Cotswold Council approves 95.6% of planning applications, based on 24,466 real decisions analysed from the council’s public planning portal. The national average across all councils tracked by PlanningLens is 88.6%. Cotswold sits 7.0 percentage points above the national average.
According to PlanningLens analysis of 2,958 decided applications, Cotswold Council approved 93.9% of planning applications in 2025. Across 24,466 decisions analysed since January 2020, the overall approval rate in Cotswold is 95.6%; the national average across UK councils tracked by PlanningLens is 88.6%.
Source: PlanningLens (planninglens.co.uk) analysis of Cotswold council planning portal records · Updated August 2026 · Quote freely with attribution
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Not all applications are treated equally. Extension types, listed building consent, and change of use applications each have very different success rates in Cotswold.
| Application Type | Approved | Refused | Total | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full | 9,118 | 626 | 9,744 | 93.6% |
| Trees | 6,749 | 23 | 6,772 | 99.7% |
| Discharge of Conditions | 2,898 | 41 | 2,939 | 98.6% |
| Listed Building | 2,381 | 137 | 2,518 | 94.6% |
| Other | 1,526 | 161 | 1,687 | 90.5% |
| Certificate of Lawfulness | 469 | 63 | 532 | 88.2% |
| Advertisement | 157 | 17 | 174 | 90.2% |
| Prior Approval | 88 | 12 | 100 | 88.0% |
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, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Campden & Vale | 1,646 | 66 | 1,712 | 96.1% |
| Coln Valley | 1,545 | 53 | 1,598 | 96.7% |
| Fosseridge | 1,451 | 70 | 1,521 | 95.4% |
| Bourton Vale | 1,320 | 77 | 1,397 | 94.5% |
| Ermin | 1,166 | 66 | 1,232 | 94.6% |
| Lechlade, Kempsford & Fairford South | 1,157 | 63 | 1,220 | 94.8% |
| Kemble | 1,142 | 37 | 1,179 | 96.9% |
| Sandywell | 1,126 | 53 | 1,179 | 95.5% |
| The Ampneys & Hampton | 1,072 | 59 | 1,131 | 94.8% |
| Grumbolds Ash With Avening | 1,016 | 36 | 1,052 | 96.6% |
| Blockley | 963 | 47 | 1,010 | 95.3% |
| Chedworth & Churn Valley | 927 | 58 | 985 | 94.1% |
| The Rissingtons | 804 | 50 | 854 | 94.1% |
| Stow | 799 | 38 | 837 | 95.5% |
| Northleach | 761 | 39 | 800 | 95.1% |
| Tetbury East & Rural | 703 | 32 | 735 | 95.6% |
| Siddington & Cerney Rural | 689 | 43 | 732 | 94.1% |
| Abbey | 684 | 7 | 691 | 99.0% |
| St Michaels | 552 | 18 | 570 | 96.8% |
| Tetbury With Upton | 536 | 23 | 559 | 95.9% |
| Moreton West | 517 | 15 | 532 | 97.2% |
| Bourton Village | 483 | 26 | 509 | 94.9% |
| Watermoor | 465 | 15 | 480 | 96.9% |
| Fairford North | 418 | 7 | 425 | 98.4% |
| South Cerney Village | 285 | 10 | 295 | 96.6% |
Showing top 25 of 32 wards by volume. Your free property report includes the full ward breakdown.
See full ward breakdown →How Cotswold’s planning approval rate has changed year by year, down 2.1pp since 2018.
Bar height reflects approval rate. Colour: green ≥85%, amber ≥70%, red below 70%.
Real residential planning decisions from Cotswold council. Each reference links to the council's own planning portal so you can verify the details yourself.
| Reference | Proposal | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| 26/02014/LBC Bourton Village | Replacement of existing front door and frame with new door set | Approved |
| 26/01618/FUL Kemble | Replacement conservatory | Approved |
| 26/01619/LBC Kemble | Replacement conservatory | Approved |
| 26/01574/FUL Chedworth & Churn Valley | Erection of two storage buildings with associated works | Approved |
| 26/01536/FUL Sandywell | Erection of single storey rear/side extension with associated works. Demolition | Approved |
| 26/01905/FUL Northleach | Erection of single storey extension, new outbuilding and internal alterations wi | Approved |
| 26/00905/FUL Tetbury With Upton | Change of use of land to Class F 2 (c) Areas or places for outdoor sport or recr | Refused |
| 25/02961/LBC Coln Valley | Conversion of ground floor of existing barns from general storage to cafe with r | Approved |
| 26/02402/TCONR Fosseridge | G1: Prune all fruit trees by 0.5m to tidy.T1: Shrub by house: Reduce by 1m and s | Approved |
| 26/02003/COMPLY Blockley | Compliance with condition 7 (Roof details) of permission 24/02232/FUL | 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 Cotswold's 24,466 real decisions. Free, emailed in minutes.
Check my postcodeCompare Cotswold's planning approval rates with neighbouring areas:
Dig deeper into Cotswold'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 Cotswold. Enter your postcode to instantly see approval rates for your ward and application type, based on 24,466 real decisions from Cotswold 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 Cotswold'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 24,466 planning decisions, the overall approval rate in Cotswold is 95.6%. The national average across councils tracked by PlanningLens is 88.6%. Rates vary significantly by ward and application type.
PlanningLens has analysed 24,466 planning decisions from Cotswold council. 23,386 were approved and 1,080 were refused. These figures cover decisions from January 2020 to the present.
The average approval rate in Cotswold is 95.6%, 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 Cotswold? 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.