1. A registered office for your CLG, with practical help from Coddan

Your company needs an official address where correspondence can reach it while you get on with running the organisation. Coddan can supply that address, receive incoming post and give you access to scanned letters through your client portal. Scanning and uploading incoming post are free of charge. If you prefer physical post, we can arrange weekly Royal Mail forwarding to your address, with the forwarding charges and arrangements confirmed before you order.

Choose from our registered-office options in London EC3, W1W, Canary Wharf and Mayfair, Manchester, Birmingham, Edinburgh and Belfast. We help you choose a location suitable for the company’s jurisdiction and explain the correspondence arrangements. These services are available with a new company limited by guarantee formation and for an already registered CLG, whether the people running it are in the UK or overseas.

A company limited by guarantee, also called a CLG or LBG company, has members who give a guarantee rather than shareholders. Clubs, associations, community groups and residents’ organisations often use this structure. Each company still needs a working registered office. Being non-profit, run by volunteers or inactive does not remove that requirement, and providing an address does not itself register the organisation as a charity.

Tell us where your organisation is based, where the company will be registered and how you want to receive its post. You do not need to know every address service’s name before contacting us. Coddan explains the relevant choices, confirms the work and price, and helps put the agreed arrangement in place.

2. What your registered office does — and when you can use your own address

The registered office is the company’s official address on the Companies House register. It is a destination for company correspondence and formal documents, including letters from Companies House and HMRC. A club may hold its activities in a hired hall, an association may have directors in several towns, and a residents’ company may manage a building. None of those arrangements removes the need for an appropriate registered office.

The address must be a physical UK address in the correct jurisdiction. It must work in practice: documents delivered there should reach someone acting for the company, and delivery must be capable of acknowledgement. A bare PO Box or similar service is not sufficient. A professional provider’s address must meet the requirements just as your own address must.

You can use your own suitable premises or another suitable address with permission. For example, an organisation with a staffed office and reliable arrangements for official post may already have what it needs. Buying a Coddan registered-office service is optional. If you use a home address, remember that the registered office is publicly visible; consider that before submitting the formation application.

A professional service can be useful when directors work from home, a committee changes regularly or the responsible people live abroad. It provides a company correspondence location without making one volunteer’s home the registered office. The service still needs an authorised client contact who reads the letters and arranges any required response.

The registered office need not be where the company carries out its activities. An address service does not automatically provide a desk, meeting room, trading premises or permission to receive every kind of commercial mail. Tell us how you intend to use the address so we can confirm the suitable service and permitted uses. See the official registered-office and email requirements.

3. Choose a location that fits the company’s jurisdiction

Coddan offers a choice of registered-office locations. Start with where the company is registered, then choose the available address and correspondence arrangement that suits it. For a new company, we confirm this before preparing the incorporation application. For an existing company, provide its company number so the current jurisdiction and registered details can be checked.

An England and Wales company can use a suitable address in England or Wales. A company registered specifically in Wales needs an address in Wales. A Scottish company needs its registered office in Scotland, and a Northern Irish company needs one in Northern Ireland. London, Manchester and Birmingham cannot replace an Edinburgh or Belfast address where the company’s jurisdiction requires the latter. Ask us about a Welsh address requirement before choosing from the locations above.

The different locations have their own service prices and terms. Confirm the exact address, availability, correspondence service, first paid period and renewal position before ordering. A more expensive postcode does not change the company’s legal status or guarantee acceptance by a bank, funder or customer. Choose the service for the practical job it needs to do.

Your directors can live elsewhere while the company maintains its registered office in the correct place. Director service addresses have a different function, and our London and Aldershot SAIL options require a separate jurisdiction check. We explain both below so that the company address, personal correspondence and records arrangements fit together.

4. Read your incoming post through the client portal

Coddan provides client portal access and uploads scanned incoming post free of charge. This gives directors and authorised administrators a practical way to read the company’s correspondence without travelling to the registered office or waiting for a physical envelope to reach them. For an overseas founder or a committee working in different places, being able to read a letter online can make day-to-day administration easier.

When arranging the service, tell us who will be responsible for the company’s correspondence and how that person can be contacted. We explain access to the portal and the post covered by the chosen address service. If another director or administrator needs access, discuss the arrangement with us rather than passing account details between committee members without checking who should be authorised.

Online access is available 24/7, so you can read uploaded correspondence when convenient. Our team receives, handles and scans post during service hours. Portal availability does not mean that a letter arriving overnight is scanned overnight or that staff are available around the clock. If a particular original document or handling arrangement matters to you, explain the need before ordering.

Reading a scan is only the first step. The company must decide who answers the letter, records any deadline and supplies requested information. For example, an HMRC tax reference may need to reach the person handling the company’s accounts; a formal notice may need a director’s immediate attention. Free scanning does not include preparing a tax return, responding to a legal claim or carrying out another company filing.

