Leicestershire, UK, 18 February 2015 – Aerial photography from Bluesky is supporting the delivery of essential council services in Gloucestershire. The high resolution imagery is helping staff at Cotswolds District Council deal with requests from the public, whether in person, online or via the Council’s Customer Contact Centre. The data is also supporting staff in the planning, environment and property services directorates, providing an up to date, accurate and consistent record of one of England’s most popular and visited areas.
“The Bluesky aerial photography has been very well received,” commented Sean Ashton, GIS Officer at Cotswold District Council. “Many of our users are familiar with aerial photography through online mapping sites such as Google. However, the Bluesky imagery is much more up to date, and provides a consistent record of both the urban and rural environment.”
Early applications of the Bluesky data by staff at Cotswold District Council have included property investigations during data matching to improve the accuracy of the Council’s centralised address gazetteer (Local Land and Property Gazetteer). Tree Officers within the Environment section of the Council use the imagery for a range of planning matters, including Tree Preservation Orders and Development Management, as well as the management of work on trees in conservation areas (Section 211 Notices) by landowners or tree surgeons. The Bluesky data is also proving useful for front of house staff when dealing with members of the public as it provides a really up to date record of recent developments and can help with a range of planning enquiries. Members of the Council’s Property Services team also use the data for land ownership queries and boundary analysis.
Bluesky flew the whole of Gloucestershire in 2014, and 1,164 square kilometres of processed data was delivered to Cotswold District Council. Covering a large area of Designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, the aerial photography forms part of Bluesky’s nationwide archive of high resolution, regularly updated, aerial photography available to view and purchase online at www.blueskymapshop.com.
