Have you ever wondered who decides what a new street should be called and how names are chosen? Behind every name is a story, shaped by local history, community feedback and more.
The responsibility of naming the borough’s streets sits with Samantha Steggles at Ealing Council. It is one that Samantha takes seriously because the names and numbers given to the borough’s streets and buildings impact everything from helping ambulances reach people who need them to making sure post can be delivered.
Samantha’s role as corporate data and street naming and numbering officer involves a careful process, legal requirements and consulting with the emergency services, Royal Mail and councillors.
When new homes or streets are built by developers or individuals they are asked to suggest at least 3 possible names for the street and reasons why they have proposed them as part of the street naming and numbering process . Sometimes Samantha helps with suggestions based on local history or wildlife and nature.
Samantha makes sure that the suggestions comply with the council’s street naming policy.
Some of the rules include:
- you cannot use a name that sounds like another in the same area. For example, you could not choose Birch Hill Road in an area that already has a Churchill Road because this could be confusing
- you must have official permission from the Lord Chamberlain’s office to name a street after a member of the royal family
- avoid names which are offensive or can be easily altered or misinterpreted
- a name cannot promote a company, service or product. It is only allowed if the company no longer exists and there is a historical link to the area
Last week, Samantha accepted the gold award for street data on behalf of Ealing Council at the Geoplace Examplar Awards. The award recognises commitment to maintaining high quality address and street data.
Can I have a road named after myself?
When she tells people about her job, they often ask Samantha if a road can be named in their honour.
“The answer is no, not while you’re alive,” she said.
Samantha added: “A road can only be named after a person has been deceased for more than 40 years and they must have a strong connection to the site. Leaving it so long after a person has died helps to avoid the risk of controversies or sensitive details emerging that would make it inappropriate to name a street after them. The only exception on the 40-year-rule would be if a person died whilst on military service or as part of an emergency blue light response.”
What happens once a name is agreed?
Once a new street name is agreed, Samantha records the name and makes it part of the borough’s official address system before sharing it with organisations who rely on having accurate addresses such as Royal Mail, emergency services and utility companies. The council also allocates house or building numbers along the street. The new name and addresses are added to national database of more than 42million addresses held by Ordnance Survey and GeoPlace.
Can I name the house I have built?
Samantha said: “You would need to apply for street naming and numbering, and we would carry out our usual checks and consultations. Our advice is to provide three distinctly different names such as Clovelly Cottage, Puddle Duck Barn or Kingfisher House.”
The streets that Samantha has been involved in naming since joining the council in 2023 include: Rathbone Terrace, Aviator Crescent and Coneybury Close in Northolt; Burslem Close, in Southall; Oakwood Drive and Heritage Drive in, Park Royal, and Darjeeling Close, Hanwell. From 2024 to 2025, Samantha created 3,500 addresses in the borough.
‘Getting people from A to B’
Samantha said: “I could talk for hours about the theories behind geography and place and why they’re so important but if I had to summarise what I do and why I love it, it’s because I help people get from A to B and create a sense of community through an address. If I’ve done my job correctly, nobody should know that I’ve done it because there won’t be any confusion about an address or street name and goods, services and people will get to where they need to be.”
Did you know?
- the Australian-themed streets in West Ealing – Adelaide, Brisbane and Sydney Roads and Melbourne Avenue – are thought to have been named by landowner Charles Steel who had a fruit business and frequently travelled to Australia
- Bramley Road in Ealing is named after the cooking apple and is a link to when the area had lots of orchards supplying London markets
- Allenby Road in Southall used to be known as Muddy Road until 1930 and Popes Lane was once known as Folly Lane. Other street names which no longer exist include Thieving Lane and Love Lane
- there are 2,906 roads across the borough of which 2,237 are public roads.
Information
Visit the council’s website for information on the street naming and numbering process.
