Ordnance Survey
We create, maintain and distribute detailed location information for Great Britain. We record and keep 500 million geospatial features in the Ordnance Survey (OS) master map up-to-date.
Geospatial information – it’s in the sat nav in your car, the apps on your phone and the survey of your home. But what about the data you don’t see?
Our thought leaders are re-imaging and re-thinking the use of geospatial on the global stage, to improve our everyday lives. Meet the decision-makers here at OS.
Think customer
We put the customer at the heart of everything we do.
Thrive together
We work as one team to deliver for our customers; learning from each other, communicating openly and connecting powerfully.
Stay ahead
We set the standard and lead the way – delivering certainty today and innovating to stay ahead tomorrow.
Seize the moment
We seize every opportunity to turn ambition into action; making things happen with passion and purpose.
Our Story
In 1784, Roy was commissioned by the Royal Society to geodetically connect the Royal Observatories of Greenwich and Paris to solve a dispute over their relative positions. To do this he needed a more sophisticated theodolite (a precision instrument for measuring angles horizontally and vertically) than had previously existed.
While the public still knows us for our comprehensive range of printed leisure maps, the digital side of the business accounts for more than 90% of turnover.
The public and private sectors benefit from accurate information about ‘location’ and a world-leading reliable geographic framework helps deliver effective and efficient services.
We continue to sell a limited reproduction range of one inch to one mile maps (revised from the late 1800s and published in the early years of the 1900s) from our OS map shop. We also sell various historical products produced by our Licensed Partners.