North Devon’s land charges team highly commended at national awards

North Devon Council’s land charges team has been highly commended at a national awards for their diligence, speed and accuracy in carrying out land and property searches for house buyers.

The team was recognised at the 2025 Land Data Local Land Charges Awards for Excellence, which highlight the work and achievements of local authority local land charges departments that carry out the searches needed for conveyancing transactions in England and Wales.

The North Devon team was highly commended in the Best Performing NLIS Local Land Charges Department category, which focuses on local authorities using the National Land Information System, or NLIS – the largest provider of ‘official’ searches.

The judging panel reviewed data from the NLIS Hub to come to their final decision, including the speed searches are turned around, search accuracy and the level of overdue searches.

Head of governance at NDC, Adam Tape, said: “We are delighted the hard work of our land charges team has once again been recognised at a national level.

“The continued success of the team is a testament to the experience and commitment of Rob Bates, our land charges manager and the team who work so hard - it is very much deserved.

“Conveyancers and residents who come to the team can always rely on a high level of service, with a swift and accurate response to ensure housing transactions move swiftly.”

Chief executive of Land Data, Fiona Barron, added: “Our 2025 award-winners and shortlisted councils have all demonstrated high levels of achievement and professionalism.

“These teams and individuals really care about maintaining the quality of their data, improving the efficiency of their team and ensuring that their residents get the best possible authoritative data, enabling them to move home as quickly as possible. In a role which is too often taken for granted, they have used initiative, grit and creativity to find new solutions and more opportunities to add value.”

The Excellence Awards are judged by representatives from Local Land Charges Institute, SearchFlow, The Coal Authority, HM Land Registry, the Law Society, Land Data and the National Land Information Service (NLIS).