Cardiff Council approves 81.9% of planning applications, based on 4,367 real decisions analysed from the council’s public planning portal. The national average across all councils tracked by PlanningLens is 87.9%. Cardiff sits 6.0 percentage points below the national average.
Enter your postcode for a personalised approval likelihood score — 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 Cardiff.
| Application Type | Approved | Refused | Total | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trees | 2,040 | 4 | 2,044 | 99.8% |
| Other | 419 | 739 | 1,158 | 36.2% |
| Full | 659 | 34 | 693 | 95.1% |
| Certificate of Lawfulness | 221 | 11 | 232 | 95.3% |
| Advertisement | 163 | 1 | 164 | 99.4% |
| Prior Approval | 38 | 1 | 39 | 97.4% |
| Discharge of Conditions | 23 | 2 | 25 | 92.0% |
| Listed Building | 12 | 0 | 12 | 100.0% |
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.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CATHAYS | 205 | 34 | 239 | 85.8% |
| WHITCHURCH AND TONGWYNLAIS | 135 | 37 | 172 | 78.5% |
| CYNCOED | 111 | 27 | 138 | 80.4% |
| PENYLAN | 98 | 38 | 136 | 72.1% |
| LLANDAFF | 108 | 26 | 134 | 80.6% |
| RHIWBINA | 98 | 32 | 130 | 75.4% |
| LLANISHEN | 64 | 63 | 127 | 50.4% |
| HEATH | 89 | 35 | 124 | 71.8% |
| RIVERSIDE | 89 | 30 | 119 | 74.8% |
| PLASNEWYDD | 93 | 24 | 117 | 79.5% |
| GRANGETOWN | 83 | 16 | 99 | 83.8% |
| BUTETOWN | 80 | 15 | 95 | 84.2% |
| PONTPRENNAU AND OLD ST MELLONS | 56 | 24 | 80 | 70.0% |
| TROWBRIDGE | 40 | 27 | 67 | 59.7% |
| CANTON | 51 | 16 | 67 | 76.1% |
| SPLOTT | 49 | 15 | 64 | 76.6% |
| LISVANE AND THORNHILL | 61 | 2 | 63 | 96.8% |
| RADYR AND MORGANSTOWN | 43 | 14 | 57 | 75.4% |
| CREIGIAU AND ST FAGANS | 33 | 17 | 50 | 66.0% |
| RUMNEY | 29 | 20 | 49 | 59.2% |
| PENTWYN | 26 | 23 | 49 | 53.1% |
| PENTYRCH AND ST FAGANS | 47 | 1 | 48 | 97.9% |
| ADAMSDOWN | 40 | 6 | 46 | 87.0% |
| FAIRWATER | 27 | 14 | 41 | 65.9% |
| CAERAU | 18 | 15 | 33 | 54.5% |
Showing top 25 of 29 wards by volume. Your Pro Report includes the full ward breakdown.
See full ward breakdown →Real residential planning decisions from Cardiff council. Each reference links to the council's own planning portal so you can verify the details yourself.
| Reference | Proposal | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| 26/00334/PRAP SPLOTT | Demolition of former Salvation Army Building in whole. | Approved |
| 26/00385/WTCA RIVERSIDE | Lime at front of 153 Cathedral Road - remove all deadwood over 25mm in diameter | Approved |
| 26/00313/CLPUD CATHAYS | Erection of ground floor rear extension, rear dormer roof extension and addition | Approved |
| 26/00349/WTTPFP LISVANE AND THORNHILL | T1 Oak Tree situated in rear gardenRemove dead wood and die back to sound live l | Approved |
| 26/00270/CLPUD RUMNEY | Side extension | Approved |
| 26/00264/CLPUD RHIWBINA | Hip to gable roof extension, rear dormer roof extension and addition of roofligh | Approved |
| 26/00278/WTCA PENYLAN | Willow; rear garden (neighbours tree), reduce and shape to previous points and c | Approved |
| 26/00254/CLEUD GABALFA | Use as 'Residential Serviced Accommodation' (Use Class C6) | Approved |
| 26/00209/WTTPP CYNCOED | 1 oak tree in rear garden - proposal to crown lift to 4 1/2 meters above ground | Approved |
| 26/00201/CLPUD RIVERSIDE | Change a single storey detached studio to a bedroom area. | Approved |
Find out what actually gets approved near your address first. Your Pro Report analyses the 20 nearest decisions to your property, ward-specific refusal patterns, and extension-by-extension approval patterns. Based on Cardiff's 4,367 real decisions. Delivered by email in minutes.
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Dig deeper into Cardiff's planning statistics — by ward, extension type, or project category:
Data-driven guides to help you understand planning approval patterns:
Based on 4,367 planning decisions, the overall approval rate in Cardiff is 81.9%. The national average across councils tracked by PlanningLens is 87.9%. However, rates vary significantly by ward and application type.
PlanningLens has analysed 4,367 planning decisions from Cardiff council. 3,575 were approved and 792 were refused. These figures cover decisions from January 2020 to the present.
The average approval rate in Cardiff is 81.9%, but outcomes depend heavily on your specific ward, the type of extension or development you are proposing, and local planning policy. Use the PlanningLens free postcode check to get a personalised score.