By Legal Futures Associate Land Data
The Isle of Wight Council’s Local Land Charges team were named winners of the first Best Performing Migrated Local Authority award on 28 March, at the 16th Land Data Local Land Charges Awards for Excellence gala dinner. The event was attended by over 120 Local Land Charges (LLC) Officers and hosted by comedian Dominic Holland.
The new award recognises local authority LLC teams who have migrated their LLC registers to HM Land Registry’s national Local Land Charges Register. It celebrates the outstanding management of these registers and good communication with HM Land Registry, helping property buyers to achieve the best outcomes.
To assess this award, HM Land Registry judges used live data from the LLC platform to rank departments based on key performance criteria, which included: time taken to register new charges, completeness of entries, accuracy of entries and time taken to correct errors. The judges analysed data from local authorities who had been in live service for at least 6 months, during the period 1 February 2022 – 31 January 2023.
The migration of local land charges registers from local authorities to HM Land Registry’s national digital service is the most significant change to searches in over 20 years. Critical information about restrictions or conditions that affect a property are available instantly online, in a standard, easy to read format. To date, 66 local authorities have migrated their registers, 99 are migrating, and 166 are yet to migrate.
Allison Bradbury, Head of LLC Implementation, said:
“The work we are doing with local authorities is revolutionising local land charge searches for property buyers and those requiring search information. Property purchase remains one of the single largest transactions most people undertake. It is vital that buyers have quick and simple access to the information they require, so decision-making can be informed, preventing transactions from failing.”
“Improvements to the conveyancing process have come a long way since the National Land Information Service started the move from paper-based to electronic searches more than 20 years ago. Digitisation of processes and systems has improved the consistency, quality and breath of information available, providing users with a better conveyancing experience. The Best Performing Migrated Local Authority Award takes these improvements a step further, helping us to achieve the highest data quality consistently.”
Fiona Barron, Chief Executive, at Land Data said:
“The transition of local authority registers to HM Land Registry’s national platform represents a significant change for LLC teams, with their role shifting to managing and updating the register, rather than completing the LLC1. This new award shows that LLC teams are not just adapting to new ways of working but are delivering extremely high levels of data management. It is crucial that the highest quality land and property data continues to be sourced directly from Local Authorities – ensuring its provenance, reliability and value to the home buyer and property market.”
Clive Joynes, Elections and Local Land Charges Manager at the Isle of Wight Council said: “The Isle of Wight Council is delighted that the hard work put in by the Local Land Charges Team at the council to maintain Local Land Charges Register data to the highest of standards has been recognised by HM Land Registry, Land Data, and the wider Local Land Charges community. Accuracy and attention to detail have been the key to ensuring that our data always meets the exacting standards required by HM Land Registry, and we have been very well supported by colleagues at HM Land Registry both throughout the initial migration period, and on a continuing basis.”
The other six award categories were the Customer Satisfaction Award, supported by The Coal Authority, Best Newcomer, supported by SearchFlow, Best Performing NLIS Local Land Charges Department, supported by the National Land Information Service (NLIS), the Unsung Hero Award, supported by the National Land Information Service Helpdesk, and the Local Authority Searches Team of the Year, supported by the Local Land Charges Institute.
The 2023 award winners are:
- Customer Satisfaction Award for Local Authority Searches –supported by The Coal Authority
District Councils
Winner: Arun District Council
Highly commended: West Devon Borough Council
Metropolitan District Councils
Winner: Gateshead Metropolitan District Council
Highly commended: Dudley Metropolitan District Council
London Borough Councils
Winner: London Borough of Hillingdon
Highly Commended: London Borough of Barnet
- Local Land Authority Searches Team of the Year – supported by the Local Land Charges InstituteWinner: West Lindsey District Council
Highly commended: Buckinghamshire Council
- Best Newcomer – supported by SearchFlowWinner: Claire Sharman from Ashfield District Council
Highly Commended: Karen Garner from Arun District Council
- Best Performing NLIS Level 2 Local Land Charges Department – supported by the National Land Information Service (NLIS)Winner: London Borough of Lambeth
Highly commended: London Borough of Bromley
- Best Performing NLIS Level 3 Local Land Charges Department – supported by the National Land Information Service (NLIS) Winner: City of York Council
Highly commended: London Borough of Sutton
- Best Performing Migrated Local Authority – supported by HM Land RegistryWinner: Isle of Wight Council
Highly commended: Mid Suffolk Council
- The Unsung Hero Award – supported by the National Land Information Service (NLIS) HubWinner: Anita Tunnicliffe, Stoke-on-Trent Council City Council
Highly commended: Sumitra Chudasama from London Borough of Brent
