Cambridge Council approves 92.4% of planning applications, based on 4,752 real decisions analysed from the council’s public planning portal. The national average across all councils tracked by PlanningLens is 85.0%. Cambridge sits 7.4 percentage points above the national average.
According to PlanningLens analysis of 3,427 decided applications, Cambridge Council approved 98.2% of planning applications in 2025. Across 4,752 decisions on record (January 2020 to September 2026), the overall approval rate in Cambridge is 92.4%; the national average across UK councils tracked by PlanningLens is 85.0%.
Source: PlanningLens (planninglens.co.uk) analysis of Cambridge council planning portal records · Data to 25 September 2026 · Quote freely with attribution
Enter your postcode for a free, personalised approval pattern report, based on your ward and application type.
Not all applications are treated equally. Extension types, listed building consent, and change of use applications each have very different success rates in Cambridge.
| Application Type | Approved | Refused | Total | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full | 4,994 | 260 | 5,254 | 95.1% |
| Trees | 3,569 | 55 | 3,624 | 98.5% |
| Other | 779 | 67 | 846 | 92.1% |
| Listed Building | 714 | 10 | 724 | 98.6% |
| Discharge of Conditions | 543 | 180 | 723 | 75.1% |
| Certificate of Lawfulness | 511 | 0 | 511 | 100.0% |
| Prior Approval | 202 | 76 | 278 | 72.7% |
| Advertisement | 225 | 1 | 226 | 99.6% |
| Change of Use | 17 | 7 | 24 | 70.8% |
A loft conversion in one ward can have a 90% approval rate. In the next ward, 55%. The free check tells you which side you're on, your free property report is emailed in minutes.
Check My PostcodeWard-level data reveals where planning applications are most and least likely to succeed. Officers, local policies, and neighbourhood character all play a role.
| Ward | Approved | Refused | Total | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Market | 693 | 18 | 711 | 97.5% |
| Newnham | 620 | 12 | 632 | 98.1% |
| Shelford | 520 | 37 | 557 | 93.4% |
| Harston & Comberton | 506 | 22 | 528 | 95.8% |
| Fen Ditton & Fulbourn | 493 | 25 | 518 | 95.2% |
| Petersfield | 411 | 11 | 422 | 97.4% |
| Queen Ediths | 388 | 27 | 415 | 93.5% |
| West Chesterton | 391 | 22 | 413 | 94.7% |
| Linton | 368 | 35 | 403 | 91.3% |
| Castle | 380 | 17 | 397 | 95.7% |
| Trumpington | 368 | 11 | 379 | 97.1% |
| Histon & Impington | 361 | 14 | 375 | 96.3% |
| Milton & Waterbeach | 344 | 12 | 356 | 96.6% |
| Melbourn | 327 | 28 | 355 | 92.1% |
| Romsey | 312 | 15 | 327 | 95.4% |
| Duxford | 305 | 16 | 321 | 95.0% |
| Caxton & Papworth | 297 | 15 | 312 | 95.2% |
| Cottenham | 256 | 20 | 276 | 92.8% |
| Foxton | 248 | 22 | 270 | 91.9% |
| Over & Willingham | 247 | 18 | 265 | 93.2% |
| Girton | 247 | 13 | 260 | 95.0% |
| Abbey | 237 | 19 | 256 | 92.6% |
| Caldecote | 239 | 14 | 253 | 94.5% |
| Whittlesford | 240 | 9 | 249 | 96.4% |
| The Mordens | 231 | 15 | 246 | 93.9% |
Showing top 25 of 42 wards by volume. Your free property report includes the full ward breakdown.
See full ward breakdown →How Cambridge’s planning approval rate has changed year by year, up 8.0pp since 2020.
Bar height reflects approval rate. Colour: green ≥85%, amber ≥70%, red below 70%.
Real residential planning decisions from Cambridge council. Each reference links to the council's own planning portal so you can verify the details yourself.
| Reference | Proposal | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| 26/02929/LBC Market | Enlargement of a doorway in a partition wall within the kitchen in rear single s | Approved |
| 26/01905/FUL West Chesterton | Conversion of Existing Dwelling (C3) to 11 Bedroom 11 Person HMO (Sui Generis) w | Approved |
| 26/0892/TTCA Caldecote | T1- Ash- crown raise over entrance driveway to a height of 3.5 meters removing 3 | Approved |
| 26/0843/TTCA Caxton & Papworth | T1 - Yew - Reduce height by 1m and sides by 0.5m - impact on listed building and | Approved |
| 26/02915/HFUL Longstanton | Single storey rear extension. | Approved |
| 26/02885/FUL Coleridge | New Shopfront and addition of external Seating Area and the installation of 1 No | Approved |
| 26/02884/LBC Castle | Addition of online locks to seven doors and offline locks to six doors. Installa | Approved |
| 26/02927/HFUL Caldecote | Single storey rear extension. | Approved |
| 26/02901/HFUL West Chesterton | Single storey rear/side extension, extension to the outbuilding and new garage. | Approved |
| 26/02853/FUL Trumpington | Installation of 1 No. residential air conditioning unit to flat. | Approved |
Find out what actually gets approved near your address first. Your free property report analyses the 20 nearest decisions to your property, ward-specific refusal patterns, and extension-by-extension approval patterns. Based on Cambridge's 4,752 real decisions. Free, emailed in minutes.
Check my postcodeCompare Cambridge's planning approval rates with neighbouring areas:
Dig deeper into Cambridge's planning statistics, by ward, extension type, or project category:
Data-driven guides to help you understand planning approval patterns:
Yes. PlanningLens offers a free planning permission check for Cambridge. Enter your postcode to instantly see approval rates for your ward and application type, based on 4,752 real decisions from Cambridge council. The full property-specific report is also free and emailed within minutes.
Enter your postcode on PlanningLens for a free instant check based on Cambridge's real planning decisions. The free property report goes further: it analyses the 20 nearest comparable decisions to your property, ward-level refusal patterns, and approval rates by application type. Free and emailed within minutes.
Based on 4,752 planning decisions, the overall approval rate in Cambridge is 92.4%. The national average across councils tracked by PlanningLens is 85.0%. Rates vary significantly by ward and application type.
PlanningLens has analysed 4,752 planning decisions from Cambridge council. 4,390 were approved and 362 were refused. These figures cover every decision on record for the council, January 2020 to September 2026.
The average approval rate in Cambridge is 92.4%, but outcomes depend heavily on your specific ward, the type of extension or development you are proposing, and local planning policy. Use the free PlanningLens postcode check to get a personalised score.
Writing about planning in Cambridge? These figures are free to republish with attribution. Copy the one-line citation, or paste the stat box into any website, CMS or newsletter, it carries its own styling and links back to this page for verification.