Keep a clear routine for checking correspondence and passing it to the right person. When a volunteer leaves or a new administrator takes over, tell Coddan about the authorised-contact change. The address can remain in place while the people running the organisation change, provided the service continues and the contact arrangements are kept current.

5. Weekly Royal Mail forwarding when you want physical post

If you prefer to receive incoming post physically, Coddan can arrange weekly forwarding by Royal Mail to your address. Tell us the intended destination and the correspondence you need forwarded. We confirm the available arrangement and applicable charges before you order. The free scanning and upload service does not mean that postage or physical forwarding is free.

Weekly forwarding describes the dispatch arrangement. It does not promise arrival on a particular day: delivery takes additional time and depends on the postal service and destination. If your directors are overseas, ask us to confirm the proposed forwarding destination and terms before relying on it. Do not assume that every destination, item or delivery method is included.

Consider how you will deal with time-sensitive correspondence. A weekly postal dispatch does not extend a deadline printed on a notice. If you need to see letters sooner than physical delivery allows, discuss portal access and the appropriate mail arrangement with our team. Ask about any special handling requirement before buying the service; do not assume an urgent dispatch or tracked delivery has been included.

Keep the forwarding address current. A move of home or operating premises may change where you want post sent without changing the company’s registered office. Inform Coddan of the new forwarding details and who is authorised to give those instructions. This helps avoid sending company correspondence to a former director or an address the organisation no longer uses.

6. Director service addresses in London and Aldershot

A director’s service address is the correspondence address shown publicly for that person’s company role. It is separate from the company’s registered office, even when the same location is used for both. Coddan can provide director service-address arrangements in London and Aldershot. Tell us which directors need the service and which companies the arrangement concerns.

This can be useful for directors who do not want to publish their home as their service address, including volunteers managing a club or association from home. Companies House still requires the director’s actual residential information, which is normally kept off the public register. An alternative service address does not remove that requirement or erase a home address from documents already filed.

The company’s registered-office jurisdiction rule is not the same as the rule for a director’s service address. A director service address can be different from the company’s registered office. We confirm the proposed personal correspondence arrangement separately, including permission to use the address, the directors covered, post handling, paid period and renewal terms.

A registered-office package does not automatically cover every director’s correspondence. If the company has several directors, provide their names and explain the coverage required. When someone joins, leaves or changes their address, tell us what has happened so we can clarify any required service change and separately agreed filing work.

Using an alternative address is a practical privacy choice; it does not prevent lawful communications or make the director anonymous. For an existing public home address, a removal application is a different task. Our CLG secretarial team can discuss the relevant address change or public-record work without treating it as an automatic part of formation.

7. SAIL in London or Aldershot: a real home for agreed company records

SAIL means single alternative inspection location. It is an optional place, separate from the registered office, where specified company records can be kept available for lawful inspection. A SAIL address is not simply another postal address, and a portal containing scanned letters is not a substitute for the required records arrangement.

Coddan provides SAIL options in London and Aldershot. These locations must fit the company’s jurisdiction: they are not a substitute for a Scottish or Northern Irish SAIL. An England and Wales company may be able to use one of these locations for the agreed records. We check the company’s position and explain the available service before it is established.

For a CLG, the register of members is particularly important because it identifies the legal members rather than donors, supporters or customers. If you want records held at Coddan’s SAIL, tell us what records exist and where they are currently kept. We agree which records will be received, their format, how updates will be supplied and how lawful inspection requests will be handled.

Companies House must be notified of the SAIL address and which applicable records are kept there. AD02 concerns the location; AD03 concerns records moved to it. Holding records, preparing or maintaining them, and making the filings are different jobs. Coddan explains the agreed service and any separate work, so you know who will deliver records, approve information and keep them current.

You do not have to buy a SAIL service merely because you form a CLG or use a Coddan registered office. Where the records can properly remain at the registered office, a separate inspection location may be unnecessary. If records are missing or inconsistent, give us the available information; choosing an address alone will not repair them. See CLG SAIL, records and filing support for the detailed service.

8. Keep the registered email separate and monitored

A new company must provide a registered email address to Companies House as well as its physical registered office. Companies House uses the email for company communications, and it is not published on the public register. Choose an account that someone acting for the company checks and will continue to check after incorporation.

A registered-office purchase does not automatically supply or manage that email account. Provide the company’s monitored email in the formation details and decide who is responsible for it. For a volunteer organisation, an account that remains with the organisation may be easier to manage than relying entirely on one committee member’s personal inbox.

Keep the three routines clear: checking Companies House email, reading scanned postal correspondence and receiving any forwarded originals. A letter available in the portal does not mean that the registered email has been checked. Equally, an email notification does not remove the need for a functioning physical registered office.

When directors or administrators change, arrange a proper handover of the organisation’s correspondence. Update authorised contacts with Coddan and make any required Companies House changes separately. If you want us to undertake a filing or continuing administration, explain the task and we will confirm the service and price.

