Council maintainable routes, public highways and private roads

We may be able to provide more information in relation to the extent of the highway boundary. You can request this by emailing a location plan and details of your request to highwayrecords@suffolkhighways.org.  Please note this address is not correct for reporting of highway defects - use should be made of the Highways Reporting Tool on the Suffolk County Council website.

There is usually a charge for this information based on whether we already hold the information you are requesting or whether we have to carry out research. Charges start at £65 plus VAT (20%).

We will send you a quote, and if you decide to go ahead with your request, we will send you details on how to pay.

We will endeavour to provide a first response within 20 working days.  Subsequent provision of plans of highway boundaries will take 2-3 weeks for simple sites and approximately 4-8 weeks for sites involving additional research.

The List of Streets is a directory of all highways maintainable at public expense by Suffolk County Council.

The following legal events can cause the List of Streets to be amended

• Renaming of an existing street
• Adoption of an unadopted street
• Stopping up of a street - Please read the information in the "Changes to the extent of the highway" section on this page.
• Classification or declassification of a street

• Amendment of the definitive map of public rights of way

For more information regarding particular records, please email highwayrecords@suffolkhighways.org.  However, If you have a public right of way query, please contact the definitive map team by email: definitivemap.enquiries@suffolk.gov.uk or telephone: 01473 264774.

Please note this address is not correct for reporting of highway defects - use should be made of the Highways Reporting Tool on the Suffolk County Council website.

Our current response time

We will endeavour to provide a first response within 20 working days. Subsequent provision of plans of highway boundaries will take 2-3 weeks for simple sites and 4-8 weeks for sites involving additional research.

We cannot guarantee that an exhaustive search has been made with regard to archived documents.

An unadopted and/or private road is any route that is not maintainable by the council.

It can be a track leading to a farm, a residential road or a route built by a third party (usually a developer). Public areas including roads and pavements in new developments are usually the responsibility of the developer.

Some streets are in private ownership and are therefore not maintained by us.

Maintenance of private roads is usually the responsibility of the owner(s). This may be the residents of a road who each own the part in front of their house or a third party.

This means that we are under no obligation to carry out repairs or cleaning to the road, even though it could be a public right of way to which highway and traffic law can be applied.

There are numerous organisations and individuals who own areas of land which are used by the public but are not maintainable by us. We do not tend to hold records of who is responsible for them but the borough, district, town or parish councils may know the owner.

Some examples of these areas are:

• Areas beyond the extent of the maintainable highway (this usually includes the road, pavement and/or verge). Usually hedges, ditches and fences adjacent to a road or footway are beyond the extent of the highway and are part of the adjacent landowner's property.
• Shared driveways, access points, and parking areas are generally not our responsibility unless they are part of the maintainable highway.
• Usually, the roads on trading and industrial estates are not part of the maintainable highway. The owner or manager of the estate should be contacted with your concerns. Sometimes their details are displayed on signs at the entry/exit points.

It is possible for areas of the highway to be "stopped up", a process where the highway rights are removed and control over the land reverts to the freehold or leasehold owner of the subsoil. This can be done to allow for development (as long as appropriate planning permission has been obtained) or to remove sections of highway that are unnecessary for public use.

Stopping up highway to allow for development

When developing land, it is possible to apply for a stopping up order under Section 247 of the Town & Country Planning Act 1990.

• For the application to be successful, the applicant has to have applied for, and obtained, planning permission.
• The National Transport Casework Team then reviews the application to decide whether to grant a stopping up order for the section of highway.
• If the application is successful, then the works, for which planning permission has been granted, can be undertaken.  

For the application form and further guidance please visit the GOV.UK website.

Stopping up highway that is unnecessary for public use

Areas of public highway sometimes become unnecessary for public use and the highway rights can then be "stopped up" under Section 116 of the Highways Act 1980. 

Should you wish to enquire about permanently "stopping up" an area of highway that is unnecessary for public use, please contact us for advice: 

• by email: highwayrecords@suffolkhighways.org.  Please note this address is not correct for reporting of highway defects - use should be made of the Highways Reporting Tool on the Suffolk County Council website.
• or by post to:

Our response time

We will endeavour to provide a first response within 20 working days.

Street Names and House Numbers

Please contact the borough or district council for:

• getting a street renamed
• reporting a problem with a street name sign
• having a house renumbered.

Is my street adopted?

Please visit the Find My Street website.

How can I get a street adopted? 

Please read the information on the Development Design and Specification page on this website.

How can I get a street stopped up? 

Please read the information in the "Changes to the extent of the highway" section on this page.

How can I get a copy of a Section 38 Agreement?

Visit the Local Land Charges webpage, for their services and price list.