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Planning: Maps and plans

This page provides information about some of the most useful sources for accessing maps and plans. For additional sources (including historic maps and atlases), please check the following guide:

Contemporary online maps of Northern Ireland - OSNI

Spatial NI is Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland's web mapping platform, designed to be a 'one stop shop' for finding and using geospatial data relating to Northern Ireland.

It provides access Ordnance Survey's authoritative mapping data and other geospatial information from multiple providers across the public and private sectors. 

Contemporary online maps of Great Britain

Digimap Ordnance Survey Collection

*Please note that Digimap does not include Northern Ireland maps*

Digimap Ordnance Survey Collection contains maps of mainland Great Britain at scales ranging from 1:1,250 up to 1:750,000. There are scanned raster maps which are digital versions of Ordnance Survey's paper maps as well as vector maps at a range of scales including OS MasterMap®, the most detailed large scale mapping.

The service includes many other products from Ordnance Survey including postcodes, administrative boundaries, a gazetteer of place names and digital terrain models.

Standard tasks that Digimap allows you to perform are:

  • selecting your area of interest in Great Britain by zooming and panning
  • viewing maps at one of the pre-defined scales
  • printing maps at A4 to A0 size, in either landscape or portrait
  • annotating maps with symbols, lines, polygons and labels
  • downloading PDF., PNG, JPG print files for printing later
  • setting a user defined scale for printing

The Data Download feature allows those with more specialist requirements to download map data for use eg in GIS software.

You will need to register before you can access the Digimap Ordnance Survey collection. Log in with your student number and QOL password at Digimap Ordnance Survey Collection and complete the online form provided.

If you have any problems accessing Digimap, please contact digimap@qub.ac.uk 

Land Cover online maps of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Environment Digimap

Environment Digimap provides access to Land Cover data from the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology. Separate datasets are available for 1990, 2000, 2007 and 2015, all national coverages. Also included are Dudley Stamp’s maps of the 1930’s Land Utilisation Survey of Britain.

You will need to register before you can access the Environment Digimap collection. Log in with your student number and QOL password at Environment Digimap and complete the online form provided.

If you have any problems accessing Digimap, please email digimap@qub.ac.uk

QUB Map Library

The QUB Map Library is located in the Geography building in the School of the Natural and Built Environment.

It has the most extensive collection of print maps at QUB, including the 1st edition of the 6 inch Ordnance Survey of Ireland. Although many of the maps in the collection are of Ireland, the coverage is worldwide. 

Please note that the Map Library has restricted opening hours.

Contact maplibrary@qub.ac.uk for further enquiries.

Development plans

The McClay Library holds a collection of Northern Ireland Area Plans and other development plans, including associated maps.

The Reference Area Plan collection (shelfmark prefix RAP) is shelved in the Reference section on Floor 3. Relevant shelfmarks include RAP/HT169 and RAP/HT395.

Many plans are also accessible online at the website of the Department for Infrastructure