field ASCII data
 121 Postcode areas available – does not include Guernesy (GY), Jersey (JE) or Isle of Man (IM)
 Option to select individual Postcode areas
 The various file types available are:
o Full file - to be used in conjunction with PAF® Mainfile product because it is a relational style
database
o Expanded file – a text file, with one record entry for each ‘just built’ address. Can be used
alone or in conjunction with Compressed Standard product.
o Ranges file - if a consecutive range of building numbers are present then they will appear as
one record. Can be used alone, or in conjunction with Ranges. For Just Built Ranges, the ‘Date
Made Live’ is set to zero for the ranges, and is populated for un-ranged Delivery Points. This is
because there is only one date to apply to the whole range.
 The header is the same layout as Mainfile™
 Record Count on the trailer includes the header and the trailer (count of records in the body plus 2)
 Concatenation Indicator is ‘Y’ (concatenated) or space (not concatenated)

Section4 - Other products Just Built Page 162 of 237

Record definitions

Just Built™
RECORD NAME : Data Record
RECORD LENGTH : 43

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1
Postcode 2 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
Address Key 2 Numeric 8 1 (b)

File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (c)

Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1 (d)
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 14 1

NOTES

(a) – Postcode = Spaces

(b) – Address Key = zeroes
(c) – File Identifier = JUSBUILT
(d) – Edition = Y99M99

RECORD NAME : Data Record

RECORD LENGTH : 43

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 7 1
UDPRN Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Address Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Organisation Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Delivery Point Suffix (DPS) 1 Alphanumeric 2 1
SU Organisation Indicator 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Date Made Live on PAF 1 Numeric 8 1 (a)

NOTES

(a) – Date made live on PAF = YYYYMMDD

Section4 - Other products Just Built Page 163 of 237

Just Built™
RECORD NAME : Trailer Record
RECORD LENGTH : 43

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1
Postcode 2 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
Address Key 2 Numeric 8 1 (b)

Record Count 1 Numeric 8 1 (c)

Filler 1 Alphanumeric 20 1

NOTES

(a) – Postcode = Spaces

(b) – Address Key = 99999999
(c) – Record Count contains the number of records on file including header and trailer

Section4 - Other products Just Built Page 164 of 237

Just Built™ Expanded
RECORD NAME : Header Record
RECORD LENGTH : 526

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1
Postcode 2 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
Address Key 2 Numeric 8 1 (b)
File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (c)
Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1 (d)
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 497 1

NOTES

(a) – Postcode = Spaces

(b) – Address Key = zeroes
(c) – File Identifier = JBUILTEX
(d) – Edition = Y99M99

Section4 - Other products Just Built Page 165 of 237

Just Built™ Expanded
RECORD NAME : Data Record
RECORD LENGTH : 526

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 7 1 (c)
Address Key 1 Numeric 8 1 (d)

UDPRN Key 1 Numeric 8 1

Post Town 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Double Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Thoroughfare 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 20 1
Dependent Thoroughfare 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Dependent Thoroughfare 20
1 Alphanumeric 1
Descriptor
Building Number 1 Numeric 4 1
Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 50 1
Sub Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Organisation Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Department Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
PO Box 1 Alphanumeric 14 1
Number of Households 1 Numeric 4 1
Organisation Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
SU Organisation Indicator 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Concatenation Indicator 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Delivery Point Suffix 1 Alphanumeric 2 1
Date Made Live 1 Numeric 8 1

Section4 - Other products Just Built Page 166 of 237

Just Built™ Expanded
RECORD NAME : Trailer Record
RECORD LENGTH : 526

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1
Postcode 2 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
Address Key 2 Numeric 8 1 (b)

Record Count 1 Numeric 8 1 (c)

Filler 1 Alphanumeric 503 1

NOTES

(a) – Postcode = Spaces

(b) – Address Key = 99999999
(c) – Record Count contains the number of records on file including header and trailer

Section4 - Other products Just Built Page 167 of 237

Just Built™ Ranges
RECORD NAME : Header Record
RECORD LENGTH : 495

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1
Postcode 2 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
Address Key 2 Numeric 8 1 (b)

File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (c)

Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1 (d)
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 466 1

NOTES

(a) – Postcode = Spaces

(b) – Address Key = zeroes
(c) – File Identifier = JBRANGES
(d) – Edition = Y99M99

Section4 - Other products Just Built Page 168 of 237

Just Built™ Ranges
RECORD NAME : Data Record
RECORD LENGTH : 495

This will follow the same rules as the Ranges product, where the record type = 1 is Number Ranges, 2 = named
properties (building name present) and 3 = LU organisation. Note that there are no keys, DPS, MOCC etc. as
these are ranged.

Record type 1 - Number range

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 7 1 (c)

Post Town 1 Alphanumeric 30 1 (d)

Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Double Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Thoroughfare 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 20 1
Dependent Thoroughfare 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Dependent Thoroughfare
1 Numeric 20 1
Descriptor
Record Type 1 Numeric 1 1
Postcode type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Number Ranges 1 18
Start of range 2 Numeric 4 1
End of Range 2 Numeric 4 1
Date Made Live (zero) 1 Numeric 8 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 74 1

Section4 - Other products Just Built Page 169 of 237

Just Built™ Ranges
Record type 2 – Named Delivery Points

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)

Post Town 1 Alphanumeric 30 1 (b)

Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Double Dependent 35
1 Alphanumeric 1
Locality
Thoroughfare 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 20 1
Dependent Thoroughfare 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Dependent Thoroughfare 20
1 Alphanumeric 1
Descriptor
Record Type 1 Numeric 1 1
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Building Number 1 Numeric 4 1
Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 50 1
Sub Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Date Made Live 1 Numeric 8 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 134 1

Section4 - Other products Just Built Page 170 of 237

Just Built™ Ranges
Record type 3 – Small/Large User organisations

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS

Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 7 1
Post Town 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Double Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Thoroughfare 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 20 1
Dependent Thoroughfare 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Dependent Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 20 1
Record Type 1 Numeric 1 1
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Building Number 1 Numeric 4 1
Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 50 1
Sub Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Organisation Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Department Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1

Section4 - Other products Just Built Page 171 of 237

Just Built Ranges
RECORD NAME : Trailer Record
RECORD LENGTH : 495

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1
Postcode
2 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
Address Key
2 Numeric 8 1 (b)
Record Count 1 Numeric 8 1 (c)
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 472 1

NOTES

(a) – Postcode = Spaces

(b) – Address Key = 99999999
(c) – Record Count contains the number of records on file including header and trailer

Related products/links

Related products

Not Yet Built™

Multiple Residence™
Mainfile™
Ranges File™
Compressed Standard File™

Pricing/licensing

For pricing, licensing & ordering details for this product, please visit www.poweredbypaf.com

Section4 - Other products Just Built Page 168 of 237

Multiple Residence™ (MR)
In simple terms

The Multiple Residence product (also known as MR) is a raw data product developed to identify addresses that
are delivered to a shared Delivery Point. This means premises with one front door (Delivery Point), behind which
the building has been sub-divided into flats, units, etc. Multiple Residence data provides a detailed address
structure for these properties.

 ‘Households behind the doors’ - detailed address structure for Multiple Residence properties
 Data is updated every month
 Covers 121 Postcode areas (not Jersey, Guernsey nor Isle of Man)
 Full product only, no Postcode selections available
 Use as a standalone dataset or integrate with PAF®.

The Multiple Residence Files are supplied as a set

Table 62: Multiple Residence file sizes

Sample record size Sample file size
Product file names
(April 09 data) (April 09 data)
Multiple Residence Full 479263 16.8Mb
Multiple Residence Single Changes 21187 806Kb

Product description

The Multiple Residence data identifies those addresses delivered to a shared Delivery Point (DP). This shared
Delivery Point is known as the ‘owning DP’. We are only able to capture Multiple Residence data where there is
an address structure (e.g. ‘Flat A’ and ‘Flat B’, ‘Upper Flat’ and ‘Lower Flat’, or ‘Unit 1’ and ‘Unit 2’ etc.). We also
hold household counts for such premises.

Multiple Residence data does not include:

 bedsits
 marinas
 caravan sites
 hostels
 hotels
 prisons.

Section 4 - Other products Multiple Residence Page 173 of 237

Uses for MR data
Multiple Residence data is useful to identify the number of households at a given address or addresses, and may
be of interest to utilities and cable communications companies wishing to establish the numbers of potential
customers. Equally, the data can be used for verifying multiple claimants in a property or for targeting services
such as insurance or other related financial services.

This data can help you decide whether or not to use a secure mail service to deliver goods to a property
consisting of many households or flats.

Selectability/media
Available via:

CD-Rom
FTP

Multiple Residence data is a raw data product. Rather than having separate Full and expanded products,
Multiple Residence contains both Full and expanded data. This means you can either use the data as a stand-
alone product using the expanded fields or via PAF® Mainfile using the Full data.

We produce a new data set each month which includes any newly identified multiple occupied properties or
changes to the data. The data is supplied on CD-Rom and is available for the whole of the UK (excluding Jersey,
Guernsey and the Isle of Man).

You can either order a ‘Changes’ Multiple Residence product, showing only those changes which occurred since
the data was last produced, or a complete refresh of data which contains all Multiple Residence data, including
both changed and unchanged addresses.

Multiple Residences (MRs) are, by their very nature, not Delivery Points. Therefore, to identify each uniquely, we
introduced a new numeric code – the Unique Multiple Residence Reference Number (UMRRN). Every Multiple
Residence record has been allocated a UMRRN. This can be linked to the Unique Delivery Point Reference
Number (UDPRN). This in turn links in with PAF records as all 29 million addresses have a UDPRN.

The first Unique Multiple Residence Reference Number added to PAF will be assigned the next sequential Unique
Delivery Point Reference Number.

The UMRRN will work exactly like the UDPRN in that it will only change in limited circumstances as detailed in
the following pages.

Below are some frequently asked questions about UMRRNs.

Section 4 - Other products Multiple Residence Page 174 of 237

FAQs on Unique Multiple Residence Reference Numbers (UMRRNs)

1. When will a deleted Delivery Point and its associated Multiple Residences be
resurrected?
If a deletion is found to be an error and the DP is added back on to PAF, the DP will retain its MRs and the
UMRRNs will remain the same. The DP/MR address details may be exactly the same or may vary from the
original DP/MR that was deleted. Here are three examples:

 ‘5 High Street’ has three MRs – ‘Flat 1’, ‘Flat 2’ and ‘Flat 3’. The DP is deleted from PAF in error and
we now have information that it has changed to ‘Walker House, High Street’. We would resurrect the
‘5 High Street’ DP and then amend it to read ‘Walker House, High Street’. The three MRs would then
be resurrected, retaining their original UMRRNs.

 ‘Flat A’ is a Multiple Residence at ’25 Church Lane’. The MR is amended to ‘Flat 1’, but this does not
affect the UMRRN.

 ‘Flat 15’ is a Multiple Residence at ‘121 Ling Road’. The MR is deleted in error and we now have
information that it has changed to ‘Flat O’. ‘Flat 15’ would be resurrected as an MR and amended to
‘Flat O’.

