Dartford Council approves 88.2% of planning applications, based on 7,102 real decisions analysed from the council’s public planning portal. The national average across all councils tracked by PlanningLens is 88.0%. Dartford is closely in line with the national average.
Enter your postcode for a free, personalised approval pattern report — 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 Dartford.
| Application Type | Approved | Refused | Total | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full | 2,728 | 461 | 3,189 | 85.5% |
| Other | 1,793 | 206 | 1,999 | 89.7% |
| Certificate of Lawfulness | 769 | 28 | 797 | 96.5% |
| Trees | 594 | 51 | 645 | 92.1% |
| Discharge of Conditions | 147 | 10 | 157 | 93.6% |
| Change of Use | 99 | 38 | 137 | 72.3% |
| Advertisement | 78 | 34 | 112 | 69.6% |
| Listed Building | 43 | 1 | 44 | 97.7% |
| Prior Approval | 12 | 10 | 22 | 54.5% |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Longfield, New Barn & Southfleet | 820 | 137 | 957 | 85.7% |
| Wilmington, Sutton-at-Hone & Hawley | 566 | 87 | 653 | 86.7% |
| Joydens Wood | 542 | 84 | 626 | 86.6% |
| Stone Castle | 558 | 39 | 597 | 93.5% |
| Town | 492 | 79 | 571 | 86.2% |
| Heath | 317 | 42 | 359 | 88.3% |
| West Hill | 314 | 41 | 355 | 88.5% |
| Brent | 299 | 37 | 336 | 89.0% |
| Newtown | 246 | 44 | 290 | 84.8% |
| Princes | 233 | 52 | 285 | 81.8% |
| Greenhithe & Knockhall | 229 | 25 | 254 | 90.2% |
| Swanscombe | 221 | 29 | 250 | 88.4% |
| Maypole & Leyton Cross | 225 | 22 | 247 | 91.1% |
| Bridge | 232 | 11 | 243 | 95.5% |
| Stone House | 201 | 19 | 220 | 91.4% |
| Temple Hill | 178 | 23 | 201 | 88.6% |
| Bean & Village Park | 170 | 15 | 185 | 91.9% |
| Darenth | 128 | 24 | 152 | 84.2% |
| Burnham | 110 | 23 | 133 | 82.7% |
| Ebbsfleet | 56 | 2 | 58 | 96.6% |
| Outside Borough Boundary | 50 | 0 | 50 | 100.0% |
| Longfield, New Barn & Southfleet OLD | 10 | 0 | 10 | 100.0% |
| Joyce Green OLD | 9 | 0 | 9 | 100.0% |
| Bean & Darenth (OLD) | 6 | 1 | 7 | 85.7% |
| Princes OLD | 6 | 0 | 6 | 100.0% |
Showing top 25 of 28 wards by volume. Your free property report includes the full ward breakdown.
See full ward breakdown →How Dartford’s planning approval rate has changed year by year — down 11.3pp since 2020.
Bar height reflects approval rate. Colour: green ≥85%, amber ≥70%, red below 70%.
Real residential planning decisions from Dartford council. Each reference links to the council's own planning portal so you can verify the details yourself.
| Reference | Proposal | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| 25/01266/FUL Joydens Wood | Erection of a part two/part single storey side extension | Approved |
| 25/01286/FUL Wilmington, Sutton-at-Hone & Hawley | Application for replacement of existing 6 Velux roof lights with 6 pitched roof | Approved |
| 25/01285/FUL Longfield, New Barn & Southfleet | Demolition of existing garage and storage area, and erection of a single storey | Approved |
| 25/01253/FUL West Hill | Erection of a single storey rear infill extension | Refused |
| 25/01251/FUL Wilmington, Sutton-at-Hone & Hawley | Alteration to existing roof to provide a pitched roof and creation of habitable | Refused |
| 25/01080/FUL Burnham | Application for loft conversion comprising of three rear dormer windows, in conn | Refused |
| 25/00952/FUL Longfield, New Barn & Southfleet | Erection of a part two/part single storey rear extension and alteration to porch | Refused |
| 25/01378/CPO Bridge | Consultation from KCC on an application for replacement store building | Approved |
| 25/01365/OBB Outside Borough Boundary | Consultation on proposed ground floor rear extension, first storey side/rear ext | Approved |
| 25/01294/LDC Wilmington, Sutton-at-Hone & Hawley | Application for a Lawful Development Certificate for proposed extension of the f | 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 Dartford's 7,102 real decisions. Free, emailed in minutes.
Check my postcodeCompare Dartford's planning approval rates with neighbouring areas:
Dig deeper into Dartford'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 Dartford. Enter your postcode to instantly see approval rates for your ward and application type, based on 7,102 real decisions from Dartford 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 Dartford'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 7,102 planning decisions, the overall approval rate in Dartford is 88.2%. The national average across councils tracked by PlanningLens is 88.0%. Rates vary significantly by ward and application type.
PlanningLens has analysed 7,102 planning decisions from Dartford council. 6,263 were approved and 839 were refused. These figures cover decisions from January 2020 to the present.
The average approval rate in Dartford is 88.2%, 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.