Evolving NLIS: Next generation of the National Land Information Service to support Government’s home buying reform

On October 6^th, the Government announced “the biggest shakeup to the homebuying system in this country’s history” in its Plan for Change. New measures, which will be announced in early 2026, aim to speed up the process of buying a home by four weeks, save first-time buyers an average of £710 and halve fall-throughs. 

This commitment to the reform of a ‘chaotic’ system, is long overdue, and at Land Data we welcome it wholeheartedly. The announcement focuses on the need for transparency, interoperability, trust, data standards and digitialisation. Each of these elements will underpin our vision to create a new platform for Official Searches and the provision of data from Official sources more widely.  

We've consulted widely with the market on the development of the new platform, both in our market research work and our successful Proof of Concept project over the summer. Letting the market guide our progress has, and will continue to be, paramount as we move forward, once funding is secured, with a new stakeholder advisory group and early adopter testing. 

How the next generation NLIS will support the Government’s Plan for Change 

Tackling fragmentation and inefficiency 

We agree with MHCLG: the current system is fragmented and slow. The next generation of NLIS will streamline the Official Searches process, reducing turnaround times through: 

• Use of data standards and integration of the UPRN for greater accuracy 

• Clear, live pricing 

• Polygon-based search requests 

  
  

Enabling upfront information 

The platform will be a key enabler of upfront information, providing access to Official data, from source, earlier in the process. This supports smoother transactions and fewer fall-throughs, a major goal of the Government’s reform. 

Improving market transparency 

Requests for Official data will be recorded with performance metrics, giving the market, and Government, a clear view of search volumes and turnaround times by region. 

Driving innovation 

By standardising and opening up access to Official data, the platform will support PropTech innovation including new use cases such as digital logbooks and building safety checks. 

Supporting local authorities 

The new platform helps protect the income local authorities receive from Official data requests, ensuring sustainable data services and high-quality information for the market. 

Our work on the Proof of Concept has been positive and we hope to continue to work on evolving NLIS to support a faster and more efficient home buying journey for all. 

The Plan for Change will be driven by a new roadmap, set to be announced in early 2026 following a consultation ending December 29th.  

If you have any questions about the development of the next generation of the National Land Information Service, please contact me: fiona.barron@land-data.org.uk 

Photo by Greg Willson on Unsplash