Sheffield planning approval rate
Sheffield council approved 90.6% of planning applications and refused 9.4%, based on 7,218 decisions analysed. Ranked 137th out of 300 councils for strictness.
Last updated: August 2026 · Based on decisions from January 2020 to August 2026
90.6%
overall approval rate
7,218
Decisions analysed
6,541
Approved
677
Refused
28
Wards covered
Planning in Sheffield? 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 Sheffield. Householder and full planning applications typically have the highest volume.
90.4%
97.4%
88.8%
87.5%
63.4%
93.3%
90.9%
Approval rate by project type
These rates are based on what homeowners are actually building in Sheffield, mined from 7,218 proposal descriptions.
91.6%
90.9%
89.3%
83.7%
84.7%
92.3%
90.8%
93.3%
88.7%
92.1%
86.6%
93.8%
87.1%
80.0%
94.6%
88.2%
Approval rate by ward
Planning outcomes vary significantly by ward within Sheffield. Click any ward for detailed statistics.
Nether Edge And Sharrow
93.1%
Fulwood
95.6%
Broomhill And Sharrow Vale
93.8%
Dore & Totley
91.3%
Ecclesall
89.6%
City
93.3%
Darnall
89.6%
Stannington
84.0%
Crookes And Crosspool
88.5%
Stocksbridge & Upper Don
87.5%
Graves Park
88.7%
Hillsborough
87.4%
Beauchief & Greenhill
93.0%
West Ecclesfield
88.4%
Burngreave
81.0%
East Ecclesfield
89.0%
Mosborough
84.5%
Walkley
94.0%
Manor Castle
94.4%
Woodhouse
94.8%
Wards in Sheffield
Nether Edge And Sharrow
93.1% approval · 754 decisions
Fulwood
95.6% approval · 704 decisions
Broomhill And Sharrow Vale
93.8% approval · 659 decisions
Dore & Totley
91.3% approval · 596 decisions
Ecclesall
89.6% approval · 453 decisions
City
93.3% approval · 416 decisions
Darnall
89.6% approval · 308 decisions
Stannington
84.0% approval · 293 decisions
Crookes And Crosspool
88.5% approval · 261 decisions
Stocksbridge & Upper Don
87.5% approval · 255 decisions
Graves Park
88.7% approval · 230 decisions
Hillsborough
87.4% approval · 214 decisions
Beauchief & Greenhill
93.0% approval · 214 decisions
West Ecclesfield
88.4% approval · 181 decisions
Burngreave
81.0% approval · 174 decisions
East Ecclesfield
89.0% approval · 164 decisions
Mosborough
84.5% approval · 161 decisions
Walkley
94.0% approval · 151 decisions
Manor Castle
94.4% approval · 143 decisions
Woodhouse
94.8% approval · 134 decisions
Recent comparable decisions
The most recent residential planning decisions in Sheffield, showing how the council decides real applications.
Application for Lawful Development Certificate for alterations to roof to form a · Burngreave · Fri 14 Aug 2026
Demolition of conservatory and erection of a single-storey rear extension to dwe · East Ecclesfield · Fri 14 Aug 2026
Application for Lawful Development Certificate for alterations to roof to form a · Dore & Totley · Fri 14 Aug 2026
Showing 3 recent comparable decisions. See more in the full report →
What gets approved near your property?
In Sheffield, 1 in 11 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 Sheffield
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free planning check for Sheffield →
✓ Common refusal reasons in Sheffield
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free. Based on 7,218 decisions.
Compare with nearby councils
Frequently asked questions about planning in Sheffield
What is the planning approval rate in Sheffield?
Based on 7,218 planning decisions analysed since 2020, Sheffield approved 90.6% of applications and refused 9.4%. The council is ranked 137th out of 300 UK councils for approval rate.
How many planning applications are refused in Sheffield?
Sheffield refuses 9.4% of planning applications, roughly 1 in 11. That is lower than the UK average of 11.4%. Out of 7,218 decided applications since 2020, 677 were refused. PlanningLens lets you check any postcode to see which applications were refused near a specific property.
Which areas of Sheffield have the highest planning approval rates?
The highest approval rates in Sheffield are in Fulwood (95.6%), Woodhouse (94.8%), and Manor Castle (94.4%). Approval rates vary significantly by ward, see the full ward breakdown above.
What types of planning application are most common in Sheffield?
The most common planning application types in Sheffield are: Full (4,138 decisions, 90.4% approved), Trees (1,623, 97.4%), and Other (579, 88.8%).
How long does a planning application take in Sheffield?
Planning applications in Sheffield take an average of 10.0 weeks to reach a decision, measured across 6,236 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. Sheffield decides approximately 1,203 planning applications per year.
How do I check planning applications in Sheffield?
You can search planning applications in Sheffield directly on the council's official planning portal. PlanningLens also lets you check any postcode against 7,218 historical decisions in Sheffield to see what's been approved and refused near a specific property.
How is PlanningLens approval rate data for Sheffield calculated?
PlanningLens scrapes Sheffield'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.