Sometimes residential premises are refurbished under an estate action scheme, where properties are
rebuilt/redecorated, etc. If these properties have been deleted from PAF® and there is a subsequent need to re-
add them once the scheme has been completed and the DP details match exactly (house number and street
name), then we will resurrect the original DP and any MR addresses.

If there’s any change from the original naming and numbering scheme (e.g. a change of road name), then each
property would be added as a new Delivery Point, and any MRs would be given new UMRRNs.

2. When will the owning DP change but the MR retains the UMRRN?
A number of circumstances arise where the MR moves from its original DP to another, e.g. due to flat
conversions, demolition or rebuilding changes. Here’s an example:

If a MR is given a letterbox and receives a daily mail delivery, effectively becoming a DP, the MR will be converted
to a DP and the UMRRN will become the DP’s UDPRN.

3. When will a MR change and not retain the UMRRN?

There will be occasions when we don’t want the MR to be moved or associated with new, ‘converted’ or
‘replacement’ Delivery Points.

In these circumstances, where the ‘original’ DP is demolished, any ‘uniqueness’ associated with it and its UMRRN
will have passed. Anything subsequently built on all or part of the ‘original’ site, whether business or residential,
will have no relationship with the ‘original’ DP or any of its potential functions. Here’s an example:

A house with four MRs is demolished, the original DP is deleted and two new houses with three MRs
each are built in its place. The two new houses that now stand on all, or part of, the site will be added
to PAF® as ‘new’ DPs. Neither of the new DPs will have any association with the former property on
the same site, and new UDPRNs and UMRRNs will be allocated.

Section 4 - Other products Multiple Residence Page 175 of 237

Record definitions

Multiple Residence™ Full

RECORD NAME : Header Record
RECORD LENGTH : 782

NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1
Postcode 2 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
Address Key 2 Numeric 8 1 (b)

File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (c)

Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1 (d)
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 753 1

NOTES

(a) – Postcode = Low Values or spaces

(b) – Address Key = zeroes
(c) – File Identifier = MURESFUL
(d) – Edition = Y99M99

Section 4 - Other products Multiple Residence Page 176 of 237

Multiple Residence™ Full – data record

RECORD NAME : Data Record

RECORD LENGTH : 782

 This table contains both the keys and the text versions.
 Where there is a Delivery Point (DP) on PAF that has a multi-occupancy greater than one but no Multi
Residence (MR) details, there will be a record on the product for the owning DP but without the MR.

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 7 1
Multi-occupancy count of owning DP 1 Numeric 4 1
Address Key (of the owning DP) 1 Numeric 8 1
Organisation key (of the owning DP) 1 Numeric 8 1 (a)

Postcode type (of the owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 1 1

Delivery Point Suffix (of the owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 2 1
UDPRN Key (of the owning DP) 1 Numeric 8 1 (b)

UMRRN (of MR) 1 Numeric 8 1 (c)

Locality Key 1 Numeric 6 1 (d)

Post Town 1 Alphanumeric 30 1

Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Double Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Thoroughfare key 1 Numeric 8 1
Thoroughfare 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Thoroughfare Descriptor key 1 Numeric 4 1
Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 20 1
Dependent Thoroughfare key 1 Numeric 8 1
Dependent Thoroughfare 1 Alphanumeric 60 1

… Table continued overleaf

NOTES
(a) – The Organisation Key can be read using the Mainfile to produce the Organisation and Department Name of
the owning DP. The Organisation Name and Department for the MR will exist as text only.
(b) – UDPRN = Unique Delivery Point Reference Number
(c) – UMRRN = Unique Multiple Residence Reference Number
(d) – The Locality Key can be read using the Mainfile to produce the Post Town, Dependent Locality and Double
Dependent Locality.

Section 4 - Other products Multiple Residence Page 177 of 237

Multiple Residence™ Full – data record cont.

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Dependent Thoroughfare Descriptor key 1 Numeric 4 1
Dependent Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 20 1
Building Number (of the owning DP) 1 Numeric 4 1
Building Name key (of the owning DP) 1 Numeric 8 1
Building Name (of the owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 50 1
Sub Building Name key (of the owning DP) 1 Numeric 9 1
Sub Building Name (of the owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Organisation name (of the owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Department name (of the owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Small User Organisation Indicator (of the 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
owning DP)
Concatenation Indicator (of the owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (e)

Building Number (of the MR) 1 Numeric 4 1

Building Name key (of the MR) 1 Numeric 8 1
Building Name (of the MR) 1 Alphanumeric 50 1
Sub Building Name key (of the MR) 1 Numeric 9 1
Sub Building Name (of the MR) 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Organisation name (of the MR) 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Department name (of the MR) 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
SU Organisation Indicator (of the MR) 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Concatenation Indicator (of the MR) 1 Alphanumeric 1 1

NOTES

(e) – Concatenation indicator is either 'Y' or space. When equal to 'Y' this indicates that Building Number and
Sub Building Name should appear concatenated on the same address line

Section 4 - Other products Multiple Residence Page 178 of 237

Multiple Residence™ Full
RECORD NAME : Trailer Record
RECORD LENGTH : 776

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1
Postcode 2 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
Address Key 2 Numeric 8 1 (b)

Record Count 1 Numeric 8 1 (c)

Filler 1 Alphanumeric 753 1

NOTES

(a) – Postcode = High Values or spaces

(b) – Address Key = 99999999
(c) – Record Count contains the number of records on file including header and trailer

Section 4 - Other products Multiple Residence Page 179 of 237

Multiple Residence™ Changes
RECORD NAME : Header Record
RECORD LENGTH : 797

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1
Postcode 2 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
Address Key 2 Numeric 8 1 (b)

File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (c)

Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1 (d)

Filler 1 Alphanumeric 768 1

NOTES

(a) – Postcode = Low Values or spaces

(b) – Address Key = zeroes
(c) – File Identifier = MURESCHG
(d) – Edition = Y99M99

Section 4 - Other products Multiple Residence Page 180 of 237

Multiple Residence™ Changes
RECORD NAME : Data Record
RECORD LENGTH : 797

DATA
FIELD NAME LEVEL SIZE OCCURS NOTES
TYPE
Date 1 Numeric 8 1
Time 1 Numeric 6 1
Amendment Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 7 1
Multi-occupancy count of the owning 1 Numeric 4 1
DP
Address Key (of the owning DP) 1 Numeric 8 1
Organisation key (of the owning DP) 1 Numeric 8 1
Postcode type (of the owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Delivery Point Suffix (of the owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 2 1
UDPRN Key (of the owning DP) 1 Numeric 8 1 (a)

UMRRN (of the MR) 1 Numeric 8 1 (b)

Locality Key 1 Numeric 6 1

Post Town 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Double Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Thoroughfare key 1 Numeric 8 1
Thoroughfare 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Thoroughfare Descriptor key 1 Numeric 4 1
Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 20 1
Dependent Thoroughfare key 1 Numeric 8 1
Dependent Thoroughfare 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Dependent Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Numeric 4 1
key
Dependent Thoroughfare Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 20 1

…Table continues overleaf

NOTES
(a) – UDPRN = Unique Delivery Point Reference Number
(b) - UMRRN = Unique Multiple Residence Reference Number

Section 4 - Other products Multiple Residence Page 181 of 237

Multiple Residence™ Changes – data record cont.

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS

Building Number (of the owning DP) 1 Numeric 4 1
Building Name key (of the owning DP) 1 Numeric 8 1
Building Name (of the owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 50 1
Sub Building Name key (of the owning DP) 1 Numeric 9 1
Sub Building Name (of the owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Organisation name (of the owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Department name (of the owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Small User Organisation Indicator (of the 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
owning DP)
Concatenation Indicator (of the owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Building Number (of the MR) 1 Numeric 4 1
Building Name key (of the MR) 1 Numeric 8 1
Building Name (of the MR) 1 Alphanumeric 50 1
Sub Building Name key (of the MR) 1 Numeric 9 1
Sub Building Name (of the MR) 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Organisation name (of the MR) 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Department name (of the MR) 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Small User Organisation Indicator (of the MR) 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Concatenation Indicator (of the MR) 1 Alphanumeric 1 1

General

The amendment type will be:

I = Insert
D = Delete
B = Change Before
C = Change After

The Changes will be single changes only. Changes will include adding, amending, deleting MR, changes to owning
DP on MR and changes to DPs with a multi-occupancy greater than one that do not have MR details.

Section 4 - Other products Multiple Residence Page 182 of 237

Multiple Residence™ Changes
RECORD NAME : Trailer Record
RECORD LENGTH : 797

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1
Postcode 2 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
Address Key 2 Numeric 8 1 (b)

Record Count 1 Numeric 8 1 (c)

Filler 1 Alphanumeric 774 1

NOTES

(a) – Postcode = High Values or spaces

(b) – Address Key = 99999999
(c) – Record Count contains the number of records on file including header and trailer

Related products/links

Related products

Not Yet Built™

Just Built™
Mainfile™
Ranges File™
Compressed Standard File™

Pricing/licensing
For pricing, licensing & ordering details for this product, please visit www.poweredbypaf.com

Section 4 - Other products Multiple Residence Page 179 of 237

 Postzon™
In simple terms

Postzon data contains the grid references, local authority Ward Codes and National Health Service (NHS) Area
Codes for most UK Postcodes (Isle of Man, Guernsey and Jersey addresses are not recognised by Ordnance
Survey).

 Links postal characteristics to UK geography

 Provides Ward Codes, grid references (100m) and NHS Area Codes
 Grid references supplied at 100m accuracy
 Supplied as full files only (no Changes Files)

Postzon is supplied as a single file, this being:

Table 63: Postzon file size

Sample record size Sample file size
Product file names
(April 09 data) (April 09 data)
Postzon file 1,754,959 13.3Mb

Product description

Five organisations - the Office for National Statistics (ONS), Ordnance Survey (OS), Land & Property Services
(Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland), the General Register Office for Scotland (GROS) and Royal Mail - have
developed a co-ordinated production process to provide a core set of Postcode location data. This is called the
Gridlink® core dataset. Postzon is the Royal Mail product derived from Gridlink®, which links postal
characteristics to UK geography.

Postzon file holds grid reference data for 100m.

Section 4 - Other products Postzon Page 184 of 237

Selectability/media
Available via:

CD-Rom
FTP

File details
The file is held in ascending Postcode sequence. There is one record per Postcode. All fields are fixed length.
Numeric fields are held right justified, zero filled. Non numeric fields are held left justified, space filled.

