Pear Space is an approved .gov.uk domain registrar and part of the Parish Council Domain Helper Service. Register your .gov.uk domain today and be confident you are getting a domain from an official provider with a high level of support and guidance.
Why should I register a .gov.uk domain?
Every feature we offer is specifically tailored to the needs of parish councils, ensuring your website serves both council members and local residents effectively.
Trusted
A .gov.uk address is instantly recognisable as an official government website, giving website visitors confidence that the information they’re reading comes straight from their parish or town council and not from an unaffiliated third party.
Secure
All .gov.uk domains must meet the UK government’s stringent standards. Domains registered through Pear Space include secure redundant DNS with DNSSEC support, and comprehensive advice and guidance to ensure the domain and associated services are secure.
Compliant
Using a .gov.uk domain ensures the council adheres to government guidance and audit requirements, something .org.uk addresses can’t guarantee, so you stay fully aligned with public‑sector regulations and best‑practice policies.
Simple, low cost .gov.uk domains
It is recommended that all tiers of government use a .gov.uk domain for their official website and email addresses. This is to ensure that the public can be confident that they are interacting with an official and trusted government website and not a commercial or impersonating website on a .org.uk or similar commercial domain.
Pear Space can make the process of obtaining and switching to using an official .gov.uk domain as pain free and simple as possible. We offer comprehensive support and guidance throughout the whole process from choosing your domain, to getting it setup on your councillor laptops and smart phones.
With over 20 years experience you can be confident that with Pear Space you are getting more than just a domain provider, you're getting a trusted technology partner who can help and support you with every aspect of your technology and IT needs for years to come.
Included as standard:
Comprehensive advice and guidance
Fully managed application process
Support configuring your new domain
Redundant DNS with DNSSEC security
Optional additional services such as website design, website hosting, email, IT support, and other services.
£30 / year
Frequently Asked Questions
We understand that buying a .gov.uk domain can be a little daunting and confusing, we'll do our best to answer all the common questions we get asked here. If you don't see the information you need though then just get in touch.
What .gov.uk domain can I register?
There are strict rules about what domain you are allowed to register, and these depend on the type of organisation you are. For most parish councils you are allowed to register one of the following options:
meadowbrook-pc.gov.uk
meadowbrookparishcouncil.gov.uk
meadowbrookparish.gov.uk
If you are a town council rather than a parish then you would have similar suffixes but -tc or "town" instead of parish.
You can sometimes register an abbreviation but only if it can be demonstrated that it is in active use on an existing website address or email address. It also cannot conflict with other well known abbreviations such as HMRC for example as this may cause confusion.
Can I use an abbreviation in my .gov.uk domain name?
Yes, sometimes.
If you currently use an abbreviation in an existing domain name such as a .org.uk or in an existing email address (even if that is a free provider email like Google) then you may be able to apply for that same abbreviation as your .gov.uk domain name. However, it will still need the same suffix such as -pc.gov.uk or parishcouncil.gov.uk at the end.
For example hmt-pc.gov.uk might be permissible, these are all decided on a case by case basis and cannot be guaranteed. We would recommend contacting us to discuss and we can then submit an application and seek approval.
Is it a legal requirement to have a .gov.uk domain?
No, currently there is no statutory requirement to have a .gov.uk domain for local government and there are no plans to introduce legislation in this regard.
That said, it is strongly recommended by the Government Digital Service to use a .gov.uk for maximum trust of council websites and email addresses. In many areas audits conducting by local associations of local councils may highlight that a .gov.uk domain is not in use as an area to address.
What are the naming rules for .gov.uk domains?
Your .gov.uk domain has to accurately describe your organisation and where appropriate be geographically specific. You should try and ensure the domain is easy for users to type and remember where possible.
Specifically, your domain must be:
- Between 3 and 63 characters long
- Contain only alphanumeric characters or a dash (-).
Your domain must not:
- Be the same or very similar to an existing .gov.uk domain
- Use any symbols other than a dash (-)
- Include abbreviations or acronyms
- Include a post code
What if another council has the same name as mine?
There are many thousands of councils and so it is inevitable that sometimes there are duplicate applicants of the same domain. Where two councils exist of the same name it is permissible to add a geographic identifier such as a county name.
For example, if there are two councils called Meadowbrook Parish, one could register meadowbrooksuffolk-pc.gov.uk instead to signify the county that particular Meadowbrook is located in.
Do I need to use .gov.uk for email addresses?
Ideally yes, current government guidance and advice from the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) is that all users within a council should use official .gov.uk email addresses. It is strongly discouraged for personal or free email addresses to be used by council employees or elected officials such as councillors.
What domain should I use if I am in Wales, Scotland, or Northern Ireland?
In Wales you should register both a .gov.wales and a .llyw.cymru domain for your English and Welsh language websites respectively.
In Scotland you should register a .gov.scot domain.
In Northern Ireland you must register a .gov.uk domain.
Can I transfer a .gov.uk domain to Pear Space?
Absolutely! If you would like to transfer a .gov.uk domain then you will need to contact your existing provider and ask for the transfer code, once you have that just get in touch with us and we'll transfer the domain to us completely free.
Do I have to have a suffix in my domain name?
Most organisations need to use a suffix of some description when registering a .gov.uk domain name such as -pc.gov.uk for parish councils. The only organisations that typically can register a domain without a suffix are primary authorities such as city and county councils.
If you'd like to discuss this in more detail, get in touch with us.
Can I redirect my new .gov.uk to my existing domain or vice versa?
You must not redirect your .gov.uk domain to any other website, this is strictly forbidden.
If you have an old domain though such as a .org.uk domain, you can redirect this to your new .gov.uk domain.
How long is a domain registered for? Will it automatically renew?
You can register a .gov.uk domain from 1 to 10 years at a time. We will let you know when it is time to renew the domain and unless we are told otherwise we will renew it automatically and invoice you. You must let us know before renewal if you no longer require your domain otherwise you will still be required to pay.
Do you support DNSSEC?
Yes, all our domains support DNSSEC and we will enable it by default on all new registrations.
DNSSEC enhances the security of your government domain by providing cryptographic authentication of DNS data, ensuring the authenticity and integrity of responses to domain name lookups. DNSSEC works by digitally signing DNS records using public-key cryptography, allowing computers to verify that the data received comes from the authoritative source and has not been altered during transit. This protection guards against cyberattacks such as DNS spoofing, cache poisoning, and man-in-the-middle attacks, which could redirect users to fraudulent versions of your website.
