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Public sector FAQs - the benefits of membership

The following information is provided to help as an introduction to the benefits of membership under a public sector mapping agreement.

Please click on the questions below, to go to the relevant answer or additional resources.

What do I get when I join a mapping agreement?

What are the benefits?

What are the costs?

What do I get when I join a public sector mapping agreement?

As a public sector organisation, you will be provided a licence to use Ordnance Survey mapping data to support you in the non-commercial provision of your public services.

This means you can share mapping data with other agreement members as well as pass mapping to organisations outside the agreement that are working on your behalf.  The licence does not allow you to make a commercial profit from re-selling the data.

The mapping agreements provide access to an extensive portfolio of Ordnance Survey mapping products.

In addition, you will receive access to the Public sector members’ website area. This gives you access to additional resources to support you including the community/forum area, member news and events and other information. You will also be able order and download the products included in your mapping agreement.

What are the benefits?

The main benefits of membership are as follows;

  • Access to professional, high quality Ordnance Survey digital mapping which can assist with decision making, delivering local services and asset management.
  • Ability to share digital information with other agreement members, such as Local Authorities and Health organisations to maximise efficiency savings.
  • Engage with the entire public sector community to share smart ways of working, best practice and new ideas to enhance the value in what you do.
  • Pass mapping to organisations working on your behalf to bring about time and cost savings.


For examples of how agreement members across all sectors are benefiting from the use of Ordnance Survey mapping, see our case-study section.

What are the costs?

There are no costs to join a public sector mapping agreement and access the mapping products within the agreement.

Before joining you should consider how you are going to use the data and whether you need to purchase specialist software for mapping. Furthermore, if you intend to use any of our addressing datasets, such as AddressBase, AddressBase Plus or AddressBase Premium you will need to consider the cost of PAF royalties.

Where can I get more help?

If you need further assistance, please also visit our support page.

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For general enquiries, complaints, feedback or suggestions, email: customerservices@ordnancesurvey.co.uk or call us on 08456 05 05 05