A collaborative initiative to share information between emergency service bodies in Wales using the Unique Property Reference Number (UPRN) as a common identifier has won this year's GeoPlace Exemplar Awards.
The awards are for innovation in local authorities' management and use of local address and street information.
Partners in the Joint Emergency Service Group (Wales) include North Wales Fire and Rescue Service; South Wales Fire and Rescue Service; Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service; South Wales Police; Dyfed Powys Police; Gwent Police; Welsh Ambulance Services Trust; and Newport City Council.
The project has enabled information sharing and reduced the telephone transfer time on emergencies from over 4 minutes to 16 seconds, and is projected to save more than 18,000 response hours across the emergency services in Wales, the group says. There are now plans to extend the project to England.
Oxford City Council was runner-up for its virtual deeds room and voluntary registration of title land and property ownership projects, while Northumberland County Council was highly commended for a project to improve the way the authority administers its elections function.
Other winners included "Custodian of the Year", which went to Marilyn George of East Riding of Yorkshire Council; Ribble Valley Borough Council, for most improved address data, and Milton Keynes Council for most improved street data, alongside a number of regional awards.
GeoPlace is a public sector limited liability partnership between the Local Government Association and Ordnance Survey. Its role is to maintain the National Address Gazetteer and the National Street Gazetteer for England and Wales, providing definitive sources of spatial address and street data.
Pictured: Tony Bracey of the Joint Emergency Services Group receiving the 2014 Exemplar Award from Helen Platts, head of finance at the Local Government Association.
Full list of award winners {NB - pdf file]: http://www.iahub.net/docs/1398856468929.pdf
GeoPlace: www.geoplace.co.uk
