North Ayrshire planning approval rate

North Ayrshire council approved 98.7% of planning applications and refused 1.3%, based on 999 decisions analysed. Ranked 217th out of 221 councils for strictness.

Last updated: March 2026 · Based on decisions from January 2020 to present

98.7%

overall approval rate

999

Decisions analysed

986

Approved

Refused

Wards covered

Planning in North Ayrshire? 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 North Ayrshire. Householder and full planning applications typically have the highest volume.

Full (724 decided)

99.3%

Trees (110 decided)

100.0%

Other (72 decided)

91.7%

Advertisement (46 decided)

97.8%

Listed Building (36 decided)

100.0%

Approval rate by project type

These rates are based on what homeowners are actually building in North Ayrshire — mined from 999 proposal descriptions.

Extension (General) (278 decided)

100.0%

New Build (140 decided)

97.9%

Garage / Parking (92 decided)

94.6%

Change of Use (Residential) (64 decided)

100.0%

Dormer (62 decided)

100.0%

Outbuilding (52 decided)

98.1%

Rear Extension (19 decided)

100.0%

Conservatory (16 decided)

100.0%

Annex (13 decided)

84.6%

Side Extension (12 decided)

100.0%

Approval rate by ward

Planning outcomes vary significantly by ward within North Ayrshire. Click any ward for detailed statistics.

North Coast (260 decided)

98.8%

Garnock Valley (122 decided)

98.4%

Irvine West (81 decided)

98.8%

Saltcoats And Stevenston (77 decided)

100.0%

Irvine South (73 decided)

97.3%

Arran (66 decided)

100.0%

Irvine East (62 decided)

98.4%

Kilwinning (59 decided)

96.6%

North Coast And Cumbraes (49 decided)

98.0%

Dalry And West Kilbride (43 decided)

97.7%

Ardrossan And Arran (39 decided)

100.0%

Ardrossan (27 decided)

100.0%

Kilbirnie And Beith (26 decided)

100.0%

Wards in North Ayrshire

North Coast

98.8% approval · 260 decisions

Garnock Valley

98.4% approval · 122 decisions

Irvine West

98.8% approval · 81 decisions

Saltcoats And Stevenston

100.0% approval · 77 decisions

Irvine South

97.3% approval · 73 decisions

Arran

100.0% approval · 66 decisions

Irvine East

98.4% approval · 62 decisions

Kilwinning

96.6% approval · 59 decisions

North Coast And Cumbraes

98.0% approval · 49 decisions

Dalry And West Kilbride

97.7% approval · 43 decisions

Ardrossan And Arran

100.0% approval · 39 decisions

Ardrossan

100.0% approval · 27 decisions

Kilbirnie And Beith

100.0% approval · 26 decisions

Recent comparable decisions

The most recent residential planning decisions in North Ayrshire, showing how the council decides real applications.

26/00096/PP

Erection of porch to front of semi-detached dwelling house (part retrospective) · Kilwinning · Mon 09 Mar 2026

Approved

26/00064/PP

Erection of single storey extension to side of detached dwelling house · North Coast · Mon 09 Mar 2026

Approved

26/00045/PP

Erection of extension to rear of end-terraced dwelling house · Saltcoats And Stevenston · Wed 04 Mar 2026

Approved

Showing 3 of 200 comparable decisions. See all 200 in the Pro Report →

What gets approved near your property?

In North Ayrshire, 1 in 77 applications are refused. Your PlanningLens Pro Report gives you 17 pages of intelligence specific to your property:

✓ Ward-level approval rates for your exact area
✓ Common refusal reasons in North Ayrshire
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect

Get North Ayrshire Pro Report — £79

Less than one set of revised drawings. Based on 999 decisions.

Compare with nearby councils

South Ayrshire South Lanarkshire Glasgow Stirling

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