Postzon™

RECORD NAME : Header Record

RECORD LENGTH : 79

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
File Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (b)
Edition 1 Alphanumeric 6 1 (c)
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 58 1

NOTES

(a) – Record Identifier = low values (except for CD-Rom where Record Identifier = Spaces)
(b) – File Identifier = PZONE100
(c) – Edition = Date (e.g. Y00M11)

Section 4 - Other products Postzon Page 185 of 237

Postzon™ 100m

RECORD NAME : Data Record

RECORD LENGTH : 79

DATA NOTES
FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS
ORIGIN * (overleaf)

Postcode 1
Outward Code RM 2 Alphanumeric 4 1
Inward Code 2 Alphanumeric 3 1

Introduction Date RM 1 Numeric 6 1 (a)

Grid reference East OS/LPS 1 Numeric 5 1 (b)

Grid reference North OS/LPS 1 Numeric 5 1 (b)

Country Code ONS/GROS 1 Alphanumeric 9 1 (c)

Area Code 1
County ONS/GROS 2 Alphanumeric 9 1 (c)
District 2 Alphanumeric 9 1

Ward Code ONS/GROS 1 Alphanumeric 9 1 (c)

NHS Region ONS/GROS 1 Alphanumeric 9 1 (c)

NHS Code ONS/GROS 1 Alphanumeric 9 1 (c)

User Type RM 1 Numeric 1 1 (d)

Grid Status ALL 1 Numeric 1 1 (e)

* The list below is the key to the initials in ‘DATA ORIGIN’ column

Gridlink® data partners

GROS General Register for Scotland (www.gro-scotland.gov.uk)
LPS Land & Property Services, formerly Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland (www.lpsni.gov.uk)
ONS Office for National Statistics (www.statistics.gov.uk)
OS Ordnance Survey (www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk)
RM Royal Mail (www.royalmail.com)

Section 4 - Other products Postzon Page 186 of 237

Postzon Data Record - NOTES (Page 1 of 3)
(a) – Introduction date. Format = YYYYMM (date of the most recent introduction onto PAF®).

(b) – Grid references East and North

Grid references are 10-digit East and North relating the location of the Postcode to the National Grid, or to the
Irish Grid for Postcode Area ‘BT’ for a resolution of 100m.

How Postzon relates to the National Grid

For the majority of northern grid references where 6 characters would be required to hold the Northing
numeric value, a conversion of the first two numerics into a single letter takes place, to allow the Northing
to be held in a 5-character field.

The letters used are: P, U, Z, O, T, Y and are used as follows:

Table 64: How Postzon relates to the National Grid

Northing letter on If Easting value begins then Northing value begins
PAF with with
P 4 12

U 4 11

Z 4 10

O 3 12

T 3 11

Y 3 10

Grid references and Northern Ireland

The grid references for Northern Ireland (BT) Postcode area reflect the Irish Grid system.

The Irish Grid does not conform to the National Grid used for England, Scotland and Wales, both are
planar co-ordinate systems but differ in their origin. Consequently the values that are present on Postzon
overlap with the other areas of the UK. Belfast, for example, has the same co-ordinates as parts of
Cheshire and Merseyside.

To convert Irish to National the grid references must be converted to longitude and latitude, and then a
complex algorithm is applied to calculate the National grid reference. An approximate conversion of
Northern Irish grid references to the same origin as the rest of the UK may be obtained by adding 13000
to the Northing and subtracting 17000 from the Easting of the NI references. This should not be
regarded as an exact conversion.

For further information visit Land and Property Services website: www.lpsni.gov.uk

Section - Other products Postzon Page 187 of 237

Postzon Data Record - NOTES (Page 2 of 3)
(c) – Country, County, District, NHS Region and NHS Code
This data is provided to Royal Mail as part of the Gridlink® data interchange process. The make-up,
composition and accuracy of this data are the responsibility of the appropriate Gridlink® data partner(s)
listed page 178. Any queries arising from this data should therefore be routed accordingly.

(d) – User Type

User Type indicates whether the Postcode relates to a large or Small User.

0= Small User
1= Large User

(e) – Grid Status

A positional quality indicator to show the status of the grid reference and the method that was used to
allocate the reference.

Table 65: Grid status

Grid
Reference allocation
Status
0 Status not supplied by OS
1 Within the building of the matched address closest to the Postcode mean.
2 Co-ordinates allocated by GROS during Postcode boundary creation to the building nearest
the centre of the populated part of the Postcode (Scotland only)
3 Approximate to within 50m of true position
4 Postcode unit mean (direct copy from ADDRESS-POINT (GB) and COMPAS (NI) - mean of
matched addresses with the same Postcode)
5 Postcode imputed by ONS to 1 metre resolution
6 Postcode sector mean - mainly PO Boxes
9 No co-ordinates available

Section - Other products Postzon Page 188 of 237

Postzon™

RECORD NAME : Trailer Record

RECORD LENGTH : 79

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Record Identifier 1 Alphanumeric 7 1 (a)
Record Count 1 Numeric 8 1
Filler 1 Alphanumeric 64 1

NOTES

(a) – Record Identifier = High values. (except for CD-Rom where record identifier = Spaces)

Related products/links

Related datasets

Mainfile
Compressed Standard File
Ranges File

Section 4 – Other products Postzon Page 189 of 237

Section 5: Products in CSV Format
Chapter 20 CSV PAF
Chapter 21 CSV PAF Changes
Chapter 22 CSV Alias
Chapter 23 CSV Multiple Residence
Chapter 24 CSV Multiple Residence Changes
Chapter 25 CSV Just Built
Chapter 26 CSV Not Yet Built
Chapter 27 CSV PIF
Chapter 28 CSV BFPO
Chapter 29 CSV Postzon

Section 5 - Products in CSV Format Page 190 of 237

CSV PAF®
In Simple Terms

CSV PAF® is similar to the Mainfile™ raw data, but the numeric keys on Mainfile are replaced by
text and fields are of variable width delimited by commas. It makes the file easier to use than the
Mainfile, but does not use keys.

 Expanded database in CSV format

 Large size PAF raw data file
 Contains UDPRN in-place of the address key so no separate UDPRN file is required
 Use CSV PAF Changes to update (daily, monthly or quarterly)

CSV PAF is supplied as a single file, this being:

Table 66: CSV PAF file size

Product file names Sample record size (January 13 Sample file size (January 13
data) data)
CSV PAF.csv 29,144,258 1,934,405,668

Product description

CSV PAF data is supplied to customers as a combined file, containing address data and UDPRNs.
Each record is held at Delivery Point level and is held as text rather than keys. The CSV PAF file is
smaller than the PAF Mainfile (as it is of a variable rather than fixed width record size) but is less
efficiently stored as records are not keyed. The CSV PAF File is aimed at companies who find it
easier to import a standard format CSV file rather than the relational format offered by the Mainfile.

Selectability / media

Available via:

CD-Rom
FTP

File details

The file is held in ascending Postcode sequence. There will be multiple records for postcodes that
contain multiple delivery points as one record exists for each delivery point in PAF.

Miscellaneous

 All records end with CR LF

 All fields are of variable length and delimited with comma’s
 Text is ASCII, no extended or Unicode characters are used

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV PAF Page 191 of 237

  No fields are quoted and no characters are escaped
 No header record is present

Further information

For pricing, licensing & ordering please visit www.poweredbypaf.com

Record definitions

CSV PAF

RECORD NAME : Address Record

RECORD LENGTH : 490 characters maximum (not fixed)

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE MAX SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 8 1
Post Town 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Double Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Thoroughfare & Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 80 1
Dependent Thoroughfare & 1 Alphanumeric 80 1
Descriptor
Building Number 1 Numeric 4 1
Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 50 1
Sub Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
PO Box 1 Alphanumeric 6 1
Department Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Organisation Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
UDPRN 1 Numeric 8 1
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (a)
SU Organisation Indicator 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (b)
Delivery Point Suffix 1 Alphanumeric 2 1 (c)

NOTES

(a) – The Postcode type is ‘S’ for Small User and ‘L’ for Large Users
(b) – Small User Organisation Indicator. Can have the values ‘Y’ or space. A value of ‘Y’ indicates
that there is a Small User Organisation present at this address.
(c) – Delivery Point Suffix (DPS). The DPS is a unique Royal Mail 2-character code (the first
numeric & the second alphabetical – e.g. 2B), which, when added to the Postcode enables each
live Delivery Point to be uniquely identified. Once the Delivery Point is deleted from PAF the
DPS may be reused (although they aren’t reused until all remaining Delivery Points in the range
have been allocated). The DPS for a Large User is always ‘1A’ as each Large User has its own
Postcode. Only numbers 1-9 appear in the numeric position, and letters C, I, K, M, O V are not
used. The maximum DPS can be 9T. So, in total, there are 175 possible DPS allocations per
Postcode, from 1A to 9T.

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV PAF Page 192 of 237

CSV PAF® Changes
In Simple Terms

This product details the additions, deletions and amendments required to update the CSV PAF® file.
Users who require a low maintenance option should subscribe to the full CSV PAF® file.

 Changes held in expanded CSV format

 Available at individual delivery point level only
 High maintenance update option
 Available daily, monthly or quarterly
 Compatible with CSV PAF®

The CSV PAF Changes file is supplied as two files:

Table 67: CSV PAF Changes file sizes

Product file names Sample record size (January Sample file size (January 13
13 data) data)
CSV PAF Changes.csv 66,546 6,599,441
CSV PAF Changes Single.csv 59,742 5,913,127
Total CSV Alias = 12,512,568 Mb

Product description

This file contains PAF update information. It contains details of additions, deletions, amendments
and Postcode recoding of Delivery Points.

The CSV PAF Changes Single file is identical in format and layout to the CSV PAF Changes file.
However, only one pair of records will appear for each Delivery Point, representing the first and last
view of the Delivery Point over the change period.

Changes data is only available at individual Delivery Point level; there are no group level records to
give information at a Postcode level. For example, if a Postcode is deleted then the file will contain a
deletion record for each Delivery Point within the Postcode. Changes information is available for
Small and Large User addresses.

Selectability/media

Available via:

CD-Rom
FTP

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV PAF Changes Page 193 of 237

File details

Date is held in YYYYMMDD format.

Time is held in HHMMSS format.

Records are held in ascending date and time sequence.

Amendment types are:

B - before view }
C - after view } amendment

D - deletion
I - insertion

Miscellaneous

 All records end with CR LF

 All fields are of variable length and delimited with comma’s
 Text is ASCII, no extended or Unicode characters are used
 No fields are quoted and no characters are escaped
 No header record is present

Further information

For pricing, licensing & ordering please visit www.poweredbypaf.com

Record definitions

CSV PAF

RECORD NAME : Changes Record

RECORD LENGTH : 513 characters maximum (not fixed)

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE MAX SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Date 1 Numeric * 10 1
Time 1 Numeric * 8 1
Amendment Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Reason for Amendment 1 Numeric 4 1 (a)
Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 8 1
Post Town 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Dependent Locality 1 Numeric 35 1
Double Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Thoroughfare & Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 80 1
Dependent Thoroughfare & 1 Alphanumeric 80 1
Descriptor

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV PAF Changes Page 194 of 237

Building Number 1 Numeric 4 1
Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 50 1
Sub Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
PO Box Number 1 Alphanumeric 6 1
Department Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Organisation Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
UDPRN Key 1 Numeric 8 1
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (b)
SU Organisation Indicator 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (c)
Delivery Point Suffix 1 Alphanumeric 2 1 (d)

* While the date and time fields are primarily numeric fields, they are formatted in the CSV files
with forward slash and colon separators in the date format DD/MM/YYYY and time format
HH:MM:SS

NOTES

(a) –Reasons for Amendment table is below

(b) – The Postcode type is ‘S’ for Small User and ‘L’ for Large Users
(c) – Small User Organisation Indicator. Can have the values ‘Y’ or space. A value of ‘Y’ indicates
that there is a Small User Organisation present at this address.
(d) – Delivery Point Suffix (DPS). The DPS is a unique Royal Mail 2-character code (the first
numeric & the second alphabetical – e.g. 2B), which, when added to the Postcode enables each
live Delivery Point to be uniquely identified. Once the Delivery Point is deleted from PAF the
DPS may be reused (although they aren’t reused until all remaining Delivery Points in the range
have been allocated). The DPS for a Large User is always ‘1A’ as each Large User has its own
Postcode.

