Maidstone planning approval rate
Maidstone council approved 83.6% of planning applications and refused 16.4%, based on 1,843 decisions analysed. Ranked 34th out of 300 councils for strictness.
Last updated: August 2026 · Based on decisions from January 2020 to August 2026
83.6%
overall approval rate
1,843
Decisions analysed
1,540
Approved
303
Refused
21
Wards covered
Planning in Maidstone? 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 Maidstone. Householder and full planning applications typically have the highest volume.
81.9%
89.9%
94.8%
70.8%
83.7%
80.0%
Approval rate by project type
These rates are based on what homeowners are actually building in Maidstone, mined from 1,843 proposal descriptions.
76.5%
86.6%
89.0%
68.4%
84.0%
84.0%
87.5%
87.5%
78.6%
79.2%
93.3%
91.7%
76.5%
87.5%
93.8%
Approval rate by ward
Planning outcomes vary significantly by ward within Maidstone. Click any ward for detailed statistics.
Marden And Yalding
74.9%
High Street
78.9%
Harrietsham, Lenham And North Downs
81.7%
Headcorn And Sutton Valence
85.0%
Staplehurst
81.3%
Boughton Monchelsea And Chart Sutton
79.4%
Loose And Linton
85.9%
Leeds And Langley
92.1%
Boxley Downs
86.4%
Bearsted And Downswood
83.8%
Coxheath And Farleigh
92.1%
Grove Green And Vinters Park
85.5%
Fant And Oakwood
86.3%
Barming Heath And Teston
100.0%
Shepway
95.6%
Penenden Heath
90.2%
Palace Wood
92.5%
Allington And Bridge
92.9%
Tovil
88.5%
Wards in Maidstone
Marden And Yalding
74.9% approval · 311 decisions
High Street
78.9% approval · 204 decisions
Harrietsham, Lenham And North Downs
81.7% approval · 153 decisions
Headcorn And Sutton Valence
85.0% approval · 140 decisions
Staplehurst
81.3% approval · 139 decisions
Boughton Monchelsea And Chart Sutton
79.4% approval · 136 decisions
Loose And Linton
85.9% approval · 92 decisions
Leeds And Langley
92.1% approval · 89 decisions
Boxley Downs
86.4% approval · 88 decisions
Bearsted And Downswood
83.8% approval · 74 decisions
Coxheath And Farleigh
92.1% approval · 63 decisions
Grove Green And Vinters Park
85.5% approval · 62 decisions
Fant And Oakwood
86.3% approval · 51 decisions
Barming Heath And Teston
100.0% approval · 46 decisions
Shepway
95.6% approval · 45 decisions
Penenden Heath
90.2% approval · 41 decisions
Palace Wood
92.5% approval · 40 decisions
Allington And Bridge
92.9% approval · 28 decisions
Tovil
88.5% approval · 26 decisions
Recent comparable decisions
The most recent residential planning decisions in Maidstone, showing how the council decides real applications.
Permission in Principle for the erection of one dwelling. · Headcorn And Sutton Valence · Fri 14 Aug 2026
Conversion of the existing attached workshop, utility and log store building to · Headcorn And Sutton Valence · Fri 14 Aug 2026
Construction of an off-street parking bay for 2no. vehicles, with integrated ref · Harrietsham, Lenham And North Downs · Fri 14 Aug 2026
Showing 3 recent comparable decisions. See more in the full report →
What gets approved near your property?
In Maidstone, 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 Maidstone
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free planning check for Maidstone →
✓ Common refusal reasons in Maidstone
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free. Based on 1,843 decisions.
Compare with nearby councils
Frequently asked questions about planning in Maidstone
What is the planning approval rate in Maidstone?
Based on 1,843 planning decisions analysed since 2020, Maidstone approved 83.6% of applications and refused 16.4%. The council is ranked 34th out of 300 UK councils for approval rate.
How many planning applications are refused in Maidstone?
Maidstone refuses 16.4% of planning applications, roughly 1 in 6. That is higher than the UK average of 11.4%. Out of 1,843 decided applications since 2020, 303 were refused. PlanningLens lets you check any postcode to see which applications were refused near a specific property.
Which areas of Maidstone have the highest planning approval rates?
The highest approval rates in Maidstone are in Leeds And Langley (92.1%), Coxheath And Farleigh (92.1%), and Boxley Downs (86.4%). Approval rates vary significantly by ward, see the full ward breakdown above.
What types of planning application are most common in Maidstone?
The most common planning application types in Maidstone are: Full (795 decisions, 81.9% approved), Other (545, 89.9%), and Trees (155, 94.8%).
How long does a planning application take in Maidstone?
Planning applications in Maidstone take an average of 10.7 weeks to reach a decision, measured across 1,574 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. Maidstone decides approximately 307 planning applications per year.
How do I check planning applications in Maidstone?
You can search planning applications in Maidstone directly on the council's official planning portal. PlanningLens also lets you check any postcode against 1,843 historical decisions in Maidstone to see what's been approved and refused near a specific property.
How is PlanningLens approval rate data for Maidstone calculated?
PlanningLens scrapes Maidstone'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.