Lichfield planning approval rate
Lichfield council approved 84.5% of planning applications and refused 15.5%, based on 2,991 decisions analysed. Ranked 46th out of 300 councils for strictness.
Last updated: August 2026 · Based on decisions from January 2020 to August 2026
84.5%
overall approval rate
2,991
Decisions analysed
2,527
Approved
464
Refused
22
Wards covered
Planning in Lichfield? 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 Lichfield. Householder and full planning applications typically have the highest volume.
85.5%
79.4%
88.2%
76.3%
92.8%
83.8%
Approval rate by project type
These rates are based on what homeowners are actually building in Lichfield, mined from 2,991 proposal descriptions.
90.2%
83.5%
86.9%
75.5%
86.1%
77.5%
87.6%
85.1%
93.5%
82.7%
90.4%
80.8%
73.3%
Approval rate by ward
Planning outcomes vary significantly by ward within Lichfield. Click any ward for detailed statistics.
Stowe
87.9%
Little Aston And Stonnall
77.0%
Whittington And Streethay
89.8%
Alrewas And Fradley
84.2%
Longdon
79.8%
St Johns
84.3%
Leomansley
93.6%
Armitage With Handsacre
82.1%
Hammerwich With Wall
82.4%
Bourne Vale
77.7%
Shenstone
85.2%
Colton And The Ridwares
83.9%
Mease Valley
78.3%
Fazeley
83.5%
Chadsmead
88.9%
Highfield
79.3%
Chasetown
82.6%
Boley Park
96.0%
Boney Hay And Central
89.1%
Chase Terrace
86.3%
Wards in Lichfield
Stowe
87.9% approval · 289 decisions
Little Aston And Stonnall
77.0% approval · 261 decisions
Whittington And Streethay
89.8% approval · 254 decisions
Alrewas And Fradley
84.2% approval · 222 decisions
Longdon
79.8% approval · 198 decisions
St Johns
84.3% approval · 178 decisions
Leomansley
93.6% approval · 172 decisions
Armitage With Handsacre
82.1% approval · 162 decisions
Hammerwich With Wall
82.4% approval · 153 decisions
Bourne Vale
77.7% approval · 139 decisions
Shenstone
85.2% approval · 122 decisions
Colton And The Ridwares
83.9% approval · 112 decisions
Mease Valley
78.3% approval · 92 decisions
Fazeley
83.5% approval · 91 decisions
Chadsmead
88.9% approval · 90 decisions
Highfield
79.3% approval · 87 decisions
Chasetown
82.6% approval · 86 decisions
Boley Park
96.0% approval · 75 decisions
Boney Hay And Central
89.1% approval · 64 decisions
Chase Terrace
86.3% approval · 51 decisions
Recent comparable decisions
The most recent residential planning decisions in Lichfield, showing how the council decides real applications.
Installation of a side window and replacement of 3m wide bi-fold doors with 3m w · Bourne Vale · Fri 14 Aug 2026
Permission in Principle: Proposed erection of up to 3no. Dwellings · Longdon · Fri 14 Aug 2026
Works to listed building including amendments to the approved storey rear extens · St Johns · Fri 14 Aug 2026
Showing 3 recent comparable decisions. See more in the full report →
What gets approved near your property?
In Lichfield, 1 in 6 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 Lichfield
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free planning check for Lichfield →
✓ Common refusal reasons in Lichfield
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free. Based on 2,991 decisions.
Compare with nearby councils
Frequently asked questions about planning in Lichfield
What is the planning approval rate in Lichfield?
Based on 2,991 planning decisions analysed since 2020, Lichfield approved 84.5% of applications and refused 15.5%. The council is ranked 46th out of 300 UK councils for approval rate.
How many planning applications are refused in Lichfield?
Lichfield refuses 15.5% of planning applications, roughly 1 in 6. That is higher than the UK average of 11.4%. Out of 2,991 decided applications since 2020, 464 were refused. PlanningLens lets you check any postcode to see which applications were refused near a specific property.
Which areas of Lichfield have the highest planning approval rates?
The highest approval rates in Lichfield are in Boley Park (96.0%), Leomansley (93.6%), and Summerfield And All Saints (92.0%). Approval rates vary significantly by ward, see the full ward breakdown above.
What types of planning application are most common in Lichfield?
The most common planning application types in Lichfield are: Full (1,889 decisions, 85.5% approved), Other (277, 79.4%), and Certificate of Lawfulness (261, 82.0%).
How long does a planning application take in Lichfield?
Planning applications in Lichfield take an average of 10.9 weeks to reach a decision, measured across 2,968 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. Lichfield decides approximately 498 planning applications per year.
How do I check planning applications in Lichfield?
You can search planning applications in Lichfield directly on the council's official planning portal. PlanningLens also lets you check any postcode against 2,991 historical decisions in Lichfield to see what's been approved and refused near a specific property.
How is PlanningLens approval rate data for Lichfield calculated?
PlanningLens scrapes Lichfield'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.