README

A PHP class that represents a UK Postcode.

It allows you to:

• validate a postcode
• format a postcode correctly
• get the outcode, inward code or postcode sector

For example, suppose you request users provide their postcode when filling out their address; there's a very strong possibility they'll enter something like sw1a2aa. This class not only allows you to check that it's a valid UK postcode, but also format it correctly — in this example, that means SW1A 2AA.

Installation

Via Composer:

composer require lukaswhite\uk-postcode

Create an instance

use Lukaswhite\UkPostcode\UkPostcode;

$postcode = new UkPostcode('sw1a2aa');

Validate a Postcode

if ($postcode->isValid()) {
	// do something...
}

Alternatively, use the static method:

if (UkPostcode::validate('sw1a2aa')) {
	// do something...
}

Format a Postcode

$postcode = new UkPostcode('sw1a2aa');

print $postcode->formatted();

// outputs "SW1A 2AA"

Outcodes

The outcode is the first part of a UK postcode. To illustrate:

$postcode = new UkPostcode('sw1a2aa');
print $postcode->getOutcode();
// outputs "SW1A"

$postcode = new Lukaswhite\UkPostcodes\UkPostcode('GL9 1AH');
print $postcode->getOutcode();
// outputs "GL9"

$postcode = new UkPostcode('gl91ah');
print $postcode->getOutcode();
// outputs "GL9"

Inward Codes

The inward code is the bit after the outcode. To illustrate:

$postcode = new UkPostcode('sw1a2aa');
print $postcode->getInwardCode();
// outputs "2AA"

$postcode = new Lukaswhite\UkPostcodes\UkPostcode('GL9 1AH');
print $postcode->getInwardCode();
// outputs "1AH"

$postcode = new UkPostcode('gl91ah');
print $postcode->getInwardCode();
// outputs "1AH"

Sectors

The sector is the outcode, followed by the first digit of the inward code. To illustrate:

$postcode = new UkPostcode('sw1a2aa');
print $postcode->getSector();
// outputs "SW1A 2"

$postcode = new Lukaswhite\UkPostcodes\UkPostcode('GL9 1AH');
print $postcode->getSector();
// outputs "GL9 1"

$postcode = new UkPostcode('gl91ah');
print $postcode->getSector();
// outputs "GL9 1"

Miscellany

• The class implements the magic __toString() method, which will return a formatted version of the postcode.