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Rear Extension Approval Rates in Darlington

Rear extensions are the bread and butter of UK planning — and one of the most common reasons homeowners face a refusal. Here's what 537 real decisions tell us about rear extension outcomes in Darlington.

537 real decisions·January 2020 to present·Updated June 2026
95.5%
Approval Rate
537
Decisions
513
Approved
24
Refused
95.5% approved. But 24 refused since 2020. Each refusal cost the homeowner time and money on drawings and application fees. Understanding your local data before you apply is the difference between confidence and a costly gamble.

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Why rear extension approval rates matter

Rear extensions sit in the middle of the pack nationally. They're common enough that councils have clear precedent — but that cuts both ways. If your neighbours have been refused, that precedent works against you too.

Rear Extension approval rate by ward

#WardDecisionsApprovedRate
1Mowden64
66.7%
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These are council averages. Your property is specific.

Two houses on the same street can get different outcomes.
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How rear extensions compare to other project types

Not all applications are treated equally. Here's how rear extensions stack up against other common projects in Darlington.

TypeDecisionsRate
Loft Conversion46
97.8%
Annex31
96.8%
Outbuilding193
96.4%
Garage / Parking675
96.3%
Wraparound Extension50
96.0%
Dormer147
95.9%
Rear Extension537
95.5%
Side Extension175
95.4%
Conservatory165
95.2%
Basement21
95.2%
Extension (General)391
94.9%
New Build328
93.6%
Change of Use (Residential)188
86.2%
HMO35
85.7%
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What the data tells us

1
95.5% of rear extension applications in Darlington get approved. That means 24 homeowners since 2020 have been refused. Not terrible odds, but not a foregone conclusion.
3
Council averages are starting points, not guarantees. The decisions that matter most are the comparable ones near your specific property — because planning officers look at precedent, character and the immediate context of your street.

Before you spend £5,000+ on architects and drawings

24 rear extension applications in Darlington have been refused since 2020. Many of those homeowners had already paid for drawings and application fees. A free, property-specific report shows you what gets approved — and what gets refused — near your property.

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Free · Property report emailed in minutes · Based on 3,290,000+ real decisions

More Darlington planning data

Nearby councils rear extension data

Methodology: Based on 537 planning decisions classified as rear extensions in Darlington, January 2020 to present. Classification uses keyword matching against proposal descriptions (matching generate_site_data.py rules). A single application may appear in multiple categories. Approval rate = approved / (approved + refused). Pending, withdrawn and invalid applications excluded. Data from Darlington Council's public planning portal. Full methodology →
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