Richmond planning approval rate
Richmond council approved 87.6% of planning applications and refused 12.4%, based on 33,219 decisions analysed. Ranked 80th out of 300 councils for strictness.
Last updated: August 2026 · Based on decisions from January 2020 to August 2026
87.6%
overall approval rate
33,219
Decisions analysed
29,106
Approved
4,113
Refused
55
Wards covered
Planning in Richmond? 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 Richmond. Householder and full planning applications typically have the highest volume.
89.9%
83.8%
85.3%
Approval rate by project type
These rates are based on what homeowners are actually building in Richmond, mined from 33,219 proposal descriptions.
82.6%
81.7%
81.7%
82.1%
83.7%
87.8%
85.1%
82.5%
83.7%
83.6%
89.7%
82.3%
88.5%
77.4%
92.6%
79.6%
Approval rate by ward
Planning outcomes vary significantly by ward within Richmond. Click any ward for detailed statistics.
SRW
87.4%
STR
87.5%
TWR
83.9%
KWA
87.8%
EAS
85.7%
HTN
83.2%
STM
84.3%
HPR
81.3%
BAR
85.0%
TED
84.0%
TRW
87.5%
MBC
84.6%
KWW
88.9%
NRW
86.3%
HMP
85.2%
HWI
86.3%
BRN
85.4%
FHH
80.8%
TDD
89.1%
SMN
87.7%
Wards in Richmond
SRW
87.4% approval · 1,612 decisions
STR
87.5% approval · 1,378 decisions
TWR
83.9% approval · 1,101 decisions
KWA
87.8% approval · 1,024 decisions
EAS
85.7% approval · 1,021 decisions
HTN
83.2% approval · 953 decisions
STM
84.3% approval · 917 decisions
HPR
81.3% approval · 883 decisions
BAR
85.0% approval · 872 decisions
TED
84.0% approval · 855 decisions
TRW
87.5% approval · 838 decisions
MBC
84.6% approval · 817 decisions
KWW
88.9% approval · 787 decisions
NRW
86.3% approval · 780 decisions
HMP
85.2% approval · 769 decisions
HWI
86.3% approval · 751 decisions
BRN
85.4% approval · 740 decisions
FHH
80.8% approval · 733 decisions
TDD
89.1% approval · 716 decisions
SMN
87.7% approval · 705 decisions
Recent comparable decisions
The most recent residential planning decisions in Richmond, showing how the council decides real applications.
PA26/2095
Construction of a dormer over the two-storey outrigger. · · 13/08/2026
PA26/2007
Existing use of the property as multiple self-contained flats (2). · · 13/08/2026
PA26/2152
Demolition of the existing single storey rear extension and its replacement with · · 13/08/2026
Showing 3 recent comparable decisions. See more in the full report →
What gets approved near your property?
In Richmond, 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 Richmond
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free planning check for Richmond →
✓ Common refusal reasons in Richmond
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free. Based on 33,219 decisions.
Compare with nearby councils
Frequently asked questions about planning in Richmond
What is the planning approval rate in Richmond?
Based on 33,219 planning decisions analysed since 2020, Richmond approved 87.6% of applications and refused 12.4%. The council is ranked 80th out of 300 UK councils for approval rate.
How many planning applications are refused in Richmond?
Richmond refuses 12.4% of planning applications, roughly 1 in 8. That is close to the UK average of 11.4%. Out of 33,219 decided applications since 2020, 4,113 were refused. PlanningLens lets you check any postcode to see which applications were refused near a specific property.
Which areas of Richmond have the highest planning approval rates?
The highest approval rates in Richmond are in BARNES (99.4%), WEST TWICKENHAM (98.2%), and HAM, PETERSHAM AND RICHMOND RIVERSIDE (97.8%). Approval rates vary significantly by ward, see the full ward breakdown above.
What types of planning application are most common in Richmond?
The most common planning application types in Richmond are: Other (19,876 decisions, 89.9% approved), Full (8,962, 83.8%), and Prior Approval (4,381, 85.3%).
How long does a planning application take in Richmond?
Planning applications in Richmond take an average of 8.2 weeks to reach a decision, measured across 29,750 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. Richmond decides approximately 5,536 planning applications per year.
How do I check planning applications in Richmond?
You can search planning applications in Richmond directly on the council's official planning portal. PlanningLens also lets you check any postcode against 33,219 historical decisions in Richmond to see what's been approved and refused near a specific property.
How is PlanningLens approval rate data for Richmond calculated?
PlanningLens scrapes Richmond'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.