Peterborough planning approval rate
Peterborough council approved 87.6% of planning applications and refused 12.4%, based on 33,444 decisions analysed. Ranked 75th out of 279 councils for strictness.
Last updated: June 2026 · Based on decisions from January 2020 to present
87.6%
overall approval rate
33,444
Decisions analysed
29,309
Approved
4,135
Refused
28
Wards covered
Planning in Peterborough? 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 Peterborough. Householder and full planning applications typically have the highest volume.
86.7%
97.4%
82.3%
85.4%
92.7%
80.8%
94.7%
Approval rate by project type
These rates are based on what homeowners are actually building in Peterborough — mined from 33,444 proposal descriptions.
89.1%
89.6%
83.4%
89.2%
95.3%
73.1%
89.6%
86.3%
88.1%
86.2%
69.6%
89.1%
60.0%
82.8%
100.0%
Approval rate by ward
Planning outcomes vary significantly by ward within Peterborough. Click any ward for detailed statistics.
Central
83.4%
Barnack
91.5%
Park
81.7%
Northborough
86.3%
Eye, Thorney & Newborough
86.4%
Glinton
91.8%
West
88.7%
East
86.2%
Werrington
89.5%
Glinton & Wittering
89.5%
Orton Waterville
93.0%
Fletton & Woodston
86.6%
Stanground
86.0%
Orton Longueville
92.9%
Ravensthorpe
87.7%
Orton With Hampton
93.2%
Dogsthorpe
86.5%
Newborough
82.2%
Wittering
92.2%
Paston
86.0%
Wards in Peterborough
Central
83.4% approval · 4,061 decisions
Barnack
91.5% approval · 2,699 decisions
Park
81.7% approval · 2,317 decisions
Northborough
86.3% approval · 2,227 decisions
Eye, Thorney & Newborough
86.4% approval · 2,022 decisions
Glinton
91.8% approval · 1,914 decisions
West
88.7% approval · 1,854 decisions
East
86.2% approval · 1,777 decisions
Werrington
89.5% approval · 1,618 decisions
Glinton & Wittering
89.5% approval · 1,500 decisions
Orton Waterville
93.0% approval · 1,499 decisions
Fletton & Woodston
86.6% approval · 1,200 decisions
Stanground
86.0% approval · 1,108 decisions
Orton Longueville
92.9% approval · 941 decisions
Ravensthorpe
87.7% approval · 929 decisions
Orton With Hampton
93.2% approval · 866 decisions
Dogsthorpe
86.5% approval · 806 decisions
Newborough
82.2% approval · 673 decisions
Wittering
92.2% approval · 639 decisions
Paston
86.0% approval · 522 decisions
Recent comparable decisions
The most recent residential planning decisions in Peterborough, showing how the council decides real applications.
Single storey rear extension · East · 2026-06-26
Single storey rear extension with flat roof · Dogsthorpe · 2026-06-26
Addition of two storey rear and side extension with internal alterations · Ravensthorpe · 2026-06-26
Showing 3 of 200 comparable decisions. See all 200 in the full report →
What gets approved near your property?
In Peterborough, 1 in 8 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 Peterborough
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free planning check for Peterborough →
✓ Common refusal reasons in Peterborough
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free. Based on 33,444 decisions.
Compare with nearby councils
Frequently asked questions about planning in Peterborough
What is the planning approval rate in Peterborough?
Based on 33,444 planning decisions analysed since 2020, Peterborough approved 87.6% of applications and refused 12.4%. The council is ranked 75th out of 279 UK councils for approval rate.
Which areas of Peterborough have the highest planning approval rates?
The highest approval rates in Peterborough are in Orton With Hampton (93.2%), Orton Waterville (93.0%), and Orton Longueville (92.9%). Approval rates vary significantly by ward — see the full ward breakdown above.
What types of planning application are most common in Peterborough?
The most common planning application types in Peterborough are: Full (21,934 decisions, 86.7% approved), Trees (4,789, 97.4%), and Other (2,390, 82.3%).
How long does a planning application take in Peterborough?
Planning applications in Peterborough take an average of 7.3 weeks to reach a decision, measured across 136 decisions with a recorded timeline. That is inside 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. Peterborough decides approximately 5,574 planning applications per year.
How do I check planning applications in Peterborough?
You can search planning applications in Peterborough directly on the council's official planning portal. PlanningLens also lets you check any postcode against 33,444 historical decisions in Peterborough to see what's been approved and refused near a specific property.
How is PlanningLens approval rate data for Peterborough calculated?
PlanningLens scrapes Peterborough'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.