Falkirk planning approval rate
Falkirk council approved 99.2% of planning applications and refused 0.8%, based on 1,005 decisions analysed. Ranked 281st out of 284 councils for strictness.
Last updated: June 2026 · Based on decisions from January 2020 to present
99.2%
overall approval rate
1,005
Decisions analysed
997
Approved
8
Refused
9
Wards covered
Planning in Falkirk? 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 Falkirk. Householder and full planning applications typically have the highest volume.
99.2%
100.0%
100.0%
100.0%
Approval rate by project type
These rates are based on what homeowners are actually building in Falkirk, mined from 1,005 proposal descriptions.
99.4%
100.0%
100.0%
100.0%
100.0%
Approval rate by ward
Planning outcomes vary significantly by ward within Falkirk. Click any ward for detailed statistics.
Carse, Kinnaird and Tryst
99.2%
Falkirk South
99.2%
Upper Braes
98.4%
Bo'ness and Blackness
99.2%
Bonnybridge and Larbert
99.1%
Falkirk North
99.1%
Lower Braes
98.9%
Grangemouth
100.0%
Denny and Banknock
100.0%
Wards in Falkirk
Carse, Kinnaird and Tryst
99.2% approval · 131 decisions
Falkirk South
99.2% approval · 128 decisions
Upper Braes
98.4% approval · 126 decisions
Bo'ness and Blackness
99.2% approval · 120 decisions
Bonnybridge and Larbert
99.1% approval · 115 decisions
Falkirk North
99.1% approval · 110 decisions
Lower Braes
98.9% approval · 95 decisions
Grangemouth
100.0% approval · 90 decisions
Denny and Banknock
100.0% approval · 85 decisions
Recent comparable decisions
The most recent residential planning decisions in Falkirk, showing how the council decides real applications.
Extension to Dwellinghouse · Upper Braes · Fri 26 Jun 2026
Extension to Dwellinghouse · Upper Braes · Fri 26 Jun 2026
Alterations and Dormer Extension to Building · Falkirk South · Fri 26 Jun 2026
Showing 3 of 200 comparable decisions. See all 200 in the full report →
What gets approved near your property?
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 Falkirk
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free planning check for Falkirk →
✓ Common refusal reasons in Falkirk
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free. Based on 1,005 decisions.
Compare with nearby councils
Frequently asked questions about planning in Falkirk
What is the planning approval rate in Falkirk?
Based on 1,005 planning decisions analysed since 2020, Falkirk approved 99.2% of applications and refused 0.8%. The council is ranked 281st out of 284 UK councils for approval rate.
How many planning applications are refused in Falkirk?
Falkirk refuses 0.8% of planning applications, roughly 1 in 125. That is lower than the UK average of 11.7%. Out of 1,005 decided applications since 2020, 8 were refused. PlanningLens lets you check any postcode to see which applications were refused near a specific property.
Which areas of Falkirk have the highest planning approval rates?
The highest approval rates in Falkirk are in Denny and Banknock (100.0%), Grangemouth (100.0%), and Falkirk South (99.2%). Approval rates vary significantly by ward, see the full ward breakdown above.
What types of planning application are most common in Falkirk?
The most common planning application types in Falkirk are: Other (893 decisions, 99.2% approved), Advertisement (47, 100.0%), and Listed Building (47, 100.0%).
How long does a planning application take in Falkirk?
Planning applications in Falkirk take an average of 9.8 weeks to reach a decision, measured across 1,000 decisions with a recorded timeline. That is slower than 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. Falkirk decides approximately 168 planning applications per year.
How do I check planning applications in Falkirk?
You can search planning applications in Falkirk directly on the council's official planning portal. PlanningLens also lets you check any postcode against 1,005 historical decisions in Falkirk to see what's been approved and refused near a specific property.
How is PlanningLens approval rate data for Falkirk calculated?
PlanningLens scrapes Falkirk'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.