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Loft Conversion Approval Rates in Ealing

Loft conversions change your roofline — and that makes them one of the more closely scrutinised application types. Councils scrutinise visibility, overlooking and street character more closely than for ground-level work. Here's what the data shows in Ealing.

12,110 real decisions·January 2020 to September 2026·Updated September 2026
88.4%
Approval Rate
12,110
Decisions
10,707
Approved
1,403
Refused
88.4% approved. But 1,403 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 loft conversion approval rates matter

Loft conversions face more scrutiny than rear or side extensions because they change the property's profile from the street. Dormers, mansards and hip-to-gable alterations are particularly sensitive.

These are council averages. Your property is specific.

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

Not all applications are treated equally. Here's how loft conversions stack up against other common projects in Ealing.

TypeDecisionsRate
New Build1,084
96.9%
Basement3,572
92.3%
Garage / Parking13,581
91.2%
Extension (General)2,593
91.0%
Conservatory1,802
89.3%
Loft Conversion12,110
88.4%
Wraparound Extension1,770
88.2%
Hip-to-Gable Conversion3,889
87.9%
Side Extension8,323
87.0%
Dormer2,190
86.6%
Rear Extension23,612
85.5%
Flat Conversion3,868
85.4%
Outbuilding4,246
85.2%
Annex264
85.2%
Change of Use (Residential)3,527
84.0%
Front Extension1,814
83.4%
HMO495
80.6%
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What the data tells us

1
88.4% of loft conversion applications in Ealing get approved. That means 1,403 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

1,403 loft conversion applications in Ealing 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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More Ealing planning data

Nearby councils loft conversion data

Methodology: Based on 12,110 planning decisions classified as loft conversions in Ealing, January 2020 to September 2026. 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 Ealing Council's public planning portal. Full methodology →
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