Table 68: Reasons for amendment

Amendment Reasons for amendment Description of amendment

Type
01 Postcode/Delivery Point  This also includes any Delivery Point that may
Added to PAF have been previously omitted from PAF when the
Postcode went live.
 Large User Added
02 Error Correction  Bulk Recoding
 Single Amendments
 Locality Change
 Thoroughfare Change
 Large User Amendment
 Small User Amendment
 Small User Deletion
 Building Name Amendment
 Selective Reallocation*
03 Postcode/Delivery Point  Postcode Deleted
Deleted  Large User Deleted
 Small User Deleted

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV PAF Changes Page 195 of 237

04 Coding Revision  Locality Amendment
 Bulk Recode
 Thoroughfare Amendment
 Selective Reallocation
(building name, recoding)
05 Change of Organisation or  Large User Amendment
Business Name  Small User Amendment
 Change of Organisation Name
 Selective Reallocation
(building number)
06 Change of Status  Not Currently In Use
07 Large User Moving or  Large User Deleted
Ceasing Trading
08 Change of Building Name,  Small User Amendment
or Number  Selective Reallocation
(building name)
09 Change of Address of a  Not Currently In Use
Large User

* Delivery Points can be moved to a different Postcode, retaining the same address keys where
possible. If the Delivery Point is re-keyed the change is tracked on the Keychain File. Other Selective
Reallocation functions involve making changes to the Delivery Points, such as Building Number.

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV PAF Changes Page 196 of 237

CSV AliasTM
In Simple Terms

Alias™ data is information the public choose to use when addressing mail, but which isn’t actually
required for delivery purposes. While the keyed Alias file also contains alias delivery point,
thoroughfare and locality records, CSV Alias® solely provides the most commonly used County alias
data.

CSV Alias makes a great add-on to a PAF ®-based system, helping locate correct postal addresses
from ‘postally not-required’ county data. It is only available with a PAF product, not as a stand-
alone product.

 expanded database in CSV format (ideal for use with CSV PAF®)
 full editions only (there are no Changes files)
 postally not required county data
 useful for advanced address searching

The CSV Alias file is supplied as two files:

Table 69: CSV Alias file sizes

Product file names Sample record size (January 13 Sample file size (January 13
data) data)
CSV Alias Org.csv 1,422,970 199,594,183
CSV Alias Res.csv 27,721,288 3,366,592,929
Total CSV Alias = 3,566,187,112

Product description

The CSV Alias file contains the following:

Traditional, Administrative and Former Postal County information. This is provided along with the
full address so data can be correlated with other PAF data. The notes to the Record Definition
Table later in this chapter contain more information on the different county types.

Alias is not, however, a comprehensive listing and the nature of the data is such that Royal Mail
cannot guarantee its accuracy. Alias information may be used by the public when addressing mail
but is not required as part of the PAF address.

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV Alias Page 197 of 237

Selectability/media

Available via:

CD-Rom
FTP

Please note that it is only available alongside a PAF product.

File details

The file is held in ascending Postcode sequence. There will be multiple records for postcodes that
contain multiple delivery points as one record exists for each delivery point in PAF.

Miscellaneous

 All records end with CR LF

 All fields are of variable length and delimited with comma’s
 Text is ASCII, no extended or Unicode characters are used
 All fields are contained within double quotes (“)
 No characters are escaped
 No header record is present

Further information

For pricing, licensing & ordering please visit www.poweredbypaf.com

Record definitions

CSV Alias

RECORD NAME : County Alias Record

RECORD LENGTH : 572 characters maximum (not fixed)

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE MAX SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 8 1
PostTown 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Double Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Thoroughfare & Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 80 1
Dependent Thoroughfare & 1 Alphanumeric 80 1
Descriptor
Building Number 1 Numeric 4 1
Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 50 1
SubBuilding Name 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
PO Box 1 Alphanumeric 6 1
Department Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Organisation Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV Alias Page 198 of 237

Former Postal County 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Traditional County 1 Alphanumeric 30 1 (a)
Administrative County 1 Alphanumeric 30 1 (b)
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (c)
SU Organisation Indicator 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Delivery Point Suffix 1 Alphanumeric 2 1

NOTES

(a) – The Former Postal County was used for the distribution of mail before the Postcode
system was introduced in the 1970s. It helped differentiate between similar and same
sounding place names (e.g. ‘Caistor’ in Lincolnshire and ‘Caistor St Edmund’ in Norfolk, or
‘Newport’ in Shropshire and ‘Newport’ on the Isle of Wight). The Former Postal County was
the Administrative County at the time. This data rarely changes.
(b) – The Traditional County is provided by the Association of British Counties. It’s historical
data, and can date from the 1800s.
(c) – The Administrative County is a Unitary Authority name, where one is present. If there is
no Unitary Authority, the County name is used. This data is provided by the Office of
National Statistics. This information is not static, because County boundaries may change
due to administrative changes. In some circumstances, it would be nonsensical to use the
Administrative County in an address. For example in Portsmouth, the Administrative County
is also ‘Portsmouth’

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV Alias Page 199 of 237

CSV Multiple Residence™
In Simple Terms

CSV Multiple Residence is a CSV product that identifies addresses that are delivered to a shared
Delivery Point. This means premises with one front door (Delivery Point), behind which the building
has been sub-divided into flats, units, etc. Multiple Residence data provides a detailed address
structure for these properties.

 ‘Households behind the doors’ - detailed address structure for Multiple Residence properties
 Data is updated every month
 Covers 121 Postcode areas (not Jersey, Guernsey nor Isle of Man)
 Use as a standalone dataset or integrate with PAF®.

CSV Multiple Residence is supplied as a single file, this being:

Table 70: CSV Multiple Residence file size

Product file names Sample record size (January Sample file size (January 13
13 data) data)
CSV Multiple Residence.csv 665,400 63,176,539

Product description

The Multiple Residence data identifies those addresses delivered to a shared Delivery Point (DP).
This shared Delivery Point is known as the ‘owning DP’. We are only able to capture Multiple
Residence data where there is an address structure (e.g. ‘Flat A’ and ‘Flat B’, ‘Upper Flat’ and ‘Lower
Flat’, or ‘Unit 1’ and ‘Unit 2’ etc.). We also hold household counts for such premises.

More details on the uses of Multiple Residency data and how it is assigned can be found in the
Multiple Residence section of the PAF Programmer’s Guide.

Selectability/media

Available via:

CD-Rom
FTP

File details

The file is held in ascending Postcode sequence.

Miscellaneous

 All records end with CR LF

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV Multiple Residence Page 200 of 237

  All fields are of variable length and delimited with comma’s
 Text is ASCII, no extended or Unicode characters are used
 No fields are quoted and no characters are escaped
 No header record is present

Further information

For pricing, licensing & ordering please visit www.poweredbypaf.com

Record definitions

CSV Multiple Residence

RECORD NAME : Multiple Residence Record

RECORD LENGTH : 697 characters maximum (not fixed)

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE MAX SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 8 1
Post Town 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Double Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Thoroughfare & Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 80 1
Dependent Thoroughfare & 1 Alphanumeric 80 1
Descriptor
Building Number (owning DP) 1 Numeric 4 1
Building Name (owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 50 1
Sub Building Name (owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Department Name (owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Organisation Name (owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
UDPRN Key (owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (a)
Postcode Type (owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
SU Organisation Indicator (owning 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
DP)
Delivery Point Suffix (owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 2 1
Building Number (MR) 1 Alphanumeric 4 1
Building Name (MR) 1 Alphanumeric 50 1
Sub Building Name (MR) 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Department Name (MR) 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Organisation Name (MR) 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
UMPRN (MR) 1 Numeric 8 1 (b)
SU Organisation Indicator (MR) 1 Alphanumeric 1 1

NOTES

(a) – UDPRN = Unique Delivery Point Reference Number

(b) – UMPRN = Unique Multiple Residence Reference Number

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV Multiple Residence Page 201 of 237

CSV Multiple Residence™
Changes
In Simple Terms

This product details the additions, deletions and amendments required to update the CSV Multiple
Residence® file. Users who require a low maintenance option should subscribe to the full CSV
Multiple Residence® file.

 Changes held in expanded CSV format

 High maintenance update option
 Available monthly
 Compatible with CSV Multiple Residence®

CSV Multiple Residence Changes is supplied as a single file, this being:

Table 71: CSV Multiple Residence Changes file size

Product file names Sample record size (January Sample file size (January 13
13 data) data)
CSV Multiple Residence 18,822 2,314,021
Changes.csv

Product description

This file contains Multiple Residence update information. It contains details of additions, deletions,
and amendments to Multiple Residence recordssince the data was last produced.

The Changes will be single changes only. Changes will include adding, amending, deleting MR,
changes to owning DP on MR and changes to DPs with a multi-occupancy greater than one that do
not have MR details.

More details on the uses of Multiple Residency data and how it is assigned can be found in the
Multiple Residence section of the PAF Programmer’s Guide.

Selectability/media

Available via:

CD-Rom
FTP

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV MR Changes Page 202 of 237

File details

The file is held in ascending date and time sequence.

Amendment types are:

B - before view }
C - after view } amendment

D - deletion
I - insertion

Miscellaneous

 All records end with CR LF

 All fields are of variable length and delimited with comma’s
 Text is ASCII, no extended or Unicode characters are used
 No fields are quoted and no characters are escaped
 No header record is present

Further information

For pricing, licensing & ordering please visit www.poweredbypaf.com

Record definitions

CSV Multiple Residence Changes

RECORD NAME : Multiple Residence Changes Record

RECORD LENGTH : 716 characters maximum (not fixed)

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE MAX SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Date 1 Numeric * 10 1
Time 1 Numeric * 8 1
Amendment Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 8 1
Post Town 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Double Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Thoroughfare & Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 80 1
Dependent Thoroughfare & 1 Alphanumeric 80 1
Descriptor
Building Number (owning DP) 1 Numeric 4 1
Building Name (owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 50 1
Sub Building Name (owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 30 1

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV MR Changes Page 203 of 237

Department Name (owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Organisation Name (owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
UDPRN Key (owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (a)
Postcode Type (owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
SU Organisation Indicator (owning 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
DP)
Delivery Point Suffix (owning DP) 1 Alphanumeric 2 1
Building Number (MR) 1 Alphanumeric 4 1
Building Name (MR) 1 Alphanumeric 50 1
Sub Building Name (MR) 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Department Name (MR) 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Organisation Name (MR) 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
UMPRN (MR) 1 Numeric 8 1 (b)
SU Organisation Indicator (MR) 1 Alphanumeric 1 1

* While the date and time fields are primarily numeric fields, they are formatted in the CSV files
with forward slash and colon separators in the date format DD/MM/YYYY and time format
HH:MM:SS

NOTES

(a) – UDPRN = Unique Delivery Point Reference Number

(b) – UMRRN = Unique Multiple Residence Reference Number

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV MR Changes Page 204 of 237

CSV Just Built™
In Simple Terms

CSV Just Built is a CSV product that provides the addresses and Postcodes of all newly built
properties capable of receiving mail.

