Fenland planning approval rate
Fenland council approved 88.9% of planning applications and refused 11.1%, based on 2,668 decisions analysed. Ranked 99th out of 279 councils for strictness.
Last updated: June 2026 · Based on decisions from January 2020 to present
88.9%
overall approval rate
2,668
Decisions analysed
2,372
Approved
296
Refused
22
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.
88.5%
94.3%
78.9%
91.4%
98.5%
97.7%
Approval rate by project type
These rates are based on what homeowners are actually building in Fenland — mined from 2,668 proposal descriptions.
89.3%
92.8%
88.2%
91.0%
92.4%
86.4%
92.5%
92.5%
96.0%
90.0%
94.1%
93.3%
Approval rate by ward
Planning outcomes vary significantly by ward within Fenland. Click any ward for detailed statistics.
Chatteris North And Manea
86.5%
Doddington And Wimblington
83.8%
Parson Drove And Wisbech St Mary
86.5%
Leverington And Wisbech Rural
89.9%
Chatteris South
92.6%
Wisbech South
93.7%
March West And Benwick
87.7%
Elm And Christchurch
90.0%
Whittlesey East And Villages
93.8%
March North
88.9%
Whittlesey South
91.0%
March South
88.5%
Wisbech Riverside
92.7%
March East
84.3%
Whittlesey North West
87.5%
Wisbech Walsoken And Waterlees
84.8%
Whittlesey Lattersey
96.2%
Wards in Fenland
Chatteris North And Manea
86.5% approval · 260 decisions
Doddington And Wimblington
83.8% approval · 259 decisions
Parson Drove And Wisbech St Mary
86.5% approval · 251 decisions
Leverington And Wisbech Rural
89.9% approval · 227 decisions
Chatteris South
92.6% approval · 216 decisions
Wisbech South
93.7% approval · 191 decisions
March West And Benwick
87.7% approval · 162 decisions
Elm And Christchurch
90.0% approval · 160 decisions
Whittlesey East And Villages
93.8% approval · 160 decisions
March North
88.9% approval · 135 decisions
Whittlesey South
91.0% approval · 133 decisions
March South
88.5% approval · 113 decisions
Wisbech Riverside
92.7% approval · 109 decisions
March East
84.3% approval · 102 decisions
Whittlesey North West
87.5% approval · 80 decisions
Wisbech Walsoken And Waterlees
84.8% approval · 33 decisions
Whittlesey Lattersey
96.2% approval · 26 decisions
Recent comparable decisions
The most recent residential planning decisions in Fenland, showing how the council decides real applications.
Change of use of existing buildings to 11 x supported residential units, involvi · Wisbech Walsoken And Waterlees · Fri 26 Jun 2026
Removal of condition 3 relating to planning permission M/67/108/D (erection of a · March East · Thu 25 Jun 2026
Erect a single-storey rear extension to existing dwelling · Doddington And Wimblington · Thu 25 Jun 2026
Showing 3 of 200 comparable decisions. See all 200 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 2,668 decisions.
Compare with nearby councils
Frequently asked questions about planning in Fenland
What is the planning approval rate in Fenland?
Based on 2,668 planning decisions analysed since 2020, Fenland approved 88.9% of applications and refused 11.1%. The council is ranked 99th out of 279 UK councils for approval rate.
Which areas of Fenland have the highest planning approval rates?
The highest approval rates in Fenland are in Whittlesey East And Villages (93.8%), Wisbech South (93.7%), and Wisbech Riverside (92.7%). 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 (1,113 decisions, 88.5% approved), Discharge of Conditions (636, 94.3%), and Other (498, 78.9%).
How long does a planning application take in Fenland?
Planning applications in Fenland take an average of 12.9 weeks to reach a decision, measured across 2,644 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 445 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 2,668 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.