BRMA definitions table

Dear Mr Cornes,

Re: Freedom of Information Act 2000 (“the Act”)

I refer to your data request of 14th November 2009. Please accept
my apologises for the time that it has taken to respond but your
inquiry, sent via the WhatDoTheyKnow site, which was caught in the
Agency’s spam filter.

Although the first paragraph of your e-mail is not in itself a
request for information, you do offer the observation that the LHA
Direct site does not contain “a complete table of BRMA definitions
and rates”. While it remains correct to say that the BRMA
definitions are not available in table format, a complete table of
all BRMAs and the applicable rates are now published monthly on the
Agency’s public website at:

http://www.voa.gov.uk/lhadirect/brma_jul...

I trust that this is of assistance in addressing your requirements.

Your substantive information inquiry is your request for “a data
file containing the exact definition of every BRMA…complete for the
UK, and allow any UK address to be matched to a single BRMA”.

As I understand your request, you want a list of postcodes relating
to each BRMA.

The Agency responds to your request as follows:

1. The Agency holds this information in relation to England.

2. The Agency only has a direct statutory responsibility for BRMAs
in England.

3. The Agency has access to similar information for both Scotland
and Wales. In relation to Scotland, this information is held by the
Rent Service Scotland, who can be contacted at
[email address]. In relation to Wales, this
information is held by Rent Officers Wales, who can be contacted at
[email address].

4. A BRMA is properly defined by its borders, in other words, by
lines drawn on a map. The LHA Direct site already contains maps of
all BRMAs. Accordingly, this information is reasonably accessible
to you already and is exempt from disclosure under section 21(1) of
the Act.

5. Assuming that one knows the postcode pertaining to particular
address, the existing LHA Direct site already allows a search to be
made that matches that address to its applicable BRMA. Again, the
section 21 exemption applies.

6. The network of BRMAs determined by the Agency covers, without
interruption or overlap, the whole of England. The provision of a
complete set of postcodes for every BRMA would necessarily involve
the disclosure of every level (up to and including level 4) of
every individual postcode used in England. The intellectual
property rights in this postcode information are owned by Royal
Mail. The postcode information is used under licence by the Agency.
That licence does not permit the wholesale dissemination of
postcodes to a third party. To do so would damage the commercial
interests of both Royal Mail and the Agency. The postcodes for the
whole of England are used, and are likely to be used for the
foreseeable future, by Royal Mail in support of its core business
at a time when the postal delivery market is being opened to
greater competition. The unauthorised disclosure of a complete set
of postcodes could therefore cause substantial and irrecoverable
damage to the business of Royal Mail. Unauthorised disclosure by
the Agency would have an adverse impact on its reputation in
relation to the way in which it is seen to be complying with its
obligations towards others that in turn would impact upon its
future ability to meet its statutory functions. This, coupled with
the potential prejudice to the commercial interests of Royal Mail,
outweighs any current or future public interest in disclosing the
information requested. Accordingly, the Agency relies on the
exemption to disclose contained in section 43(2) of the Act.

If you are not happy with this reply you may request a review. Any
such request should be made by writing to: The Customer Service
Team, Chief Executive’s Office, Valuation Office Agency, Wingate
House, 93/107 Shaftesbury Avenue, London, W1D 5BU or by email at:
[email address].

You must request a review within 2 months of the date of this
letter. It would assist our review if you set out which aspects of
the reply concern you and why you are dissatisfied.

If you are not content with the outcome of the internal review, you
have the right to apply directly to the Information Commissioner
(ICO) for a decision. Generally, the ICO cannot make a decision
unless you have exhausted the complaints procedure provided by the
Valuation Office Agency. The Information Commissioner can be
contacted at: The Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe
House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF. Alternatively, if
there is anything that you would like me to clarify please contact
me by email at [email address].

Regards, Stephanie Mindel Team Leader Rent Officer Specialist
Functions Team