Camden planning approval rate
Camden council approved 93.4% of planning applications and refused 6.6%, based on 25,921 decisions analysed. Ranked 205th out of 300 councils for strictness.
Last updated: August 2026 · Based on decisions from January 2020 to August 2026
93.4%
overall approval rate
25,921
Decisions analysed
24,205
Approved
1,716
Refused
89
Wards covered
Planning in Camden? 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 Camden. Householder and full planning applications typically have the highest volume.
93.4%
89.8%
98.6%
95.9%
77.9%
96.1%
Approval rate by project type
These rates are based on what homeowners are actually building in Camden, mined from 25,921 proposal descriptions.
95.7%
93.6%
95.1%
94.8%
86.5%
90.6%
96.1%
93.3%
95.3%
93.3%
94.9%
90.0%
93.6%
83.5%
91.7%
97.3%
Approval rate by ward
Planning outcomes vary significantly by ward within Camden. Click any ward for detailed statistics.
Hampstead Town
95.8%
Bloomsbury
93.5%
Belsize
94.2%
Holborn and Covent Garden
91.4%
Holborn & Covent Garden (Pre May 2022)
94.1%
Highgate
94.4%
Frognal
95.0%
Primrose Hill
94.8%
Bloomsbury (Pre May 2022)
90.2%
Camden Town with Primrose Hill (Pre May 2022)
91.9%
Regents Park
92.1%
South Hampstead
93.8%
Hampstead Town (Pre May 2022)
94.0%
Frognal & Fitzjohns (Pre May 2022)
94.3%
Camden Town
89.4%
West Hampstead
88.9%
Kentish Town (Pre May 2022)
92.8%
Gospel Oak
94.5%
Kings Cross
92.0%
Belsize (Pre May 2022)
94.8%
Wards in Camden
Hampstead Town
95.8% approval · 1,460 decisions
Bloomsbury
93.5% approval · 1,424 decisions
Belsize
94.2% approval · 1,323 decisions
Holborn and Covent Garden
91.4% approval · 1,159 decisions
Holborn & Covent Garden (Pre May 2022)
94.1% approval · 1,145 decisions
Highgate
94.4% approval · 1,134 decisions
Frognal
95.0% approval · 1,035 decisions
Primrose Hill
94.8% approval · 873 decisions
Bloomsbury (Pre May 2022)
90.2% approval · 788 decisions
Camden Town with Primrose Hill (Pre May 2022)
91.9% approval · 743 decisions
Regents Park
92.1% approval · 695 decisions
South Hampstead
93.8% approval · 665 decisions
Hampstead Town (Pre May 2022)
94.0% approval · 605 decisions
Frognal & Fitzjohns (Pre May 2022)
94.3% approval · 577 decisions
Camden Town
89.4% approval · 520 decisions
West Hampstead
88.9% approval · 487 decisions
Kentish Town (Pre May 2022)
92.8% approval · 470 decisions
Gospel Oak
94.5% approval · 457 decisions
Kings Cross
92.0% approval · 452 decisions
Belsize (Pre May 2022)
94.8% approval · 424 decisions
Recent comparable decisions
The most recent residential planning decisions in Camden, showing how the council decides real applications.
2026/1421/P
Roof extension with dormers, rooflights and roof terrace. · Belsize · 12/08/2026
2025/1610/P
Erection of a mansard roof; erection of rear extension at first floor, demolitio · Highgate · 12/08/2026
2026/1140/P
Installation of timber deck with garden office, shed and sauna to rear garden. · Primrose Hill · 12/08/2026
Showing 3 recent comparable decisions. See more in the full report →
What gets approved near your property?
In Camden, 1 in 15 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 Camden
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free planning check for Camden →
✓ Common refusal reasons in Camden
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free. Based on 25,921 decisions.
Compare with nearby councils
Frequently asked questions about planning in Camden
What is the planning approval rate in Camden?
Based on 25,921 planning decisions analysed since 2020, Camden approved 93.4% of applications and refused 6.6%. The council is ranked 205th out of 300 UK councils for approval rate.
How many planning applications are refused in Camden?
Camden refuses 6.6% of planning applications, roughly 1 in 15. That is lower than the UK average of 11.4%. Out of 25,921 decided applications since 2020, 1,716 were refused. PlanningLens lets you check any postcode to see which applications were refused near a specific property.
Which areas of Camden have the highest planning approval rates?
The highest approval rates in Camden are in Holborn (pre 2002) (100.0%), HAVERSTOCK (100.0%), and CANTELOWES (100.0%). Approval rates vary significantly by ward, see the full ward breakdown above.
What types of planning application are most common in Camden?
The most common planning application types in Camden are: Other (17,886 decisions, 93.4% approved), Full (3,114, 89.8%), and Trees (3,091, 98.6%).
How long does a planning application take in Camden?
Planning applications in Camden take an average of 15.7 weeks to reach a decision, measured across 23,721 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. Camden decides approximately 4,320 planning applications per year.
How do I check planning applications in Camden?
You can search planning applications in Camden directly on the council's official planning portal. PlanningLens also lets you check any postcode against 25,921 historical decisions in Camden to see what's been approved and refused near a specific property.
How is PlanningLens approval rate data for Camden calculated?
PlanningLens scrapes Camden'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.