PR 09/12
28 June 2012

Land Registry Annual Report and Accounts 2011/12

Land Registry – 'Changing for the better'

Land Registry, the government department responsible for land registration in England and Wales, today (28 June 2012) published its Annual Report and Accounts for 2011/12.

A solid year of performance against targets, the completion of major structural changes, responding to the needs of customers and embracing new responsibilities were among the highlights for Land Registry in 2011/12.

Launching the annual report, Malcolm Dawson, Chief Land Registrar and Chief Executive said:

"Land Registry has changed for the better over the past year. That’s not just my opinion – it's what our customers are telling me too.

"Nearly 80 per cent of our work is now managed via dedicated customer teams. The feedback has been positive. We're more open, flexible and focused on our customer needs. The improvement in our customer satisfaction score to 97 per cent over the year including an outstanding 99 per cent in the last quarter is a testament to the work that we've done towards becoming a more proactive and responsive organisation that focuses on the relationship with its customers.

"We have completed a tough restructuring programme which began following the economic downturn in 2008. We closed several of our offices, ran a voluntary severance exercise and completed the outsourcing of our facilities and file stores. It’s been sad to see valued colleagues leave the organisation but these changes were necessary and we did our best to manage them sensitively. We have restored financial stability and now expect to reduce our fees later this year, passing on the benefit to our customers.

"Alongside structural changes, ministerial responsibility moved to the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) as a precursor to becoming a founder member of the Public Data Group as part of the Government’s objectives for improving accessibility of public data and supporting economic growth. While our central purpose remains intact, we are now also focused on our new role in deploying our resources and assets to the benefit of the economy and society at large.

"Overall we have a great foundation to build on over the coming year – a historic one for us as we celebrate our 150^th anniversary. There are some real challenges to come but I am confident that we will meet them to the benefit of our customers, our partners, our employees and the wider economy."

New Chair Mark Boyle added that since he took up his appointment in October 2011, he's been impressed by Land Registry's professionalism and capability. He believes it has a strong base for the future created by its restructuring programme and the development of the Customer Strategy.

Highlights of the year include:

Joining the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and becoming a founder member of the Public Data Group, meant that Land Registry increasingly focused on its role as a data business and on the Government's objectives of improving the accessibility of public data and supporting economic growth. As a first step, monthly Transaction Data was released for free for the first time in January 2012 with monthly Price Paid Data following in March. This stimulated considerable interest from both businesses and members of the public.
A retained surplus of £67.8m was achieved in 2011/12 following deficits during the previous three financial years totalling £163.6m (£4.8 million in 2010/11). The healthier financial position will enable a fee order to be implemented in 2012/13 which will reduce fees by an average of 10 per cent.
Eleven of 14 performance targets were achieved including an improvement of five points to a 97 per cent customer satisfaction rating - the highest ever since independent surveys began. Targets for casework speed, quality and accuracy were all met as customer team working became the norm for more than 4,400 firms and the number of titles on the Land Register topped 23 million.
Register Extract Service excelled in the Real IT Awards by taking the top prize in the Delivering Business Value and E-Commerce category, winning praise from the judges for its “win/win” performance for customers and Land Registry.
High-performing commercial services included Data Matching, which contributed more than £880,000 to the total commercial income of £4.93 million, up 13 per cent on last year despite the challenging economic climate.
Electronic services continued to expand, with four more made available through Business Gateway and enhancements made to the portal.
Land Registry successfully completed its Accelerated Transformation Programme following the housing market slump, in the course of which it cut its workforce by 44 per cent (since 2008) and reduced underlying running costs by 35 per cent compared with 2007/08.
Governance was revised with a new independent non-executive Chair and re-structured Land Registry Board providing improved oversight of the organisation’s strategy and performance.

ENDS

Notes to editors

Land Registry’s Annual Report and Accounts 2011/12, price £21.25 is available from www.tsoshop.co.uk The English report can be viewed online at www.official-documents.gov.uk and www.landregistry.gov.uk
Media copies are available from the Press Office on 0300 0067543. The press notice is also available in Welsh. Please contact the Press Office for a copy or visit http://www.cofrestrfatir.gov.uk/
With the largest transactional database of its kind detailing over 23 million titles, Land Registry underpins the economy by safeguarding ownership of many billions of pounds worth of property.
This year marks the 150^th anniversary of Land Registry. As a government department established in 1862, executive agency and trading fund responsible to the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, Land Registry keeps and maintains the Land Register for England and Wales. The Land Register has been an open document since 1990.
For further information about Land Registry visit www.landregistry.gov.uk
Follow us @LandRegGov | LinkedIn

Contacts

Marion Shelley 0300 0067543, 07790 690297
marion.shelley@landregistry.gsi.gov.uk

Ronal Patel 0300 0067490
Ronal.patel@landregistry.gsi.gov.uk