 Target new addresses straightaway

 Ideal if you’re looking to acquire new customers
 New edition available every month of all properties that have just become active
 Create leaflet drops e.g. carpet retailers, conservatory supplies, satellite TV companies, etc.

CSV Just Built is supplied as a single file, this being:

Table 72: CSV Just Built file size

Product file names Sample record size (January Sample file size (January 13
13 data) data)
CSV Just Built.csv 13,474 1,055,067

Product description

Records are collected quarterly from our postmen and women, so the number of records varies
from month to month, depending on the number of properties reported built. The June 2009 file
contained just under 30,000 records. Records are available from January 2009.

Chronologically, Not Yet Built™ is created before the Just Built™ data. The data is then added onto
PAF® file.

Selectability/media

Available via:

CD-Rom
FTP

File details

The file is held in ascending Postcode sequence.

Miscellaneous

 All records end with CR LF

 All fields are of variable length and delimited with comma’s
 Text is ASCII, no extended or Unicode characters are used
 No fields are quoted and no characters are escaped

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV Just Built Page 205 of 237

  No header record is present

Further information

For pricing, licensing & ordering please visit www.poweredbypaf.com

Record definitions

CSV Just Built

RECORD NAME : Just Built Record

RECORD LENGTH : 498 characters maximum (not fixed)

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE MAX SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 8 1
Post Town 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Double Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Thoroughfare & Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 80 1
Dependent Thoroughfare & 1 Alphanumeric 80 1
Descriptor
Building Number 1 Numeric 4 1
Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 50 1
SubBuilding Name 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
PO Box 1 Alphanumeric 6 1
Department Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Organisation Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
UDPRN Key 1 Alphanumeric 8 1
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
SU Organisation Indicator 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Delivery Point Suffix 1 Alphanumeric 2 1
Date Made Live on PAF 1 Alphanumeric 8 1 (a)

NOTES

(a) – Date made live on PAF = YYYYMMDD

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV Just Built Page 206 of 237

CSV Not Yet Built™
In Simple Terms

CSV Not Yet Built (NYB) is a CSV product, created to identify properties that are at the development
stage.

 Accurate and up-to-date information on the address data of tomorrow

 Supplied as a completely new data set each month
 Valuable planning tool for many industries e.g. utility companies, credit referencing agencies,
retail outlets, education authorities and estate agents
 Great for advanced leaflet drop planning e.g. carpet retailers, conservatory supplies, Satellite TV
Companies, etc.
 UK coverage (excluding Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man).

CSV Not Yet Built is supplied as a single file, this being:

Table 73: CSV Not Yet Built file size

Product file names Sample record size (January Sample file size (January 13
13 data) data)
CSV Not Yet Built.csv 311,155 21,553,841

Product description

Information relating to new developments is received daily from a number of sources including
Local Authorities, Building developers and Royal Mail staff. Our Address Development Centre in
Sunderland reviews this information and allocates a Postcode accordingly. The address is then
added to the Not Yet Built database - a separate file of Not Yet Built Delivery Points.

Once a property is built and capable of receiving mail, it appears on the Just Built™ database and on
PAF.

Selectability/media

Available via:

CD-Rom
FTP

File details

The file is held in ascending Postcode sequence.

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV NYB Page 207 of 237

Miscellaneous

 All records end with CR LF

 All fields are of variable length and delimited with comma’s
 Text is ASCII, no extended or Unicode characters are used
 No fields are quoted and no characters are escaped
 No header record is present

Further information

For pricing, licensing & ordering please visit www.poweredbypaf.com

Record definitions

CSV Not Yet Built

RECORD NAME : Not Yet Built Record

RECORD LENGTH : 490 characters maximum (not fixed)

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE MAX SIZE OCCURS

Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 8 1
Post Town 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Double Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1
Thoroughfare & Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 80 1
Dependent Thoroughfare & 1 Alphanumeric 80 1
Descriptor
Building Number 1 Numeric 4 1
Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 50 1
SubBuilding Name 1 Alphanumeric 30 1
PO Box 1 Alphanumeric 6 1
Department Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
Organisation Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1
UDPRN Key 1 Alphanumeric 8 1
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
SU Organisation Indicator 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Delivery Point Suffix 1 Alphanumeric 2 1

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV NYB Page 208 of 237

CSV PIF™
In Simple Terms

The CSV PIF™ file is used to help the barcoding of mail. Delivery point suffix (DPS) & checksum
information is required to create barcodes on mail and PIF™ supplies these; useful if your database
or PAF® product does not include it.

 Supplies Postcode, DPS information & the checksum digit for delivery points
 Used to barcode mail
 Full or Changes product available

CSV PIF is supplied as a series of files, these being:

Table 74: CSV PIF file sizes

Product file names Sample record size (January Sample file size (January 13
13 data) data)
CSV PIF.csv 29,144,256 606,932,032
CSV PIF Changes.csv 56,254 2,922,473
Total CSV Alias = 609,854,505 Mb

Product description

PIF™ contains information that is unique to a delivery point. It contains the Postcode and Delivery
Point Suffix (DPS), two elements that are sufficient to define a live delivery point.

Delivery point details are provided either just as a Building Number or as a string containing the
most significant 50 characters of the Delivery Point description (as held as display text within
PAF®).

CSV PIF Changes are supplied in the same sequence and use the same amendment types as the
CSV PAF Changes product (see CSV PAF® Changes chapter) but only contain one record type.

Further information and examples of PIF data can be found in the section on the Postcode
Information File in the Programmers Guide.

Selectability/media

Available via:

CD-Rom
FTP

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV PIF Page 209 of 237

File details

In the CSV PIF file records are held in ascending Postcode sequence.

In CSV PIF Changes records are held in date/time order.

CSV PIF Changes valid amendment types are:

B - before view }
C - after view } amendment

D - deletion
I - insertion

Amendments are represented by a pair of records, these being a before and after view.
Insertions and deletions are represented by a single record.

When an amendment has been made due to a Postcode revision there will be a pair of amendment
records. The ‘before’ image will contain the old Postcode, and the ‘after’ image will contain the new
Postcode.

Miscellaneous

 All records end with CR LF

 All fields are of variable length and delimited with comma’s
 Text is ASCII, no extended or Unicode characters are used
 No fields are quoted and no characters are escaped
 No header record is present

Further information

For pricing, licensing & ordering please visit www.poweredbypaf.com

Record definitions

CSV PIF

RECORD NAME : CSV PIF Record

RECORD LENGTH : 61 characters maximum (not fixed)

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE MAX SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 8 1
Delivery Point Suffix 1 Alphanumeric 2 1
Check Digit 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Display Text / Building Number 1 Alphanumeric 50 1 (a)

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV PIF Page 210 of 237

CSV PIF Changes

RECORD NAME : CSV PIF Changes Record

RECORD LENGTH : 80 characters maximum (not fixed)

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE MAX SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Date 1 Numeric * 10 1
Time 1 Numeric * 8 1
Amendment Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 8 1
Delivery Point Suffix 1 Alphanumeric 2 1
Check Digit 1 Alphanumeric 1 1
Display Text / Building Number 1 Alphanumeric 50 1 (a)

* While the date and time fields are primarily numeric fields, they are formatted in the CSV files
with forward slash and colon separators in the date format DD/MM/YYYY and time format
HH:MM:SS

NOTES

(a) – At its most simple level, the information in the Display Text Field will contain only the house
number information. However for those properties without a house number then the house
name will appear. Where flats occur, the relevant flat information from PAF will appear. For
Organisations on PAF, the Organisation will appear on PIF.

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV PIF Page 211 of 237

CSV BFPO
In Simple Terms

CSV BFPO is a CSV product which contains postcodes assigned by the British Forces Post Office to
BFPO addresses. An option is given to extract any relevant product with BFPO data, however this
file is provided for those who would rather process it separately in a similar format to CSV PAF®.

 Provide ease of integration of BFPO data into existing PAF® based solutions
 For use when separate processing of BFPO data is desirable.

CSV BFPO is supplied as a single file, this being:

Table 75: CSV BFPO size

Product file names Sample record size (January 13 Sample file size (January 13
data) data)
CSV BFPO.csv 664 31,856

Product description

British Forces Post Office (BFPO) specific postcodes use a “BF” postcode area to enable the same
access to goods and services on the Internet to service personnel based overseas as they enjoy at
home. This file contains a full list of active BFPO postcodes along with the BFPO number they are
assigned too, in the same structure as the Postcode Address File, for incorporation into PAF based
solutions.

When capturing BFPO addresses the following data will need to be entered by the user, after
capturing the address from the postcode:

Number e.g. 987456321

Rank e.g. Col
Name e.g. John Brown
Sub Unite.g. Unit 6
Unit e.g. Welsh Guards

An example BFPO address would look as follows:

987456321 Col. John Brown

Unit 6, Welsh Guards
BFPO 15
BFPO
BF1 0AA

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV BFPO Page 212 of 237

The data from BFPO 15 downwards is contained in the CSV BFPO file. Note that BFPO prefer the
BFPO number to appear on the last line of the address if possible, but accept that restrictions of
PAF based systems mean that the Postcode will often have to come last.

Selectability/media

Available via:

CD-Rom
FTP

File details

The file is held in ascending Postcode sequence.

Miscellaneous

 All records end with CR LF

 All fields are of variable length and delimited with comma’s
 Text is ASCII, no extended or Unicode characters are used
 No fields are quoted and no characters are escaped
 A header record is provided for ease of use

Record definitions

CSV BFPO

RECORD NAME : Address Record

RECORD LENGTH : 490 characters maximum (not fixed)

FIELD NAME LEVEL DATA TYPE MAX SIZE OCCURS NOTES

Postcode 1 Alphanumeric 8 1
Post Town 1 Alphanumeric 30 1 (a)
Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1 (b)
Double Dependent Locality 1 Alphanumeric 35 1 (b)
Thoroughfare & Descriptor 1 Alphanumeric 80 1 (c)
Dependent Thoroughfare & 1 Alphanumeric 80 1 (b)
Descriptor
Building Number 1 Numeric 4 1 (b)
Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 50 1 (b)
Sub Building Name 1 Alphanumeric 30 1 (b)
PO Box 1 Alphanumeric 6 1 (b)
Department Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1 (b)
Organisation Name 1 Alphanumeric 60 1 (b)
UDPRN 1 Numeric 8 1 (d)
Postcode Type 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (e)

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV BFPO Page 213 of 237

SU Organisation Indicator 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (b)
Delivery Point Suffix 1 Alphanumeric 2 1 (f)

NOTES

(a) – The Post Town will always be “BFPO” for BFPO records.
(b) –These fields are not used for BFPO records so will always be blank. They are included for
consistency with PAF records.
(c) –The thoroughfare field will hold the BFPO number prefixed by BFPO, e.g. “BFPO 15”
(d) – The UDPRN is a pseudo (but non-overlapping) value assigned to each BFPO record for those
systems that require it.
(e) – The Postcode Type field will always be set to ‘L’ for Large User for BFPO records
(f) – The Delivery Point Suffix will always be ‘1A’. This value is provided for compatibility with PAF
systems requiring it, it should not be used in barcode production etc. which is not applicable for
BFPO addresses.

