Building a resilient foundation:
Unified gazetteers and iManage Cloud in local government reorganisation

Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) presents a rare moment to rethink foundational data infrastructure. While much commentary rightly focuses on political, financial and service design challenges, one of the most critical enablers of day one continuity is often under-appreciated: a single, authoritative address register. The recent White Paper on the digital, data and technology (DDaT) implications of local government reorganisation (UKAuthority and Phoenix) highlights precisely this, noting how DDaT must be firmly at the centre of merging and transforming service delivery. Claire Russell, Idox’s Product Specialist for Address Data Solutions, highlights the critical need for new unitaries to build robust address and street data from the moment they go live. A shared, integrated platform keeps services running smoothly and guarantees the accuracy residents rely on.

Why a unified LLPG/LSG matters on vesting day

In reorganising councils into new unitary authorities, one of the most delicate challenges is data continuity. Vesting day is not just a political reset, it’s an operational one. On that day, systems must function, residents must still be served, and critical services (planning, social care, waste, emergency response) cannot go offline. The UKAuthority report emphasises that “clear DDaT leadership, early discovery and realistic governance are critical … to avoid friction and delay.”

One of the day-one essentials the report identifies is a minimum viable technical stack, including unified identity, secure collaboration, and shared data sources. A unified Local Land and Property Gazetteer (LLPG) and Local Street Gazetteer (LSG) provide exactly that: a single source of truth for address data with their Unique Property Reference Numbers (UPRN) and Unique Street Reference Numbers (USRN) – the golden thread that underpins operational continuity across services.

Lessons from Somerset Council: iManage & iManage Cloud in practice

Somerset Council’s experience is particularly instructive. As part of its transformation into a unitary authority, Somerset inherited multiple legacy systems from predecessor councils. One of the biggest challenges was integrating property and street data from five different authorities. The Council saw this as more than a data merge, it was a chance to raise the bar. By consolidating four LLPGs and five LSGs into one cohesive system, Somerset Council seized the opportunity to enhance data quality from the ground up, achieving the prestigious Gold Standard under GeoPlace’s annual Improvement Schedule.

At the time, Idox’s iManage Cloud was still in development, so the decision was made to bring all legacy systems together under a single iManage hosted desktop platform, a familiar and proven solution for three of the four councils. Working closely with both Idox and GeoPlace, the team ensured the consolidated gazetteer was robust, accurate, and ready to go live by vesting day.

In practical terms, this meant that once the unitary transitioned, all its systems could draw accurate address and street data from the LLPG and LSG. This solid foundation saved the Council both the time and risk that can be caused by inconsistent address data rippling across planning, waste collection, licensing, electoral services, and more.

Innovation via centralisation and integration

Here’s where the innovation truly comes in. By leveraging iManage Cloud as a central address store:

1. 1. Service continuity: From day one, integration with third party systems provided the same authoritative address data. 
   2. Interoperability: Through integration with third-party systems, councils can experience reduced friction between line-of-business applications. Systems for planning, housing, public safety, customer service could all rely on the same address backbone.
   3. Data quality & validation: As iManage Cloud enforces address validation on entry, it ensures compliance with GeoPlace standards (BS7666). 
   4. Cybersecurity & resilience: From a cyber risk perspective, consolidation matters. The UKAuthority report argues that LGR is an opportunity to adopt a “defend-as-one posture” for security, raising the bar to the strongest council’s standard. Idox’s cybersecure, resilient iManage Cloud, can reduce its attack surface, standardise access controls, and better manage identity and privilege.
   5. Scalability and shared services: With segregated data where required, the unitary can support sub-structures (e.g., localities, service teams) while still maintaining central LLPG and LSG data.

Risk mitigation in reorganisation

Consolidating gazetteers and service systems via a platform like iManage Cloud also mitigates certain risks raised in the White Paper and associated LGR guidance:

• Licensing & contracts: Legacy systems often have fragmented contracts and tenancy licensing. A central cloud service reduces the need for multiple on-premise instances and license duplication.
• Corporate memory loss: The Institute for Government’s analysis of LGR warns of the “long tail” of embedding new structures and transforming services post-vesting day. A centralised, cloud-based registry helps preserve institutional knowledge and ensures continuity of data stewardship.
• Governance overhaul: Building a unified gazetteer forces early decisions on governance i.e. who owns the data, who has edit access, how updates are governed. These are exactly the data governance issues DDaT leaders must surface early, as emphasized in the UKAuthority briefing. 

Strategic implications & recommendations

Based on Somerset’s example and the broader insights from the White Paper, a few strategic conclusions and recommendations emerge:

1. Treat the gazetteer as a strategic asset, not a technical afterthought
   • On LGR transition planning, the gazetteer should be elevated to a day-one service dependency.
   • Appoint a data lead early (e.g., Chief Data Officer) to oversee address register strategy and integration.
   • Engage with a technology partner with experience of similar changes within new unitaries.
2. Adopt cloud-first address management
   • Evaluate cloud-based gazetteer management systems like iManage Cloud to avoid the pitfalls of on-premise fragmentation.
   • Leverage vendor features for validation, security, and multi-tenancy to future-proof your data.
3. Design for “defend as one” cyber posture
   • Consolidation of address data is also an opportunity to unify security controls.
   • Establish consistent identity, access, and privilege management from day one.
4. Governance & data quality processes
   • Define policies for address creation, editing, and validation (e.g., who in the organisation can create new properties or streets).
   • Use a gazetteer management system that complies with British Standard BS7666 and enforces GeoPlace validation on entry.
5. Leverage integration early
   • Map out all core line-of-business systems that need address data (planning, licensing, social care, electoral register etc.).
   • Build integration points to the central LLPG and LSG early to avoid point-to-point data bridging later.

Conclusion 

Local Government Reorganisation offers a generational opportunity not just to streamline political boundaries, but to reset and modernise the very digital foundations of place-based services. A unified LLPG and LSG, underpinned by a cloud-native system like iManage Cloud, is more than a technical convenience. It’s a strategic enabler of continuity, resilience, and innovation.

Claire Russell, Product Specialist at Idox comments, “By embedding this capability from vesting day, new unitary councils can avoid the messy data tug-of-war that often follows reorganisations, reduce risk, and position themselves for future transformation. The UKAuthority White Paper’s emphasis on DDaT leadership, early discovery, and realistic governance resonates strongly here: the address and street gazetteers are not just data registers, they’re the bedrock on which modern, joined-up, cyber-resilient public services can be rebuilt.”

Speak to an expert to find out how iManage Cloud can position your new unitary ready for vesting day.