Fenland planning approval rate
Fenland council approved 89.0% of planning applications and refused 11.0%, based on 5,165 decisions analysed. Ranked 104th out of 300 councils for strictness.
Last updated: August 2026 · Based on decisions from January 2020 to August 2026
89.0%
overall approval rate
5,165
Decisions analysed
4,595
Approved
570
Refused
40
Wards covered
Planning in Fenland? 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 Fenland. Householder and full planning applications typically have the highest volume.
89.1%
95.1%
76.5%
92.8%
97.4%
95.8%
Approval rate by project type
These rates are based on what homeowners are actually building in Fenland, mined from 5,165 proposal descriptions.
88.9%
94.2%
89.1%
93.2%
94.6%
92.6%
94.0%
87.7%
93.8%
87.5%
94.9%
89.3%
80.0%
57.1%
Approval rate by ward
Planning outcomes vary significantly by ward within Fenland. Click any ward for detailed statistics.
Chatteris North And Manea
86.7%
Doddington And Wimblington
83.6%
Parson Drove And Wisbech St Mary
84.6%
March North
92.1%
Leverington And Wisbech Rural
89.4%
Chatteris South
92.5%
March East
88.3%
Roman Bank
86.6%
Wisbech South
93.2%
Parson Drove/Wisbech St Mary
90.7%
Elm And Christchurch
88.4%
March West And Benwick
86.7%
Doddington/Wimblington
87.3%
Whittlesey East And Villages
92.7%
March West
91.1%
Whittlesey South
88.8%
Elm/Christchurch
85.7%
Benwick/Coates/Eastrea
86.6%
March South
86.8%
Wisbech Riverside
92.9%
Wards in Fenland
Chatteris North And Manea
86.7% approval · 309 decisions
Doddington And Wimblington
83.6% approval · 299 decisions
Parson Drove And Wisbech St Mary
84.6% approval · 286 decisions
March North
92.1% approval · 277 decisions
Leverington And Wisbech Rural
89.4% approval · 265 decisions
Chatteris South
92.5% approval · 241 decisions
March East
88.3% approval · 230 decisions
Roman Bank
86.6% approval · 224 decisions
Wisbech South
93.2% approval · 222 decisions
Parson Drove/Wisbech St Mary
90.7% approval · 193 decisions
Elm And Christchurch
88.4% approval · 189 decisions
March West And Benwick
86.7% approval · 181 decisions
Doddington/Wimblington
87.3% approval · 181 decisions
Whittlesey East And Villages
92.7% approval · 178 decisions
March West
91.1% approval · 157 decisions
Whittlesey South
88.8% approval · 152 decisions
Elm/Christchurch
85.7% approval · 140 decisions
Benwick/Coates/Eastrea
86.6% approval · 134 decisions
March South
86.8% approval · 129 decisions
Wisbech Riverside
92.9% approval · 127 decisions
Recent comparable decisions
The most recent residential planning decisions in Fenland, showing how the council decides real applications.
Single-storey rear extension involving the demolition of existing single-storey · March South · Fri 14 Aug 2026
Conversion of existing barns to 1 x self-build/custom build, involving erection · Whittlesey East And Villages · Fri 14 Aug 2026
Change of use of existing offices and erection of an extension to form to 9 x fl · Wisbech South · Thu 13 Aug 2026
Showing 3 recent comparable decisions. See more in the full report →
What gets approved near your property?
In Fenland, 1 in 9 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 Fenland
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free planning check for Fenland →
✓ Common refusal reasons in Fenland
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free. Based on 5,165 decisions.
Compare with nearby councils
Frequently asked questions about planning in Fenland
What is the planning approval rate in Fenland?
Based on 5,165 planning decisions analysed since 2020, Fenland approved 89.0% of applications and refused 11.0%. The council is ranked 104th out of 300 UK councils for approval rate.
How many planning applications are refused in Fenland?
Fenland refuses 11.0% of planning applications, roughly 1 in 9. That is close to the UK average of 11.4%. Out of 5,165 decided applications since 2020, 570 were refused. PlanningLens lets you check any postcode to see which applications were refused near a specific property.
Which areas of Fenland have the highest planning approval rates?
The highest approval rates in Fenland are in The Mills Chatteris (96.2%), Wisbech South (93.2%), and Slade Lode Chatteris (93.1%). Approval rates vary significantly by ward, see the full ward breakdown above.
What types of planning application are most common in Fenland?
The most common planning application types in Fenland are: Full (2,341 decisions, 89.1% approved), Discharge of Conditions (1,072, 95.1%), and Other (908, 76.5%).
How long does a planning application take in Fenland?
Planning applications in Fenland take an average of 13.3 weeks to reach a decision, measured across 5,131 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. Fenland decides approximately 861 planning applications per year.
How do I check planning applications in Fenland?
You can search planning applications in Fenland directly on the council's official planning portal. PlanningLens also lets you check any postcode against 5,165 historical decisions in Fenland to see what's been approved and refused near a specific property.
How is PlanningLens approval rate data for Fenland calculated?
PlanningLens scrapes Fenland'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.