Greenwich vs Southwark — planning approval compared

How do planning outcomes differ between Greenwich and Southwark? A side-by-side comparison based on 38,733 combined decisions.

Last updated: March 2026

Greenwich: 80.4%

20,077 decisions · 16,136 approved · 3,941 refused · 36 wards

Southwark: 92.6%

18,656 decisions · 17,275 approved · 1,381 refused · 23 wards

Overall approval rates

Greenwich (20,077 decided)

80.4%

Southwark (18,656 decided)

92.6%

By application type

Advertisement — Greenwich (422 decided)

80.8%

Advertisement — Southwark (676 decided)

86.1%

Certificate of Lawfulness — Greenwich (2,192 decided)

76.0%

Certificate of Lawfulness — Southwark (1,157 decided)

91.4%

Change of Use — Southwark (235 decided)

82.6%

Full — Greenwich (7,921 decided)

71.6%

Full — Southwark (3,406 decided)

93.4%

Listed Building — Greenwich (500 decided)

89.0%

Listed Building — Southwark (907 decided)

90.6%

Other — Greenwich (5,250 decided)

90.9%

Other — Southwark (9,551 decided)

92.1%

Prior Approval — Greenwich (1,114 decided)

53.6%

Prior Approval — Southwark (86 decided)

69.8%

Trees — Greenwich (2,676 decided)

98.6%

Trees — Southwark (2,638 decided)

97.8%

What the numbers mean

There is a 12.2 percentage point difference in overall approval rates between these councils. Greenwich is the stricter of the two, which means similar applications may face higher refusal risk there. However, approval rates vary by ward and application type, so your specific situation may differ from the averages.

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See detailed data

Greenwich full data Southwark full data