Cheshire East planning approval rate
Cheshire East council approved 84.4% of planning applications and refused 15.6%, based on 15,157 decisions analysed. Ranked 42nd out of 300 councils for strictness.
Last updated: August 2026 · Based on decisions from January 2020 to August 2026
84.4%
overall approval rate
15,157
Decisions analysed
12,785
Approved
2,372
Refused
52
Wards covered
Planning in Cheshire East? 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 Cheshire East. Householder and full planning applications typically have the highest volume.
84.4%
Approval rate by project type
These rates are based on what homeowners are actually building in Cheshire East, mined from 15,157 proposal descriptions.
85.6%
92.3%
86.5%
90.9%
77.8%
80.6%
84.9%
93.3%
93.2%
91.4%
85.8%
79.1%
82.2%
82.9%
85.7%
85.7%
Approval rate by ward
Planning outcomes vary significantly by ward within Cheshire East. Click any ward for detailed statistics.
Knutsford
89.3%
Brereton Rural
78.4%
Wilmslow West and Chorley
84.4%
Chelford
80.6%
Prestbury
79.7%
Bunbury
77.6%
Dane Valley
80.3%
High Legh
80.4%
Congleton West
85.5%
Poynton West and Adlington
85.1%
Alderley Edge
85.6%
Wrenbury
72.0%
Poynton East and Pott Shrigley
83.9%
Mobberley
77.6%
Gawsworth
85.0%
Wilmslow East
86.3%
Congleton East
84.7%
Audlem
77.5%
Haslington
84.4%
Bollington
89.8%
Wards in Cheshire East
Knutsford
89.3% approval · 806 decisions
Brereton Rural
78.4% approval · 671 decisions
Wilmslow West and Chorley
84.4% approval · 659 decisions
Chelford
80.6% approval · 568 decisions
Prestbury
79.7% approval · 553 decisions
Bunbury
77.6% approval · 517 decisions
Dane Valley
80.3% approval · 461 decisions
High Legh
80.4% approval · 429 decisions
Congleton West
85.5% approval · 428 decisions
Poynton West and Adlington
85.1% approval · 423 decisions
Alderley Edge
85.6% approval · 418 decisions
Wrenbury
72.0% approval · 400 decisions
Poynton East and Pott Shrigley
83.9% approval · 398 decisions
Mobberley
77.6% approval · 393 decisions
Gawsworth
85.0% approval · 387 decisions
Wilmslow East
86.3% approval · 365 decisions
Congleton East
84.7% approval · 346 decisions
Audlem
77.5% approval · 346 decisions
Haslington
84.4% approval · 340 decisions
Bollington
89.8% approval · 333 decisions
Recent comparable decisions
The most recent residential planning decisions in Cheshire East, showing how the council decides real applications.
Non material amendment on approval 26/0895/HOUS: Proposed single storey wrap aro · Poynton East and Pott Shrigley · 2026-08-10
Prior approval for demolition of 2 structures both located to the eastern bounda · Crewe West · 2026-08-10
Agricultural determination for proposed erection of an agricultural machinery st · Wybunbury · 2026-08-10
Showing 3 recent comparable decisions. See more in the full report →
What gets approved near your property?
In Cheshire East, 1 in 6 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 Cheshire East
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free planning check for Cheshire East →
✓ Common refusal reasons in Cheshire East
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free. Based on 15,157 decisions.
Compare with nearby councils
Frequently asked questions about planning in Cheshire East
What is the planning approval rate in Cheshire East?
Based on 15,157 planning decisions analysed since 2020, Cheshire East approved 84.4% of applications and refused 15.6%. The council is ranked 42nd out of 300 UK councils for approval rate.
How many planning applications are refused in Cheshire East?
Cheshire East refuses 15.6% of planning applications, roughly 1 in 6. That is higher than the UK average of 11.4%. Out of 15,157 decided applications since 2020, 2,372 were refused. PlanningLens lets you check any postcode to see which applications were refused near a specific property.
Which areas of Cheshire East have the highest planning approval rates?
The highest approval rates in Cheshire East are in Leighton (94.9%), Macclesfield Hurdsfield (92.5%), and Sandbach Town (92.4%). Approval rates vary significantly by ward, see the full ward breakdown above.
What types of planning application are most common in Cheshire East?
The most common planning application types in Cheshire East are: Other (15,157 decisions, 84.4% approved).
How long does a planning application take in Cheshire East?
Most planning applications in Cheshire East are decided within 8 weeks for householder applications and 13 weeks for major developments, the statutory targets set by central government. With 15,157 decisions analysed since 2020, Cheshire East processes approximately 2,526 planning applications per year.
How do I check planning applications in Cheshire East?
You can search planning applications in Cheshire East directly on the council's official planning portal. PlanningLens also lets you check any postcode against 15,157 historical decisions in Cheshire East to see what's been approved and refused near a specific property.
How is PlanningLens approval rate data for Cheshire East calculated?
PlanningLens scrapes Cheshire East'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.