Bradford planning approval rate
Bradford council approved 79.0% of planning applications and refused 21.0%, based on 27,622 decisions analysed. Ranked 11th out of 284 councils for strictness.
Last updated: June 2026 · Based on decisions from January 2020 to present
79.0%
overall approval rate
27,622
Decisions analysed
21,822
Approved
5,800
Refused
30
Wards covered
Planning in Bradford? Check your postcode to see approval rates specific to your ward and street.
Approval rate by application type
Different application types have different approval rates in Bradford. Householder and full planning applications typically have the highest volume.
82.6%
67.7%
89.5%
54.0%
88.4%
76.2%
88.9%
Approval rate by project type
These rates are based on what homeowners are actually building in Bradford, mined from 27,622 proposal descriptions.
87.8%
87.3%
84.9%
79.6%
84.0%
90.1%
76.8%
89.5%
85.4%
87.2%
77.6%
77.3%
75.9%
72.4%
74.6%
79.3%
Approval rate by ward
Planning outcomes vary significantly by ward within Bradford. Click any ward for detailed statistics.
Ilkley (ward 14)
70.7%
City (ward 07)
80.5%
Wharfedale (ward 26)
83.8%
Craven (ward 09)
79.3%
Heaton (ward 12)
78.3%
Worth Valley (ward 29)
70.6%
Bingley (ward 02)
73.0%
Shipley (ward 22)
83.2%
Bingley Rural (ward 03)
79.8%
Baildon (ward 01)
75.4%
Thornton And Allerton (ward 23)
81.9%
Great Horton (ward 11)
83.0%
Keighley East (ward 16)
78.0%
Bolton And Undercliffe (ward 04)
81.3%
Idle And Thackley (ward 13)
79.7%
Keighley Central (ward 15)
80.7%
Bradford Moor (ward 06)
84.0%
Bowling And Barkerend (ward 05)
83.8%
Toller (ward 24)
83.4%
Clayton And Fairweather Green (ward 08)
78.8%
Wards in Bradford
Ilkley (ward 14)
70.7% approval · 2,751 decisions
City (ward 07)
80.5% approval · 1,485 decisions
Wharfedale (ward 26)
83.8% approval · 1,388 decisions
Craven (ward 09)
79.3% approval · 1,360 decisions
Heaton (ward 12)
78.3% approval · 1,312 decisions
Worth Valley (ward 29)
70.6% approval · 1,168 decisions
Bingley (ward 02)
73.0% approval · 1,138 decisions
Shipley (ward 22)
83.2% approval · 1,093 decisions
Bingley Rural (ward 03)
79.8% approval · 1,051 decisions
Baildon (ward 01)
75.4% approval · 982 decisions
Thornton And Allerton (ward 23)
81.9% approval · 924 decisions
Great Horton (ward 11)
83.0% approval · 890 decisions
Keighley East (ward 16)
78.0% approval · 869 decisions
Bolton And Undercliffe (ward 04)
81.3% approval · 833 decisions
Idle And Thackley (ward 13)
79.7% approval · 821 decisions
Keighley Central (ward 15)
80.7% approval · 814 decisions
Bradford Moor (ward 06)
84.0% approval · 789 decisions
Bowling And Barkerend (ward 05)
83.8% approval · 764 decisions
Toller (ward 24)
83.4% approval · 761 decisions
Clayton And Fairweather Green (ward 08)
78.8% approval · 751 decisions
Recent comparable decisions
The most recent residential planning decisions in Bradford, showing how the council decides real applications.
Construction of single storey rear extension of the following dimensions:Depth o · Toller (Ward 25) · Mon 22 Jun 2026
Construction of single storey rear extension of the following dimensions:Depth o · Wibsey & Odsal (Ward 27) · Mon 22 Jun 2026
Re-roofing of property including replacement of rotten timber gutters and chimne · Shipley (Ward 23) · Mon 22 Jun 2026
Showing 3 of 200 comparable decisions. See all 200 in the full report →
What gets approved near your property?
In Bradford, 1 in 5 applications are refused. Your PlanningLens Full Planning Analysis gives you 17 pages of intelligence specific to your property:
✓ Ward-level approval rates for your exact area
✓ Common refusal reasons in Bradford
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free planning check for Bradford →
✓ Common refusal reasons in Bradford
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free. Based on 27,622 decisions.
Compare with nearby councils
Frequently asked questions about planning in Bradford
What is the planning approval rate in Bradford?
Based on 27,622 planning decisions analysed since 2020, Bradford approved 79.0% of applications and refused 21.0%. The council is ranked 11th out of 284 UK councils for approval rate.
How many planning applications are refused in Bradford?
Bradford refuses 21.0% of planning applications, roughly 1 in 5. That is higher than the UK average of 11.7%. Out of 27,622 decided applications since 2020, 5,800 were refused. PlanningLens lets you check any postcode to see which applications were refused near a specific property.
Which areas of Bradford have the highest planning approval rates?
The highest approval rates in Bradford are in Little Horton (ward 18) (85.6%), Tong (ward 25) (84.2%), and Bradford Moor (ward 06) (84.0%). Approval rates vary significantly by ward, see the full ward breakdown above.
What types of planning application are most common in Bradford?
The most common planning application types in Bradford are: Full (15,127 decisions, 82.6% approved), Prior Approval (3,522, 67.7%), and Other (2,946, 89.5%).
How long does a planning application take in Bradford?
Planning applications in Bradford take an average of 9.6 weeks to reach a decision, measured across 27,559 decisions with a recorded timeline. That is slower than the 8-week statutory target for householder applications (the statutory targets are 8 weeks for householder applications and 13 weeks for major developments). PlanningLens measures the actual time each application takes, not just the target. Bradford decides approximately 4,604 planning applications per year.
How do I check planning applications in Bradford?
You can search planning applications in Bradford directly on the council's official planning portal. PlanningLens also lets you check any postcode against 27,622 historical decisions in Bradford to see what's been approved and refused near a specific property.
How is PlanningLens approval rate data for Bradford calculated?
PlanningLens scrapes Bradford's official planning portal and analyses every published decision since January 2020. The approval rate is calculated as approved decisions divided by total decided applications, excluding withdrawn and pending applications. The full methodology, data sourcing, and Creative Commons BY 4.0 licensing terms are published at planninglens.co.uk/methodology.