"That gives you the local area which is OK for a local bimble but doesn't address the case of a pilot actually going somewhere"
.....If by somewhere you mean outside of the UK then I accept your point. The NOTAMs that I've seen pinned up are normally for the entire UK (hense someone else's observation that there's just so many).
I don wonder if pilots are taught how to go through NOTAMs (of the printed variety) in order to identify what may affect them. Maybe, with all this talk of automation and improved information formats, someone should design an automated download which feeds into a device that then connects to the aircraft's autopilot and prevents them from busting airspace/NOTAMs/etc. I am actually joking about this concept but it does seem in line with the abrogation of responsiblity that technology can so often enable.