Nottingham Council approves 92.4% of planning applications, based on 3,967 real decisions analysed from the council’s public planning portal. The national average across all councils tracked by PlanningLens is 85.0%. Nottingham sits 7.4 percentage points above the national average.
According to PlanningLens analysis of 1,746 decided applications, Nottingham Council approved 91.6% of planning applications in 2025. Across 3,967 decisions on record (January 2020 to September 2026), the overall approval rate in Nottingham is 92.4%; the national average across UK councils tracked by PlanningLens is 85.0%.
Source: PlanningLens (planninglens.co.uk) analysis of Nottingham council planning portal records · Data to 29 September 2026 · Quote freely with attribution
Enter your postcode for a free, personalised approval pattern report, based on your ward and application type.
Not all applications are treated equally. Extension types, listed building consent, and change of use applications each have very different success rates in Nottingham.
| Application Type | Approved | Refused | Total | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full | 3,401 | 258 | 3,659 | 92.9% |
| Discharge of Conditions | 1,033 | 9 | 1,042 | 99.1% |
| Trees | 891 | 42 | 933 | 95.5% |
| Certificate of Lawfulness | 681 | 36 | 717 | 95.0% |
| Advertisement | 382 | 26 | 408 | 93.6% |
| Other | 320 | 9 | 329 | 97.3% |
| Listed Building | 281 | 5 | 286 | 98.3% |
| Prior Approval | 169 | 33 | 202 | 83.7% |
A loft conversion in one ward can have a 90% approval rate. In the next ward, 55%. The free check tells you which side you're on, your free property report is emailed in minutes.
Check My PostcodeWard-level data reveals where planning applications are most and least likely to succeed. Officers, local policies, and neighbourhood character all play a role.
| Ward | Approved | Refused | Total | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Castle | 1,138 | 52 | 1,190 | 95.6% |
| Lenton And Wollaton East | 687 | 53 | 740 | 92.8% |
| Mapperley | 528 | 24 | 552 | 95.7% |
| Hyson Green And Arboretum | 518 | 33 | 551 | 94.0% |
| Wollaton West | 494 | 25 | 519 | 95.2% |
| St Anns | 447 | 21 | 468 | 95.5% |
| Sherwood | 334 | 17 | 351 | 95.2% |
| Berridge | 329 | 16 | 345 | 95.4% |
| Dales | 312 | 31 | 343 | 91.0% |
| Leen Valley | 304 | 16 | 320 | 95.0% |
| Radford | 264 | 30 | 294 | 89.8% |
| Meadows | 269 | 19 | 288 | 93.4% |
| Clifton West | 271 | 9 | 280 | 96.8% |
| Bilborough | 262 | 14 | 276 | 94.9% |
| Basford | 232 | 16 | 248 | 93.5% |
| Bulwell | 191 | 9 | 200 | 95.5% |
| Aspley | 145 | 13 | 158 | 91.8% |
| Bulwell Forest | 137 | 8 | 145 | 94.5% |
| Bestwood | 132 | 3 | 135 | 97.8% |
| Clifton East | 116 | 8 | 124 | 93.5% |
| Bridge | 13 | 0 | 13 | 100.0% |
| Radford And Park | 6 | 0 | 6 | 100.0% |
How Nottingham’s planning approval rate has changed year by year, up 6.6pp since 2020.
Bar height reflects approval rate. Colour: green ≥85%, amber ≥70%, red below 70%.
Real residential planning decisions from Nottingham council. Each reference links to the council's own planning portal so you can verify the details yourself.
| Reference | Proposal | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| 26/00870/PFUL3 Hyson Green And Arboretum | Replacement of timber windows and doors with UPVC windows and doors | Approved |
| 26/01429/PWC Castle | Magnolia tree at the back of the garden. The intention is to prune the tree back | Approved |
| 26/01427/PWC Castle | Removal of four Ilex aquifolium (Common Holly), stump grinding, and replacement | Approved |
| 26/01327/PTPO Berridge | T2, T3 and T4 (Acer spp.)We seek consent to undertake selective side pruning and | Approved |
| 26/00982/LLIS1 Clifton West | Erection of a single-storey porch extension | Approved |
| 26/01348/PFUL3 Berridge | Erection of rear dormer extension | Approved |
| 26/01336/PAHPD Lenton And Wollaton East | Single storey rear extension 4m depth, 4m height, 3m height to eaves. | Approved |
| 26/01329/PFUL3 Bulwell Forest | Single storey rear extension incl. infill of side door. | Approved |
| 26/01224/ADV2 Castle | Non-illuminated, double sided projecting sign mounted on a black wrought iron br | Approved |
| 26/01128/PFUL3 Berridge | Installation of external wall insulation and render finish | Approved |
Find out what actually gets approved near your address first. Your free property report analyses the 20 nearest decisions to your property, ward-specific refusal patterns, and extension-by-extension approval patterns. Based on Nottingham's 3,967 real decisions. Free, emailed in minutes.
Check my postcodeCompare Nottingham's planning approval rates with neighbouring areas:
Dig deeper into Nottingham's planning statistics, by ward, extension type, or project category:
Data-driven guides to help you understand planning approval patterns:
Yes. PlanningLens offers a free planning permission check for Nottingham. Enter your postcode to instantly see approval rates for your ward and application type, based on 3,967 real decisions from Nottingham council. The full property-specific report is also free and emailed within minutes.
Enter your postcode on PlanningLens for a free instant check based on Nottingham's real planning decisions. The free property report goes further: it analyses the 20 nearest comparable decisions to your property, ward-level refusal patterns, and approval rates by application type. Free and emailed within minutes.
Based on 3,967 planning decisions, the overall approval rate in Nottingham is 92.4%. The national average across councils tracked by PlanningLens is 85.0%. Rates vary significantly by ward and application type.
PlanningLens has analysed 3,967 planning decisions from Nottingham council. 3,667 were approved and 300 were refused. These figures cover every decision on record for the council, January 2020 to September 2026.
The average approval rate in Nottingham is 92.4%, but outcomes depend heavily on your specific ward, the type of extension or development you are proposing, and local planning policy. Use the free PlanningLens postcode check to get a personalised score.
Writing about planning in Nottingham? These figures are free to republish with attribution. Copy the one-line citation, or paste the stat box into any website, CMS or newsletter, it carries its own styling and links back to this page for verification.