Chesterfield planning approval rate
Chesterfield council approved 90.2% of planning applications and refused 9.8%, based on 5,038 decisions analysed. Ranked 126th out of 300 councils for strictness.
Last updated: August 2026 · Based on decisions from January 2020 to August 2026
90.2%
overall approval rate
5,038
Decisions analysed
4,545
Approved
493
Refused
27
Wards covered
Planning in Chesterfield? 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 Chesterfield. Householder and full planning applications typically have the highest volume.
91.4%
94.4%
89.7%
91.4%
97.4%
21.9%
89.1%
82.6%
Approval rate by project type
These rates are based on what homeowners are actually building in Chesterfield, mined from 5,038 proposal descriptions.
93.0%
88.4%
92.9%
92.2%
82.2%
96.8%
84.0%
90.6%
91.3%
96.5%
91.2%
90.5%
93.1%
80.0%
81.8%
Approval rate by ward
Planning outcomes vary significantly by ward within Chesterfield. Click any ward for detailed statistics.
West
91.8%
Walton
92.8%
Brockwell
91.8%
St Leonards
92.0%
Spire
91.4%
Dunston
91.2%
Hasland
89.8%
Brimington South
90.7%
Brampton West & Loundsley Green
89.5%
Old Whittington
90.6%
Hollingwood And Inkersall
90.1%
Brimington North
87.1%
Whittington
93.1%
Barrow Hill And New Whittington
89.4%
Linacre
87.7%
Rother
83.7%
St Helens
88.9%
Lowgates And Woodthorpe
82.9%
Moor
94.9%
Holmebrook
86.4%
Wards in Chesterfield
West
91.8% approval · 461 decisions
Walton
92.8% approval · 375 decisions
Brockwell
91.8% approval · 365 decisions
St Leonards
92.0% approval · 352 decisions
Spire
91.4% approval · 327 decisions
Dunston
91.2% approval · 297 decisions
Hasland
89.8% approval · 255 decisions
Brimington South
90.7% approval · 237 decisions
Brampton West & Loundsley Green
89.5% approval · 210 decisions
Old Whittington
90.6% approval · 191 decisions
Hollingwood And Inkersall
90.1% approval · 172 decisions
Brimington North
87.1% approval · 147 decisions
Whittington
93.1% approval · 145 decisions
Barrow Hill And New Whittington
89.4% approval · 141 decisions
Linacre
87.7% approval · 138 decisions
Rother
83.7% approval · 135 decisions
St Helens
88.9% approval · 135 decisions
Lowgates And Woodthorpe
82.9% approval · 129 decisions
Moor
94.9% approval · 118 decisions
Holmebrook
86.4% approval · 110 decisions
Recent comparable decisions
The most recent residential planning decisions in Chesterfield, showing how the council decides real applications.
Single storey rear extension · Hasland · Fri 14 Aug 2026
Installation of a detached carport · Linacre · Fri 14 Aug 2026
Rear extension · Linacre · Fri 14 Aug 2026
Showing 3 recent comparable decisions. See more in the full report →
What gets approved near your property?
In Chesterfield, 1 in 10 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 Chesterfield
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free planning check for Chesterfield →
✓ Common refusal reasons in Chesterfield
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free. Based on 5,038 decisions.
Compare with nearby councils
Frequently asked questions about planning in Chesterfield
What is the planning approval rate in Chesterfield?
Based on 5,038 planning decisions analysed since 2020, Chesterfield approved 90.2% of applications and refused 9.8%. The council is ranked 126th out of 300 UK councils for approval rate.
How many planning applications are refused in Chesterfield?
Chesterfield refuses 9.8% of planning applications, roughly 1 in 10. That is lower than the UK average of 11.4%. Out of 5,038 decided applications since 2020, 493 were refused. PlanningLens lets you check any postcode to see which applications were refused near a specific property.
Which areas of Chesterfield have the highest planning approval rates?
The highest approval rates in Chesterfield are in Loundsley Green (98.0%), Moor (94.9%), and Whittington (93.1%). Approval rates vary significantly by ward, see the full ward breakdown above.
What types of planning application are most common in Chesterfield?
The most common planning application types in Chesterfield are: Full (2,671 decisions, 91.4% approved), Trees (871, 94.4%), and Other (767, 89.7%).
How long does a planning application take in Chesterfield?
Planning applications in Chesterfield take an average of 11.2 weeks to reach a decision, measured across 5,001 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. Chesterfield decides approximately 840 planning applications per year.
How do I check planning applications in Chesterfield?
You can search planning applications in Chesterfield directly on the council's official planning portal. PlanningLens also lets you check any postcode against 5,038 historical decisions in Chesterfield to see what's been approved and refused near a specific property.
How is PlanningLens approval rate data for Chesterfield calculated?
PlanningLens scrapes Chesterfield'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.