East Ayrshire planning approval rate
East Ayrshire council approved 94.3% of planning applications and refused 5.7%, based on 1,537 decisions analysed. Ranked 215th out of 284 councils for strictness.
Last updated: June 2026 · Based on decisions from January 2020 to present
94.3%
overall approval rate
1,537
Decisions analysed
1,450
Approved
87
Refused
9
Wards covered
Planning in East Ayrshire? 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 East Ayrshire. Householder and full planning applications typically have the highest volume.
94.5%
90.7%
100.0%
93.2%
96.4%
Approval rate by project type
These rates are based on what homeowners are actually building in East Ayrshire, mined from 1,537 proposal descriptions.
97.6%
92.9%
98.6%
86.1%
93.2%
88.6%
100.0%
100.0%
Approval rate by ward
Planning outcomes vary significantly by ward within East Ayrshire. Click any ward for detailed statistics.
Annick
92.0%
Cumnock And New Cumnock
96.9%
Ballochmyle
92.3%
Kilmarnock West And Crosshouse
94.7%
Irvine Valley
88.8%
Doon Valley
98.3%
Kilmarnock East And Hurlford
98.2%
Kilmarnock North
100.0%
Kilmarnock South
96.7%
Wards in East Ayrshire
Annick
92.0% approval · 350 decisions
Cumnock And New Cumnock
96.9% approval · 294 decisions
Ballochmyle
92.3% approval · 208 decisions
Kilmarnock West And Crosshouse
94.7% approval · 207 decisions
Irvine Valley
88.8% approval · 160 decisions
Doon Valley
98.3% approval · 118 decisions
Kilmarnock East And Hurlford
98.2% approval · 109 decisions
Kilmarnock North
100.0% approval · 49 decisions
Kilmarnock South
96.7% approval · 30 decisions
Recent comparable decisions
The most recent residential planning decisions in East Ayrshire, showing how the council decides real applications.
Proposed upper floor extension to side of dwelling · Kilmarnock South · Thu 25 Jun 2026
Proposed erection of single-storey rear extension. · Ballochmyle · Wed 24 Jun 2026
Formation of single storey rear extension to existing detached two-storey house · Annick · Wed 24 Jun 2026
Showing 3 of 200 comparable decisions. See all 200 in the full report →
What gets approved near your property?
In East Ayrshire, 1 in 18 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 East Ayrshire
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free planning check for East Ayrshire →
✓ Common refusal reasons in East Ayrshire
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free. Based on 1,537 decisions.
Compare with nearby councils
Frequently asked questions about planning in East Ayrshire
What is the planning approval rate in East Ayrshire?
Based on 1,537 planning decisions analysed since 2020, East Ayrshire approved 94.3% of applications and refused 5.7%. The council is ranked 215th out of 284 UK councils for approval rate.
How many planning applications are refused in East Ayrshire?
East Ayrshire refuses 5.7% of planning applications, roughly 1 in 18. That is lower than the UK average of 11.7%. Out of 1,537 decided applications since 2020, 87 were refused. PlanningLens lets you check any postcode to see which applications were refused near a specific property.
Which areas of East Ayrshire have the highest planning approval rates?
The highest approval rates in East Ayrshire are in Doon Valley (98.3%), Kilmarnock East And Hurlford (98.2%), and Cumnock And New Cumnock (96.9%). Approval rates vary significantly by ward, see the full ward breakdown above.
What types of planning application are most common in East Ayrshire?
The most common planning application types in East Ayrshire are: Other (1,249 decisions, 94.5% approved), Prior Approval (107, 90.7%), and Certificate of Lawfulness (57, 93.0%).
How long does a planning application take in East Ayrshire?
Planning applications in East Ayrshire take an average of 7.8 weeks to reach a decision, measured across 1,530 decisions with a recorded timeline. That is inside 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. East Ayrshire decides approximately 256 planning applications per year.
How do I check planning applications in East Ayrshire?
You can search planning applications in East Ayrshire directly on the council's official planning portal. PlanningLens also lets you check any postcode against 1,537 historical decisions in East Ayrshire to see what's been approved and refused near a specific property.
How is PlanningLens approval rate data for East Ayrshire calculated?
PlanningLens scrapes East Ayrshire'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.