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV BFPO Page 214 of 237

CSV Postzon™
In Simple Terms

Postzon data contains the grid references, local authority Ward Codes and National Health Service
(NHS) Area codes for most UK Postcodes (Isle of Man, Guernsey and Jersey addresses are not
recognised by Ordnance Survey). CSV Postzon provides this data in comma delimited text format.

 Links postal characteristics to UK geography

 Provides Ward codes, grid references (100m) and NHS Area Codes
 Grid references supplied at 100m accuracy
 Supplied as full files only (no changes files)

CSV Postzon is supplied as a single file, this being:

Table 76: CSV Postzon file size

Product file names Sample record size (January Sample file size (January 13
13 data) data)
CSV Postzon.csv 1,745,680 183,928,852

Product description

Five organisations – the Office for National Statistics (ONS), Ordnance Survey (OS), Land & Property
Services (Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland), the General Register Office for Scotland (GROS) and
Royal Mail – have developed a co-ordinated production process to provide a core set of Postcode
location data. This is called the Gridlink® core dataset. Postzon is the Royal Mail product derived
from Gridlink®, which links postal characteristics to UK geography.

CSV Postzon file holds grid reference data to 100m.

Selectability/media

Available via:

CD-Rom
FTP

File details

The file is held in ascending Postcode sequence. There is one record per postcode.

Miscellaneous

 All records end with CR LF

 All fields are of variable length and delimited with comma’s
 Text is ASCII, no extended or Unicode characters are used
 All fields are contained within double quotes (“)

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV Postzon Page 215 of 237

  No characters are escaped
 No header record is present

Further information

For pricing, licensing & ordering please visit www.poweredbypaf.com

Record definitions

CSV Postzon

RECORD NAME : Postzon Record

RECORD LENGTH : 81 characters maximum (not fixed)

FIELD NAME DATA ORIGIN * LEVEL DATA TYPE MAX SIZE OCCURS NOTES
Postcode RM 1 Alphanumeric 8 1
Introduction Date RM 1 Numeric 6 1 (a)
Grid Reference East OS/LPS 1 Numeric 5 1 (b)
Grid Reference North OS/LPS 1 Numeric 5 1 (b)
AreacodeCounty ONS/GROS 1 Alphanumeric 9 1 (c)
Areacode District ONS/GROS 1 Alphanumeric 9 1 (c)
Ward Code ONS/GROS 1 Alphanumeric 9 1 (c)
User Type RM 1 Alphanumeric 1 1 (d)
Grid Status ALL 1 Numeric 1 1 (e)
Country ONS/GROS 1 Alphanumeric 9 1 (c)
Ward Status ONS/GROS 1 Numeric 1 1 (f)
NHS Code ONS/GROS 1 Alphanumeric 9 1 (c)
NHS Region ONS/GROS 1 Alphanumeric 9 1 (c)

* The list below is the key to the initials in ‘DATA ORIGIN’ column

Gridlink® data partners

GROS General Register for Scotland (www.gro-scotland.gov.uk)
LPS Land & Property Services, formerly Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland
www.lpsni.gov.uk
ONS Office for National Statistics (www.statistics.gov.uk)
OS Ordnance Survey (www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk)
RM Royal Mail (www.royalmail.com)

NOTES

(a) – Introduction date. Format = YYYYMM (date of the most recent introduction onto PAF®).
(b) – Grid references are a 10-digit East and North relating to the location of the Postcode to the
National Grid, or the Irish Grid for Postcode Area ‘BT’ for a resolution of 100m.

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV Postzon Page 216 of 237

How Postzon relates to the National Grid

For the majority of northern grid references where 6 characters would be required to hold the
Northing numeric value, a conversion of the first two numerics into a single letter takes place, to
allow the Northing to be held in a 5-character field.

The letters used are: P, U, Z, O, T, Y and are used as follows:

Table 77: How Postzon relates to the National Grid

Northing letter on PAF If Easting value begins with then Northing value begins
with
P 4 12
U 4 11
Z 4 10
O 3 12
T 3 11
Y 3 10

Grid references and Northern Ireland

The grid references for Northern Ireland (BT) Postcode area reflect the Irish Grid system.

The Irish Grid does not conform to the National Grid used for England, Scotland and Wales, both are
planar co-ordinate systems but differ in their origin. Consequently the values that are present on
Postzon overlap with the other areas of the UK. Belfast, for example, has the same co-ordinates as
parts of Cheshire and Merseyside.

To convert Irish to National the grid references must be converted to longitude and latitude, and
then a complex algorithm is applied to calculate the National grid reference. An approximate
conversion of Northern Irish grid references to the same origin as the rest of the UK may be
obtained by adding 13000 to the Northing and subtracting 17000 from the Easting of the NI
references. This should not be regarded as an exact conversion.

For further information visit Land and Property Services website: www.lpsni.gov.uk

(c) – Country, County, District, Ward, NHS Region and NHS Code . This data is provided to Royal
Mail as part of the Gridlink® data interchange process. The make-up, composition and accuracy of
this data are the responsibility of the appropriate Gridlink® data partner(s) listed page 178. Any
queries arising from this data should therefore be routed accordingly.

(d) – User Type. User Type indicates whether the Postcode relates to a large or Small User.

0= Small User
1= Large User

(e) – Grid Status A positional quality indicator to show the status of the grid reference and the
method that was used to allocate the reference.

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV Postzon Page 217 of 237

Table 78: Grid status

Grid Reference allocation

Status
0 Status not supplied by OS
1 Within the building of the matched address closest to the Postcode mean.
2 Co-ordinates allocated by GROS during Postcode boundary creation to the building
nearest the centre of the populated part of the Postcode (Scotland only)
3 Approximate to within 50m of true position
4 Postcode unit mean (direct copy from ADDRESS-POINT (GB) and COMPAS (NI) - mean
of matched addresses with the same Postcode)
5 Postcode imputed by ONS to 1 metre resolution
6 Postcode sector mean - mainly PO Boxes
9 No co-ordinates available

(f) – Ward Status - Prior to the introduction of Gridlink® CSV Postzon was supplied with an
indicator to show the status of the Area Code and the method that was used to allocate the
code. However the Gridlink® data set has just the one positional quality indicator (see Grid
Status above). To avoid changing the structure of the CSV Postzon file this field remains. The
data content however will be a replica of that in the Grid Status field.

Section 5 - Products in CSV CSV Postzon Page 218 of 237

Section 6
Appendices

a) ASCII character tables & punctuation in PAF

b) PAF Address Key rules
c) Cross-border Postcodes
d) Media options
e) List of tables

Contact us

Section 6 - Appendices ASCII Characters & punctuation Page 219 of 237

Appendix a)
ASCII character tables & punctuation in PAF
Table 79: ASCII character set conversion
The data provided is in ASCII format. The format of ASCII used is Standard (US)
ASCII. The table below shows the ASCII Character to Decimal Value Conversion

Decimal Decimal Decimal Decimal

Character Character Character Character
Value Value Value Value
NUL 0 ) 41 R 82 { 123
SOH 1 * 42 S 83 ¦ 124
STX 2 + 43 T 84 } 125
ETX 3 , 44 U 85 ~ 126
EOT 4 - 45 V 86 DEL 127
ENQ 5 . 46 W 87 128
ACK 6 / 47 X 88 129
BEL 7 0 48 Y 89 130
BS 8 1 49 Z 90 131
HT 9 2 50 [ 91 132
LF 10 3 51 \ 92 133
VT 11 4 52 ] 93 134
FF 12 5 53 ^ 94 135
CR 13 6 54 _ 95 136
SO 14 7 55 ` 96 137
SI 15 8 56 a 97 138
DLE 16 9 57 b 98 139
DC1 17 : 58 c 99 140
DC2 18 ; 59 d 100 141
DC3 19 < 60 e 101 142
DC4 20 = 61 f 102 143
NAK 21 > 62 g 103 144
SYN 22 ? 63 h 104 145
ETB 23 @ 64 i 105 146
CAN 24 A 65 j 106 147
EM 25 B 66 k 107 148
SUB 26 C 67 l 108 149
ESC 27 D 68 m 109 150
FS 28 E 69 n 110 151
GS 29 F 70 o 111 152
RS 30 G 71 p 112 153
US 31 H 72 q 113 154
SP 32 I 73 r 114 155
! 33 J 74 s 115 156
‘ 34 K 75 t 116 157
# 35 L 76 u 117 158
$ 36 M 77 v 118 159
% 37 N 78 w 119 160
& 38 O 79 x 120 161
' 39 P 80 y 121 ¢ 162
( 40 Q 81 z 122 £ 163

Section 6 - Appendices ASCII Characters & punctuation Page 220 of 237

Table 80: PAF allowable characters
Here’s a list of standard ASCII characters found in PAF data. Some characters aren’t allowed in some PAF fields
for operational, data extract or manipulation reasons.

Decimal
Char Description Allowed in these PAF fields
value
Alpha characters –
A-Z Upper & Lower ALL - Allowed as part of a text string or as single characters.
Case
ALL - Allowed in any position in the Organisation, Department
& 38 Ampersand and DP Alias Fields. But restricted to certain positions in Sub
Building & Building Name fields to replace the word ‘AND’.
ALL - Can only be used between alpha characters to define
‘ 39 Apostrophe
names such as O’Neill or plurals such as James’s.
ORGANISATION, DEPARTMENT, DP ALIAS FIELDS ONLY – not
* 42 Asterisk allowed at the end of entries as this may cause problems with
wildcard searches of data.
ALL - Must always be a pair and must be preceded / followed by
() 40, 41 Brackets
a space.
NONE – can be misread in data extract and CSV files and so is not
, 44 Comma
allowed.
ALL – The use of the full stop is restricted in Sub Building,
Building Name and DP Alias fields. Can only be used to abbreviate
. 46 Full Stop
Saint to St. and should always by followed by a space. It can also
have limited use in the Organisation field.
# 35 Hash ORGANISATION FIELD ONLY.
ALL – The use of the hyphen is restricted in Sub Building &
Building Name fields. Also must be part of a building number
- 45 Hyphen
range or a double barrelled name and must not be preceded /
followed by spaces.
ALL - Allowed as part of a text string or as single characters.
0-9 Numerics Although a single zero is allowed in either the Building Name OR
Sub Building Name fields, it is not allowed in both simultaneously.
Quotation marks - NONE – can be misread in data extract and CSV files and so is not
‘ ‘ 34, 39
single allowed (except for apostrophe entries)
Quotation marks – NONE – can be misread in data extract and CSV files and so is not
“ “ 34, 39
double allowed.
ORGANISATION, DP ALIAS FIELDS ONLY - All other characters
All Other standard
are allowed to form a company name in the Organisation Name
ASCII Characters
field or the DP Alias field only.

