Hillingdon planning approval rate
Hillingdon council approved 80.0% of planning applications and refused 20.0%, based on 30,835 decisions analysed. Ranked 15th out of 300 councils for strictness.
Last updated: August 2026 · Based on decisions from January 2020 to August 2026
80.0%
overall approval rate
30,835
Decisions analysed
24,657
Approved
6,178
Refused
44
Wards covered
Planning in Hillingdon? 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 Hillingdon. Householder and full planning applications typically have the highest volume.
81.6%
76.1%
86.7%
Approval rate by project type
These rates are based on what homeowners are actually building in Hillingdon, mined from 30,835 proposal descriptions.
78.4%
81.9%
79.3%
71.8%
81.0%
84.0%
83.8%
81.3%
66.2%
76.8%
73.6%
82.5%
74.3%
85.7%
58.5%
42.3%
Approval rate by ward
Planning outcomes vary significantly by ward within Hillingdon. Click any ward for detailed statistics.
NORTHWOOD
76.4%
UXBRIDGE NORTH
74.5%
ICKENHAM
75.0%
ICK/HAM & S HF/D 22
83.6%
BOTWELL
81.3%
EASTCOTE 2022
86.2%
NORTHWOOD HILLS
76.0%
RUISLIP 2022
82.7%
EASTCOTE & E RUISLIP
75.5%
TOWNFIELD
75.0%
UXBRIDGE 2022
84.0%
PINKWELL 2022
86.8%
BRUNEL
79.1%
NORTHWOOD 2022
81.2%
UXBRIDGE SOUTH
81.4%
WEST RUISLIP
74.4%
WOOD END 2022
82.9%
MANOR
81.4%
HEATHROW VILLAGES
82.0%
SOUTH RUISLIP 2022
82.8%
Wards in Hillingdon
NORTHWOOD
76.4% approval · 1,326 decisions
UXBRIDGE NORTH
74.5% approval · 1,217 decisions
ICKENHAM
75.0% approval · 1,132 decisions
ICK/HAM & S HF/D 22
83.6% approval · 1,070 decisions
BOTWELL
81.3% approval · 1,034 decisions
EASTCOTE 2022
86.2% approval · 961 decisions
NORTHWOOD HILLS
76.0% approval · 905 decisions
RUISLIP 2022
82.7% approval · 892 decisions
EASTCOTE & E RUISLIP
75.5% approval · 874 decisions
TOWNFIELD
75.0% approval · 819 decisions
UXBRIDGE 2022
84.0% approval · 799 decisions
PINKWELL 2022
86.8% approval · 798 decisions
BRUNEL
79.1% approval · 790 decisions
NORTHWOOD 2022
81.2% approval · 787 decisions
UXBRIDGE SOUTH
81.4% approval · 747 decisions
WEST RUISLIP
74.4% approval · 727 decisions
WOOD END 2022
82.9% approval · 719 decisions
MANOR
81.4% approval · 706 decisions
HEATHROW VILLAGES
82.0% approval · 701 decisions
SOUTH RUISLIP 2022
82.8% approval · 699 decisions
Recent comparable decisions
The most recent residential planning decisions in Hillingdon, showing how the council decides real applications.
48621/APP/2026/796
Erection of a first-floor rear extension (Proposed), and the erection of a front · EASTCOTE 2022 · 13/08/2026
74323/APP/2026/478
Demolition of existing outbuildings and erection of a detached single-storey dwe · RUISLIP 2022 · 13/08/2026
2983/APP/2026/1403
Erection of a single storey rear extension (Proposed Development), and Erection · BELMORE 2022 · 13/08/2026
Showing 3 recent comparable decisions. See more in the full report →
What gets approved near your property?
In Hillingdon, 1 in 5 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 Hillingdon
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free planning check for Hillingdon →
✓ Common refusal reasons in Hillingdon
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free. Based on 30,835 decisions.
Compare with nearby councils
Frequently asked questions about planning in Hillingdon
What is the planning approval rate in Hillingdon?
Based on 30,835 planning decisions analysed since 2020, Hillingdon approved 80.0% of applications and refused 20.0%. The council is ranked 15th out of 300 UK councils for approval rate.
How many planning applications are refused in Hillingdon?
Hillingdon refuses 20.0% of planning applications, roughly 1 in 5. That is higher than the UK average of 11.4%. Out of 30,835 decided applications since 2020, 6,178 were refused. PlanningLens lets you check any postcode to see which applications were refused near a specific property.
Which areas of Hillingdon have the highest planning approval rates?
The highest approval rates in Hillingdon are in RUISLIP MANOR 2022 (87.3%), PINKWELL 2022 (86.8%), and EASTCOTE 2022 (86.2%). Approval rates vary significantly by ward, see the full ward breakdown above.
What types of planning application are most common in Hillingdon?
The most common planning application types in Hillingdon are: Other (17,918 decisions, 81.6% approved), Full (11,010, 76.1%), and Prior Approval (1,907, 86.7%).
How long does a planning application take in Hillingdon?
Planning applications in Hillingdon take an average of 9.9 weeks to reach a decision, measured across 27,048 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. Hillingdon decides approximately 5,139 planning applications per year.
How do I check planning applications in Hillingdon?
You can search planning applications in Hillingdon directly on the council's official planning portal. PlanningLens also lets you check any postcode against 30,835 historical decisions in Hillingdon to see what's been approved and refused near a specific property.
How is PlanningLens approval rate data for Hillingdon calculated?
PlanningLens scrapes Hillingdon'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.