Swansea Council approves 85.7% of planning applications, based on 3,668 real decisions analysed from the council’s public planning portal. The national average across all councils tracked by PlanningLens is 88.3%. Swansea sits 2.6 percentage points below the national average.
According to PlanningLens analysis of 307 decided applications, Swansea Council approved 88.6% of planning applications in 2025. Across 3,668 decisions analysed since January 2020, the overall approval rate in Swansea is 85.7%; the national average across UK councils tracked by PlanningLens is 88.3%.
Source: PlanningLens (planninglens.co.uk) analysis of Swansea council planning portal records · Updated June 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 Swansea.
| Application Type | Approved | Refused | Total | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full | 1,512 | 336 | 1,848 | 81.8% |
| Other | 810 | 132 | 942 | 86.0% |
| Discharge of Conditions | 531 | 10 | 541 | 98.2% |
| Prior Approval | 147 | 16 | 163 | 90.2% |
| Advertisement | 100 | 17 | 117 | 85.5% |
| Trees | 24 | 0 | 24 | 100.0% |
| Listed Building | 19 | 1 | 20 | 95.0% |
| Certificate of Lawfulness | 0 | 13 | 13 | 0.0% |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Castle - Bay Area | 265 | 25 | 290 | 91.4% |
| Gower - Area 2 | 234 | 31 | 265 | 88.3% |
| Sketty - Bay Area | 220 | 33 | 253 | 87.0% |
| Llansamlet - Area 1 | 154 | 17 | 171 | 90.1% |
| Uplands - Bay Area | 118 | 46 | 164 | 72.0% |
| Morriston - Area 1 | 142 | 19 | 161 | 88.2% |
| Pennard - Area 2 | 109 | 14 | 123 | 88.6% |
| Oystermouth - Bay Area | 86 | 29 | 115 | 74.8% |
| Cockett - Area 1 | 92 | 17 | 109 | 84.4% |
| Mumbles - Area 2 | 83 | 23 | 106 | 78.3% |
| West Cross - Bay Area | 86 | 18 | 104 | 82.7% |
| Clydach - Area 1 | 77 | 12 | 89 | 86.5% |
| St. Thomas - Bay Area | 75 | 14 | 89 | 84.3% |
| Landore - Area 1 | 81 | 7 | 88 | 92.0% |
| Mynyddbach - Area 1 | 68 | 14 | 82 | 82.9% |
| Bishopston - Area 2 | 66 | 16 | 82 | 80.5% |
| Penclawdd - Area 2 | 58 | 23 | 81 | 71.6% |
| Pontarddulais - Area 1 | 69 | 11 | 80 | 86.2% |
| Mayals - Bay Area | 64 | 16 | 80 | 80.0% |
| Llangyfelach - Area 1 | 71 | 6 | 77 | 92.2% |
| Penderry - Area 1 | 72 | 3 | 75 | 96.0% |
| Gowerton - Area 2 | 62 | 10 | 72 | 86.1% |
| Newton - Area 2 | 65 | 4 | 69 | 94.2% |
| Penyrheol - Area 2 | 52 | 12 | 64 | 81.2% |
| Penllergaer - Area 1 | 53 | 6 | 59 | 89.8% |
Showing top 25 of 44 wards by volume. Your free property report includes the full ward breakdown.
See full ward breakdown →How Swansea’s planning approval rate has changed year by year, down 11.4pp since 2018.
Bar height reflects approval rate. Colour: green ≥85%, amber ≥70%, red below 70%.
Real residential planning decisions from Swansea council. Each reference links to the council's own planning portal so you can verify the details yourself.
| Reference | Proposal | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| 2026/0691/FUL Dunvant And Killay - Area 2 | Part ground floor and first floor rear extension | Approved |
| 2026/0388/FUL Mumbles - Area 2 | Single storey front extension and external alterations to pavilion | Approved |
| 2026/0027/S73 Uplands - Bay Area | Demolition of sections of existing buildings to facilitate side extension, link | Approved |
| 2026/0929/DOC Penderry - Area 1 | Detached two storey teaching block to the north of the school to incorporate six | Approved |
| 2026/0713/FUL Penclawdd - Area 2 | Single storey rear extension | Refused |
| 2026/0676/FUL Gorseinon And Penyrheol - Area 1 | Front dormer window | Approved |
| 2026/0671/FUL Dunvant And Killay - Area 2 | Two single storey side extensions installation of front door, side dormer, fenes | Refused |
| 2025/2101/FUL Llangyfelach - Area 1 | Two storey rear extension, attic addition with front side and rear rooflights, a | Approved |
| 2026/0755/FUL Waunarlwydd - Bay Area | Two side hip to gable roof extensions, two front dormers and one rear dormer, tw | Approved |
| 2026/0730/FUL Sketty - Bay Area | Proposed ground-floor side extension with flat roof | 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 Swansea's 3,668 real decisions. Free, emailed in minutes.
Check my postcodeCompare Swansea's planning approval rates with neighbouring areas:
Dig deeper into Swansea'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 Swansea. Enter your postcode to instantly see approval rates for your ward and application type, based on 3,668 real decisions from Swansea 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 Swansea'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 3,668 planning decisions, the overall approval rate in Swansea is 85.7%. The national average across councils tracked by PlanningLens is 88.3%. Rates vary significantly by ward and application type.
PlanningLens has analysed 3,668 planning decisions from Swansea council. 3,143 were approved and 525 were refused. These figures cover decisions from January 2020 to the present.
The average approval rate in Swansea is 85.7%, 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 Swansea? 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.