Liverpool vs Leeds, planning approval compared

How do planning outcomes differ between Liverpool and Leeds? A side-by-side comparison based on 58,053 combined decisions.

Last updated: September 2026

Liverpool: –

33,059 decisions · – approved · – refused · 104 wards

Leeds: 84.1%

24,994 decisions · 21,030 approved · 3,964 refused · 33 wards

Overall approval rates

Liverpool (33,059 decided)

–

Leeds (24,994 decided)

84.1%

By application type

Advertisement, Liverpool (4,113 decided)

–

Advertisement, Leeds (1,234 decided)

85.7%

Certificate of Lawfulness, Liverpool (2,884 decided)

–

Certificate of Lawfulness, Leeds (5,316 decided)

84.6%

Change of Use, Liverpool (17 decided)

–

Discharge of Conditions, Leeds (5,526 decided)

87.8%

Full, Liverpool (16,677 decided)

–

Full, Leeds (23,750 decided)

84.9%

Listed Building, Liverpool (3,135 decided)

–

Listed Building, Leeds (1,306 decided)

92.0%

Other, Liverpool (16,329 decided)

–

Other, Leeds (2,980 decided)

77.2%

Prior Approval, Liverpool (1,174 decided)

–

Trees, Liverpool (3,698 decided)

–

Trees, Leeds (6,312 decided)

96.5%

What the numbers mean

PlanningLens is currently withholding the headline approval rate for at least one of these councils on data-quality grounds, so no approval-rate comparison is published here. Decision volumes are still shown.

Planning in your area? Check your postcode to see approval rates specific to your ward and street.

Planning professional? PlanningLens runs refusal alerts and evidence packs for any published UK council — see the data services →

See detailed data

Liverpool full data Leeds full data

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