Section 6 - Appendices ASCII Characters & punctuation Page 221 of 237

Appendix b)
PAF® Address Key rules
The PAF Address Key consists of three elements called the Address key, the Organisation key and the Postcode
Type.

These rules are referred to in the Keychain chapter.

Rule 1
A Small User Delivery Point without an Organisation is known as a Small User Residential Delivery Point and has
an Address key with a non-zero value and an Organisation key with a zero value.

Rule 2
A Small User Delivery Point with an Organisation is known as a Small User Organisational Delivery Point and has
both an Address key and an Organisation key with a non-zero value.

Rule 3
A Large User Delivery Point has an Address key with a non-zero value and an Organisation key with a zero
value.

Since a Large User Delivery Point is the only Delivery Point on the Postcode, the Address key is in fact populated
with the Postcode key. For this reason, it is possible to have a Small User Residential Delivery Point and a Large
User Delivery Point with the same Address key and an Organisation key, and so the Postcode Type has to be
used to differentiate, giving the full PAF Address Key of an Address key, an Organisation key and the Postcode
Type.

For Small User Delivery Points the Address key uniquely describes the Premises, that is to say, the combination
of Locality, Thoroughfares, Sub-Building Name, Building Name and Building Number.

Small User Residential Delivery Points have no Organisation (or Department) and thus consist only of the
Premises, which is why they only need an Address key.

Small User Organisational Delivery Points have an Organisation in addition to the Premises, and there can be
more than one Organisation at the same Premises. So an Address key alone is insufficient to uniquely describe
the Delivery Point and must be supplemented by an Organisation key.

Rule 4
For a given Small User Postcode all Small User Organisational Delivery Points at the same Premises must have
the same Address key. Obviously, they will have different Organisation keys.

Section 6 - Appendices Address Key rules Page 222 of 237

Appendix c)
Cross-border Postcodes
Introduction
These tables show the cross-border Postcodes in Wales and Scotland.

Table 81: Postcode sectors in Wales

English Cross border Welsh

CH1 1,2,3,4,5,9 CHESTER - CH1 6 CH5 1,2,3,4,9
CH2 - CH3 CHESTER - CH4 8 & 9 CH6 5,6,9
CH4 0,7 CHESTER – CH7 9 CH7 2,3,4,5,6
CH7 1 CH8 7,8,9
CH25 - CH49
CH60 - CH66
CH88
CH99
WREXHAM - LL12 0 LL11
WREXHAM - LL13 9 LL12 7,8,9
WREXHAM - LL14 5 LL13 0,7,8
LL14 1,2,3,4,6
LL15 - LL49
LL51 - LL78
SY1 - SY4 SHREWSBURY - SY5 0 & 9 SY10 0,8
SY5 6,7,8 BUCKNELL - SY7 8 SY16 3,4
SY6 BISHOPS CASTLE - SY9 5 SY17 5
SY7 0,9 OSWESTRY - SY10 7 & 9 SY18 6
SY8 WHITCHURCH - SY13 2 & 3 SY19 7
SY11 - SY12 MALPAS - SY14 7 SY20 8,9
SY13 1,4 MONTGOMERY - SY15 6 SY21 0,7,9
SY14 8 WELSHPOOL - SY21 8 SY22 5
SY16 1,2 LLANSANTFFRAID - SY22 6 SY23 3,4,5

cont.

Section 6 - Appendices Cross-border Postcodes Page 223 of 237

 Postode sectors in Wales cont.
English Cross border Welsh
SY23 1,2 SY24 5
SY25 6
KNIGHTON - LD7 1 & 9 LD1 - LD6
PRESTEIGNE - LD8 2
GL1 - GL15 COLEFORD - GL16 8 & 9
GL16 7
GL17 - GL20
GL50 - GL56
ABERGAVENNY - NP7 8 NP4
CHEPSTOW - NP16 7 & 9 NP7 0,5,6,7,9
MONMOUTH - NP25 3, 4, 5 & 9 NP8
NP10 - NP15
NP16 5 & 6
NP18 - NP20
NP22 - NP26
NP44
HR1 - HR2 HEREFORD - HR3 5 & 6
HR4 KINGTON - HR5 3
HR6 - HR9

Table 82: English/Scottish border Postcodes

Postode sectors
English Cross border Scottish
HAWICK TD9 0 TD1 – TD8
TD15 2 COLDSTREAM TD12 4 TD10 - TD11
BERWICK-UPON-TWEED TD13 - TD14
TD15 1

Section 6 - Appendices Cross-border Postcodes Page 224 of 237

Appendix d)
Media options
Introduction
This chapter lists the file contents of our combined products.

Raw data products are currently available on CD-Rom or downloadable via FTP.

CD-Rom data - technical descriptions

 ASCII only
 Capacity 560Mb
 Recorded using the ISO 9660 JOLIET file system format

For CD-Rom all data files (like Mainfile Address and Changes files) are provided as a number of 560Mb logical
files, one on each CD-Rom. Reference files are provided as one continuous file.

CD-Rom data – product portfolio

The products supplied on CD-Rom are as follows:

 Alias
 Compressed Standard File
 Expanded Single Changes File
 Justbuilt
 Mainfile
 Not Yet Built
 Ranges File
 PAF Changes1 & 2
 PAF Single Changes
 PAF Expanded Changes
 PIF
 Postzon
 UDPRN
 UDPRN Changes

A PAF raw data product can consist of one or multiple files. Viewing the contents of each CD-Rom will display
the directory name (e.g. CPRANGES.C01) in which you will find the relevant files

Section 6 – Appendices Media Options Page 225 of 237

The directory name suffix is the sequence number of the CD-Rom in the set (e.g. CPMAINFL.C02 is the second
CD-Rom of the complete set).

The file names (e.g. fpchngs2.C01) are the individual files which make up a combined product. The suffix is
the same as the directory name. Each file on the CD-Rom is continuous.

The format of the CD-Rom files is ASCII text. This means that all ASCII O (NULL) characters and ASCII 255
(High Values) have been changed to ASCII 32 (Spaces). This will only affect you if you sort the data after it has
been loaded, as the header and footer records don’t start with null and high values and therefore won’t be sorted
to the start and the end. The ASCII Character Tables are listed in Appendix 1.

The file extension of ‘.C01’, ‘C02’ etc is the packing software tool used to reduce the size of the files. You may
find you need an ‘unpacking’ program to access the data. There are many available, e.g. WinZip, gzip, WinAce
etc.

Here are the contents of the product files individually in table form:

Table 83: Mainfile product files

CD-
Rom Directory name File name Contents
No
1 CPMAINFL.C01 bname.C01 Building reference file
fpmainfl.C02 Address file
fpmainfl.C03 Address file
fpmainfl.C04 Address file
fpmainfl.C05 Address file
fpmainfl.C06 Address file
Local.C01 Locality reference file
Mailsort.C01 Business Mail reference file
org.C01 Organisation name reference file
subbname.C01 Sub Building Name reference file
thdesc.C01 Thoroughfare Descriptor reference file
Thfare.C01 Thoroughfare reference file
wfmainfl.C06 Welsh address file

Table 84: Alias product file

CD-
Rom Directory name File name Contents
No
1 ALIASFLE.CO1 Aliasfle.C01 Alias file

Section 6 – Appendices Media Options Page 226 of 237

Table 85: PAF Changes product files
CD-
Rom Directory name File name Contents
No
Changes and single changes reference file
1 CPCHANGE.C01 changes1.C01
(Changes1)
Fpchngs2.C01 Changes2 files
fpchgsng.C01 Single Changes File
fpxchnge.C01 Expanded Changes File
fpxchsng.C01 Single expanded Changes File
keychain.C01 Keychain
wchanges.C01 Welsh Changes File

Table 86: Compressed Standard product files – CD-Rom1

CD-
Rom Directory name File name Contents
No
1 CPCOMPST.C01 fpcompst.C01 Compressed standard file
fpcompst.C02 Compressed standard file
fpcompst.C03 Compressed standard file
fpcompst.C04 Compressed standard file
fpcompst.C05 Compressed standard file
fpcompst.C06 Compressed standard file
fpcompst.C07 Compressed standard file
fpcompst.C08 Compressed standard file
fpcompst.C09 Compressed standard file

Table 87: Compressed Standard product files – CD-Rom2

CD-
Rom Directory name File name Contents
No
2 CPCOMPST.C02 fpcompst.C10 Compressed standard file
fpcompst.C11 Compressed standard file
fpcompst.C12 Compressed standard file
fpcompst.C13 Compressed standard file
fpcompst.C14 Compressed standard file
wfcompst.C15 Welsh Compressed Standard File
wfcompst.C15 Welsh Compressed Standard File

Section 6 – Appendices Media Options Page 227 of 237

Table 88: Ranges product files
CD-
Rom Directory name File name Contents
No
1 CPRANGES.C01 fpranges.C01 Ranges file
fpranges.C02 Ranges file
fpranges.C03 Ranges file
fpranges.C04 Ranges file
fpranges.C05 Ranges file
fpranges.C06 Ranges file
fpranges.C07 Ranges file
fpranges.C08 Ranges file
wfranges.C08 Welsh ranges file

Table 89: PIF product files

CD-
Rom Directory name File name Contents
No
1 CPPIF.C01 postinfo.C01 PIF file
postinfo.C02 PIF file
postinfo.C03 PIF file
Pifchngs.C03 PIF Changes File

Table 90: Unique Delivery Point Reference Number (UDPRN) FULL product files
CD-
Rom Directory name File name Contents
No
1 UDPRNFUL.CO1 udprnful.C01 Full UDPRN
udprnful.C02 Full UDPRN
udprnful.C03 Full UDPRN

Table 91: Unique Delivery Point Reference Number (UDPRN) SINGLE CHANGES
product file
CD-
Rom Directory name File name Contents
No
1 UDPRNSCG.CO1 udprnscg.C01 UDPRN Single Changes

Section 6 – Appendices Media Options Page 228 of 237

Table 92: Unique Delivery Point Reference Number (UDPRN) CHANGES product files
CD-
Directory name File name Contents
Rom
1 UDPRNCGE.CO1 udprncge.C01 UDPRN Changes

Table 93: Unique Delivery Point Reference Number (UDPRN) EXPANDED product files
CD-
Rom Directory name File name Contents
No
1 FPUDPRNE.CO1 fpudprne.C01 FP UDPRN
fpudprne.C02 FP UDPRN
fpudprne.C03 FP UDPRN
fpudprne.C04 FP UDPRN
fpudprne.C05 FP UDPRN
fpudprne.C06 FP UDPRN
fpudprne.C07 FP UDPRN
fpudprne.C08 FP UDPRN
fpudprne.C09 FP UDPRN
2 FPUDPRNE.CO2 fpudprne.C10 FP UDPRN
fpudprne.C11 FP UDPRN
fpudprne.C12 FP UDPRN
fpudprne.C13 FP UDPRN
fpudprne.C14 FP UDPRN
fpudprne.C15 FP UDPRN
fpudprne.C16 FP UDPRN
fpudprne.C17 FP UDPRN
fpudprne.C18 FP UDPRN
3 FPUDPRNE.CO3 fpudprne.C19 FP UDPRN
fpudprne.C20 FP UDPRN
fpudprne.C21 FP UDPRN
fpudprne.C22 FP UDPRN
fpudprne.C23 FP UDPRN
fpudprne.C24 FP UDPRN
fpudprne.C25 FP UDPRN
fpudprne.C26 FP UDPRN
fpudprne.C27 FP UDPRN

Section 6 – Appendices Media Options Page 229 of 237

Table 94: Not Yet Built product files
CD-
Rom Directory name File name Contents
No
1 FPNYBILT.C01 fpnybilt.C01 Not Yet Built File
1 NYBRANGE.CO1 nybrange.C01 Not Yet Built ranges
1 FPNYBEXP.C01 Fpnybexp.C01 Not Yet Built Expanded

Table 95: Just Built product files

CD-
Rom Directory name File name Contents
No
1 JSTBUILT.CO1 jstbuilt.C01 Just Built File
1 FPJBILTE.CO1 fpjbilte.C01 Just Built Expanded File
1 JBRANGES.CO1 Jbranges.C01 Just built ranges

Table 96: Multiple Residence product files

CD-
Rom Directory name File name Contents
No
1 FPMULRES.CO1 fpmulres.C01 Multiple Residence
1 MRSCHGES.CO1 mrschges.C01 Multiple Residence Changes

Table 97: Postzon product file

CD-
Rom Directory name File name Contents
No
1 PZONE100.CO1 pzone100.C01 Postzon 100m File

Full or selectable
A product can be ordered either as a ‘Full ‘or ‘Selectable’ product. Not all products are selectable.

