Dear LMEHA Members,

We wanted to share an important update on the ongoing work to improve how navigation systems, deliveries, and emergency services find homes at Lower Mill Estate. While long-term fixes are underway, there are a few immediate steps every resident can take to help.

What You Can Do Now

1. Include your full address and What3Words location in all delivery notes and visitor directions. You can find your What3Words by visiting https://what3words.com and clicking on your home. Please also remind visitors and delivery drivers that they should only attempt to enter via the main gate with the security hut on Lower Mill Lane — none of the other gates are open to the public.
2. Advise guests and deliveries to use Apple Maps if they can – Apple Maps currently shows homes more accurately at LME. Not everyone has an iPhone, so if they don’t, suggest they double‑check directions with What3Words or ask for your guidance before travelling.
3. Display emergency information in your home, ideally near the front door or phone. Include:

• Your full postal address
• Postcode
• What3Words location
• The LME emergency contact number (to alert staff once 999 has been called)
• A note to inform emergency services of the local mapping issues, providing your What3Words as additional guidance and emphasising that they should only enter via the main gate on Lower Mill Lane

1. If you rent out your property, please include this same information in your guest information pack and booking confirmation emails.

Why This Matters

Over the past few months, we’ve seen increasing issues with navigation systems sending deliveries, visitors, and even emergency vehicles to the wrong entrances or locations within the estate. These problems stem from inaccurate postcode mapping and incomplete internal road data used by sat nav and emergency systems.

As a result, some postcodes point to the wrong areas, and several gates that are not accessible to the public are mistakenly treated as open access routes. This has caused confusion and, in at least one case, delayed emergency response.

What We’re Doing to Fix It

We’re now working closely with Cotswold District Council (CDC), Ordnance Survey (OS), and the LME Estate Office to correct these problems. This includes:

• Auditing all property addresses and postcodes.
• Correcting postcode polygon errors with Ordnance Survey.
• Adding the internal roads to the official Gazetteer and marking all but the main entrance as private/no access.
• Updating Google and Apple Maps once the verified data is ready.
• Potentially installing better signage and maps at key points around the estate to guide visitors and responders.
• Exploring the creation of a central delivery box location on the estate, which residents could optionally use for secure parcel drop-off and collection to reduce failed deliveries and improve convenience

These fixes will take some time to flow through national systems, so your help in sharing accurate information now will make a real difference.

We’ll provide further updates as the project progresses. Thank you for your cooperation and for helping make the estate safer and easier to navigate for everyone.

Best regards,

Lower Mill Estate Homeowners Association (LMEHA)