South Gloucestershire Council approves 86.9% of planning applications, based on 15,946 real decisions analysed from the council’s public planning portal. The national average across all councils tracked by PlanningLens is 88.6%. South Gloucestershire sits 1.7 percentage points below the national average.
According to PlanningLens analysis of 2,180 decided applications, South Gloucestershire Council approved 84.1% of planning applications in 2025. Across 15,946 decisions analysed since January 2020, the overall approval rate in South Gloucestershire is 86.9%; the national average across UK councils tracked by PlanningLens is 88.6%.
Source: PlanningLens (planninglens.co.uk) analysis of South Gloucestershire council planning portal records · Updated August 2026 · Quote freely with attribution
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Not all applications are treated equally. Extension types, listed building consent, and change of use applications each have very different success rates in South Gloucestershire.
| Application Type | Approved | Refused | Total | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full | 8,014 | 1,372 | 9,386 | 85.4% |
| Other | 1,931 | 316 | 2,247 | 85.9% |
| Trees | 1,708 | 69 | 1,777 | 96.1% |
| Certificate of Lawfulness | 1,071 | 182 | 1,253 | 85.5% |
| Listed Building | 587 | 39 | 626 | 93.8% |
| Prior Approval | 245 | 89 | 334 | 73.4% |
| Advertisement | 296 | 14 | 310 | 95.5% |
| Discharge of Conditions | 8 | 0 | 8 | 100.0% |
| Change of Use | 4 | 1 | 5 | 80.0% |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boyd Valley | 1,265 | 216 | 1,481 | 85.4% |
| Frampton Cotterell | 1,225 | 241 | 1,466 | 83.6% |
| Severn Vale | 1,075 | 208 | 1,283 | 83.8% |
| Frenchay And Downend | 925 | 111 | 1,036 | 89.3% |
| Chipping Sodbury And Cotswold Edge | 885 | 102 | 987 | 89.7% |
| Filton | 736 | 122 | 858 | 85.8% |
| Thornbury | 664 | 73 | 737 | 90.1% |
| Winterbourne | 503 | 81 | 584 | 86.1% |
| Bitton And Oldland Common | 514 | 63 | 577 | 89.1% |
| Emersons Green | 525 | 52 | 577 | 91.0% |
| Staple Hill And Mangotsfield | 459 | 93 | 552 | 83.2% |
| Pilning And Severn Beach | 474 | 70 | 544 | 87.1% |
| Hanham | 444 | 66 | 510 | 87.1% |
| Stoke Gifford | 436 | 50 | 486 | 89.7% |
| Charfield | 369 | 62 | 431 | 85.6% |
| Longwell Green | 375 | 53 | 428 | 87.6% |
| Yate North | 373 | 44 | 417 | 89.4% |
| Charlton And Cribbs | 381 | 32 | 413 | 92.3% |
| Bradley Stoke North | 310 | 47 | 357 | 86.8% |
| Kingswood | 282 | 41 | 323 | 87.3% |
| Parkwall And Warmley | 257 | 36 | 293 | 87.7% |
| New Cheltenham | 210 | 37 | 247 | 85.0% |
| Yate Central | 211 | 31 | 242 | 87.2% |
| Woodstock | 177 | 36 | 213 | 83.1% |
| Bradley Stoke South | 183 | 27 | 210 | 87.1% |
Showing top 25 of 39 wards by volume. Your free property report includes the full ward breakdown.
See full ward breakdown →How South Gloucestershire’s planning approval rate has changed year by year, down 2.7pp since 2020.
Bar height reflects approval rate. Colour: green ≥85%, amber ≥70%, red below 70%.
Real residential planning decisions from South Gloucestershire council. Each reference links to the council's own planning portal so you can verify the details yourself.
| Reference | Proposal | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| P26/01625/PNH Thornbury | The erection of a single storey rear extension, which would extend beyond the re | Approved |
| P26/01508/CLP Staple Hill And Mangotsfield | Erection of single storey rear extension. | Approved |
| P26/01439/LB Parkwall And Warmley | External alteration to repair the timber structure by replacing rotten timber to | Approved |
| P26/01124/F Winterbourne | Conversion of existing dwelling into 3no. flats with associated alterations to p | Approved |
| P26/00900/F Kingswood | Erection of 4no fixed canopies, extension of rear boundary fencing, cycle parkin | Approved |
| P26/00791/O Winterbourne | Erection of up to 124 no. dwellings and associated infrastructure (Outline) with | Refused |
| P26/00361/HMO Filton | Erection of single-storey rear extension, installation of hip-to-gable and rear | Approved |
| P25/01806/F Severn Vale | Erection of a single storey link extension and associated works to facilitate ch | Approved |
| P26/01626/CLP Hanham | Conversion of existing garage to provide home office. | Approved |
| P26/01407/HH Charfield | Erection of single storey front extension. Installation of 1.no side dormer to f | 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 South Gloucestershire's 15,946 real decisions. Free, emailed in minutes.
Check my postcodeCompare South Gloucestershire's planning approval rates with neighbouring areas:
Dig deeper into South Gloucestershire'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 South Gloucestershire. Enter your postcode to instantly see approval rates for your ward and application type, based on 15,946 real decisions from South Gloucestershire 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 South Gloucestershire'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 15,946 planning decisions, the overall approval rate in South Gloucestershire is 86.9%. The national average across councils tracked by PlanningLens is 88.6%. Rates vary significantly by ward and application type.
PlanningLens has analysed 15,946 planning decisions from South Gloucestershire council. 13,864 were approved and 2,082 were refused. These figures cover decisions from January 2020 to the present.
The average approval rate in South Gloucestershire is 86.9%, 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 South Gloucestershire? 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.