Full = all Postcodes areas

Selectable = one or more Postcode areas

Full products are only supplied in the ‘combined’ format and selectable products are supplied as ‘individual’
products. Selectable products are only available monthly.

These products are not selectable and must be bought with a full PAF product
 Alias
 Keychain
 All the Welsh products, i.e. Welsh Mainfile, Welsh Compressed Standard, Welsh Ranges, and Welsh Changes

Section 6 – Appendices Media Options Page 230 of 237

PAF products via internet download

The sizes of some of our PAF products are too large to offer an efficient and secure method of delivery via the
Internet. We are currently looking at offering electronic delivery methods as an alternative to the current
platform.

The products available via the internet at the time of going to press are, in alphabetical order:

 Alias File
 Changes
 Single Changes
 Welsh Changes
 Keychain
 Expanded Changes
 Expanded Single Changes
 PIF Changes
 Postzon

If you are interested in switching from CD-Rom to internet download please contact us on
0845 606 6854 (option 3) or email [email protected].

Section 6 – Appendices Media Options Page 231 of 237

Appendix e)
Index of tables
Table
Table title Page No
No
Chapter 1: Structure of a PAF address 8
1 Surname in Sub Building field 8
2 Surname in building field 9
3 Typical residential address 9
4 Typical Organisation address 10
5 PO Box address with a name 11
6 PO Box address without a name 11
7 Address elements of PAF® 12
8 Building Number in the Building Name field 13
9 Address with Sub Building Name and Building Name 13
10 Address with Sub Building Name, and using a range in the Building Name field 14
11 Address with Dependent Thoroughfare 15
12 Address with Thoroughfare Name and Descriptor 16
13 Address with HOUSE name and no Thoroughfare information 16
14 Address with ORGANISATION name and no Thoroughfare information 17
15 Breakdown of a Postcode 19
16 Valid Postcode formats 19
Chapter 2: Structure of PAF database 22
17 Small User Address & Organisation keys 25
18 Large user Address & Organisation keys 25
Chapter 3: Formatting a PAF Address for printing 26
19 Delivery point elements 27
20 Combinations of premises elements 28
21 Exception Rule indicator i) First and last characters of the Building Name are 29
numeric
22 Exception Rule indicator ii) First and penultimate characters are numeric, last 29
character is alphabetic
23 Exception Rule indicator iii) Building Name has only one character 30
24 Exception Rule indicator iv) Where the building name has a numeric range or a 30
Or a numeric alpha suffix prefixed by certain keywords
25 Premises elements Rule 1: Organisation Name 33
26 Premises elements Rule 2: Building Number only 34
27a-d Premises elements Rule 3: Building Name only 34-36
28 Premises elements Rule 4: Building Name and Building Number 37
29a-b Premises elements Rule 5: Sub Building Name and Building NUMBER 37-38
30 Premises elements Rule 6: Sub Building Name and Building NAME 39
31a-b Building Name 39-40

Section 6 - Appendices Trademarks and DPA Page 232 of 237

Table
Table title Page No
No
32 Premises elements Rule 7: Sub Building Name, Building Name and Building 41
Number
Chapter 4: Information on files & tables 43
33 Typical record definition table with several fields 43
Chapter 5: Mainfile™ 46
34 Mainfile™ file sizes 46
35 Mainfile relational database format 47
36 Welsh alternative addresses 50
37 Welsh alternatives for both Thoroughfare and Locality 51
38 Welsh alternative Thoroughfare but no Welsh Locality 51
39 Welsh alternative Locality but no Welsh Thoroughfare 52
Chapter 6: Alias® 65
40 Alias® file sizes 65
41 Allowable Alias Delivery Point categories 69
42 County abbreviations on Alias 71
Chapter 7: Keychain™ 73
43 Keychain™ file sizes 73
Chapter 8: Changes & Single Changes 77
44 Changes files Delivery Point views 78
45 Changes file sizes 78
46 Amendment type codes and reasons 91
Chapter 9: Compressed Standard File 96
47 Compressed Standard file sizes 96
Chapter 10: Ranges 104
48 Ranges file sizes 104
Chapter 11: Expanded Changes & Expanded Single Changes 112
49 Expanded Changes & Expanded Single Changes File sizes 112
50 Reasons for amendment 118
Chapter 12: Postcode Information File (PIF) 123
51 PIF file sizes 123
52a-b Contents of PIF 124-125
53 PIF example 1 – showing an address with an Organisation Name 127
54 PIF example 2 – showing an address with a Building Number 127
55 PIF example 3 – showing an address with a Building Name 127
56 PIF example 4 – showing an address with a PO Box Number 128
57 PIF example 5 – showing an address with a PO Box Number 128
Chapter 13: Postcode Information File (PIF) Changes 130
58 PIF Changes file sizes 130
Chapter 14: Unique Delivery Point Reference Number (UDPRN) 134
59 Unique Delivery Point Reference Number (UDPRN) file sizes 134
Chapter 16: Not Yet Built 148
60 Not Yet Built file sizes 148
Chapter 17: Just Built 161
61 Just Built file sizes 161

Section 6 - Appendices Trademarks and DPA Page 233 of 237

Table
Table title Page No
No
Chapter 18: Multiple Residence 173
62 Multiple Residence file sizes 173
Chapter 19: Postzon 184
63 Postzon file sizes 184
64 How Postzon relates to the National Grid 187
65 Grid status 188
Chapter 20: CSV PAF 191
66 CSV PAF File Size 191
Chapter 21: CSV PAF Changes 193
67 CSV PAF Changes file Sizes 193
68 Reasons for amendment 195
Chapter 22: CSV Alias 197
69 CSV Alias file Sizes 197
Chapter 23: CSV Multiple Residence 200
70 CSV Multiple Residence file sizes 200
Chapter 24: CSV Multiple Residence Changes 202
CSV Multiple Residence Changes file sizes 202
Chapter 25: CSV Just Built 205
72 CSV Just Built file sizes 205
Chapter 26: CSV Not Yet Built 207
73 CSV Not Yet Built file sizes 207
Chapter 27: CSV PIF 209
74 CSV PIF file sizes 209
Chapter 28: CSV BFPO 212
75 CSV BFPO file sizes 212
Chapter 29: CSV Postzon 215
76 CSV Postzon file sizes 215
77 How Postzon relates to the National Grid 217
78 Grid status 218
Appendix a): ASCII character tables & punctuation in PAF 183
79 ASCII character set conversion 220
80 PAF allowable characters 221
Appendix c): Cross-border Postcodes 223
81 Postcode sectors in Wales 223-224
82 English/Scottish border Postcodes 224
Appendix d): Media options 226
83 Mainfile product files 226
84 Alias product files 226
85 PAF® Changes product files 227
86 Compressed Standard product files – CD-Rom1 227
87 Compressed Standard product files – CD-Rom2 227
88 Ranges product files 228
89 PIF product files 228
90 Unique Delivery Point Reference Number (UDPRN) FULL product files 228

Section 6 - Appendices Trademarks and DPA Page 234 of 237

 91 Unique Delivery Point Reference Number (UDPRN) SINGLE CHANGES product 228
files
92 Unique Delivery Point Reference Number (UDPRN) CHANGES product files 229
93 Unique Delivery Point Reference Number (UDPRN) EXPANDED product files 229
94 Not Yet Built product file 230
95 Just Built product file 230
96 Multiple Residence product file 230
97 Postzon product file 230

Section 6 - Appendices Trademarks and DPA Page 235 of 237

Contact us for information
Contact the Address Management Unit (AMU) if you want more information about any of the Postcode products
in this guide.

Phone 08456 066 854 (option 3), 8.30am - 5pm Monday to Friday
Fax 02392 835 247
Email [email protected]
Customer Support Team, Address Management Unit, Royal Mail, Fourth Floor,
Address Slindon Street, PORTSMOUTH, PO1 1AF

Your comments on this guide

If you have any comments on the Programmers’ Guide Edition 7 we’d be pleased to hear from you. Email
feedback to [email protected] and type ‘Programmers’ Guide comment’ in the subject line.

Data Protection Act 1998

The Royal Mail Postcode Address File (PAF) per se does constitute processed personal data as defined in the
Data Protection Act 1998, and is appropriately ‘Notified’ with the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner.
If a company or other organisation purchases a copy of PAF and uses, alters or enhances it so that the details of
an individual can be located, it is the responsibility of the company or organisation to register appropriately with
the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner.

Disclaimer
This guide and the information contained in it are provided ‘as is’ and, save as prohibited by law, Royal Mail
makes no express or implied representations or warranties regarding the same and Royal Mail does not
represent or warrant that this guide will be error-free or will meet any particular criteria of performance or
quality.

Save as prohibited by law, Royal Mail excludes all liability for any loss arising out of or relating to the use of this
guide or the information in it, whether direct, indirect, consequential or special or howsoever arising.

This is Edition 7 of PAF Digest, now called the Programmers’ Guide. The information contained in this
publication is correct at the time of publication in 2013. Royal Mail Group Ltd does not accept any responsibility
for alterations, amendments or additions made to PAF by a company or organisation, or for any use of PAF by
reference to individuals.

Section 6 - Appendices Trademarks and DPA Page 236 of 237

 Published by Royal Mail. Royal Mail, PAF and the Royal Mail Cruciform are registered trade marks of Royal Mail Group
Ltd. The colour red, Alias and Postzon are registered trademarks of Royal Mail in the UK. Royal Mail Group is the owner
of the copyright and database rights in this guide. © 2009 Royal Mail Group Ltd. All rights reserved.

Section 6 - Appendices Trademarks and DPA Page 237 of 237