9. Form a new CLG with the address arrangement settled

Begin with your organisation and the people involved. Tell Coddan what the company will do, where it will be registered, whether it already has suitable premises and who will deal with correspondence. We help clarify the address choice alongside the other formation details, rather than expecting you to work through unfamiliar requirements alone.

Our Companies House-integrated formation portal is available 24/7 for UK and overseas clients. You can begin your order when convenient, select the formation service and supply the requested information. Our team checks and prepares the application during office hours. Companies House controls its processing and the decision to incorporate; starting an order is not the same as receiving a registered company.

If you choose a Coddan registered office, we confirm the location and entitlement to use it before the application is submitted. You approve the company details and complete the required checks. After successful registration, the registered address appears on the company’s public record and the address service operates for its agreed period.

Read the chosen formation package before payment. Some packages include a particular address for a stated first period; others require you to provide your own address or order a separate service. Director service addresses, SAIL arrangements, alternative locations and later administration are included only where the selected service expressly says so. A low-cost formation remains a valid choice when it covers what your organisation needs.

Keep the address confirmation, service terms and renewal information with the company’s incorporation documents. Make sure the responsible director or administrator knows how to access post. Compare Coddan’s CLG formation services or use our formation requirements checklist for the other information needed before filing.

10. Address services for an already registered CLG

You can use Coddan’s address services even if we did not form your company. An established club, association or residents’ company may need a new correspondence arrangement because a director is leaving, premises are closing or the people responsible are now overseas. Provide the company name, number, current address and the arrangement you want to replace.

Coddan can discuss the suitable location, post handling and service period. A move to a different registered office also requires the relevant Companies House notification; purchasing an address by itself does not update the public record. We explain the work we will undertake and what approval or information is needed before making any agreed filing.

Arrange the new service and handover before ending the old one. Consider outstanding correspondence, any records held at the old address and the information shown on company documents. A director service-address change or SAIL move may require its own work, even when several services were previously provided at the same location.

Use our CLG registered-office service for existing companies for obtaining, using or changing an address and coordinating the continuing arrangements. That service can address the established company’s circumstances in detail. This page helps you choose the address alongside formation and understand the correspondence service; you do not need to incorporate again to obtain an address.

If the current address is unsuitable or access to post has already failed, explain that when contacting us. We can clarify the available administrative work. Directors remain responsible for responding to company notices and keeping required information current while the new arrangement is being established.

11. Know the price, paid period and renewal arrangements

Before paying, check the exact service rather than relying on the location name alone. Confirm the registered-office address, directors covered where applicable, agreed mail arrangements, first paid period, renewal date and price. Our free scanning and uploading are part of the correspondence offer described here; physical forwarding charges are confirmed separately.

Prices can differ by location and service. Use the current selected package or Coddan quotation for the amount payable and VAT treatment. A formation price is not automatically the price for every alternative address or for all future years. Ask us to clarify a first-year inclusion or renewal term before ordering if the description does not answer your question.

Renew the service in time or arrange a suitable replacement. A company must continue to have an appropriate registered office even when its activities stop temporarily. If you leave Coddan’s service, agree the end date and make the required address changes; do not continue using an address after permission has ended.

Company administration can also continue beyond the address service. Coddan can help with agreed changes, member records, minutes and annual filings through our CLG secretarial services. You can ask for a particular task or describe what has changed and let us clarify the relevant work. An address service does not automatically appoint Coddan as company secretary or include annual accounts, tax returns or every future filing.

12. Questions before choosing your company’s address

Can we use our own address?

Yes, if you have permission and it is an appropriate physical address in the correct jurisdiction. Consider public visibility and how official post will reach someone responsible. You need not buy an address service if your existing arrangement works.

Can overseas directors use Coddan?

Yes. Address services are available to UK and overseas clients. The company still needs its registered office in the required part of the UK. Tell us where the responsible people are based and confirm any proposed physical forwarding destination.

Does the registered office cover every kind of post?

Confirm what the selected service accepts and how you intend to use it. A registered office does not automatically include commercial mail, parcels, trading premises or every director’s personal company correspondence.

Do we need both a director service address and SAIL?

Only where those separate arrangements meet your needs. Director service addresses concern personal company correspondence; SAIL concerns specified records and lawful inspection. Explain your circumstances and Coddan can help identify the appropriate services.

Will Coddan act on every letter we receive?

Post handling gives you access to the correspondence. Your authorised contact must read it and arrange a response. If it calls for a filing, records work or another service you want Coddan to undertake, contact us and agree that work separately.

How do we get started?

Tell us whether this is a new formation or an existing company, the jurisdiction, your preferred location and how you want to receive post. We explain the available address arrangement, what you receive and the price. You can order the suitable service or speak to our team first.

For further official guidance, see Companies House incorporation guidance, public and private company information and company details on stationery and websites. Your business letters, order forms and website must show the required company particulars, including the registered office. Keep those details current when the address changes.