Swansea Council approves 85.8% of planning applications, based on 3,860 real decisions analysed from the council’s public planning portal. The national average across all councils tracked by PlanningLens is 88.6%. Swansea sits 2.8 percentage points below the national average.
According to PlanningLens analysis of 305 decided applications, Swansea Council approved 88.9% of planning applications in 2025. Across 3,860 decisions analysed since January 2020, the overall approval rate in Swansea is 85.8%; the national average across UK councils tracked by PlanningLens is 88.6%.
Source: PlanningLens (planninglens.co.uk) analysis of Swansea 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 Swansea.
| Application Type | Approved | Refused | Total | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full | 1,612 | 346 | 1,958 | 82.3% |
| Other | 831 | 137 | 968 | 85.8% |
| Discharge of Conditions | 569 | 12 | 581 | 97.9% |
| Prior Approval | 140 | 16 | 156 | 89.7% |
| Advertisement | 109 | 18 | 127 | 85.8% |
| Trees | 27 | 0 | 27 | 100.0% |
| Listed Building | 25 | 1 | 26 | 96.2% |
| Certificate of Lawfulness | 0 | 17 | 17 | 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 | 277 | 27 | 304 | 91.1% |
| Gower - Area 2 | 245 | 33 | 278 | 88.1% |
| Sketty - Bay Area | 238 | 34 | 272 | 87.5% |
| Llansamlet - Area 1 | 161 | 18 | 179 | 89.9% |
| Uplands - Bay Area | 129 | 50 | 179 | 72.1% |
| Morriston - Area 1 | 150 | 20 | 170 | 88.2% |
| Mumbles - Area 2 | 99 | 30 | 129 | 76.7% |
| Pennard - Area 2 | 113 | 14 | 127 | 89.0% |
| Oystermouth - Bay Area | 86 | 29 | 115 | 74.8% |
| Cockett - Area 1 | 92 | 17 | 109 | 84.4% |
| West Cross - Bay Area | 90 | 18 | 108 | 83.3% |
| Landore - Area 1 | 85 | 9 | 94 | 90.4% |
| Clydach - Area 1 | 81 | 11 | 92 | 88.0% |
| Bishopston - Area 2 | 72 | 17 | 89 | 80.9% |
| Mayals - Bay Area | 71 | 17 | 88 | 80.7% |
| St. Thomas - Bay Area | 74 | 13 | 87 | 85.1% |
| Penclawdd - Area 2 | 62 | 23 | 85 | 72.9% |
| Mynyddbach - Area 1 | 70 | 14 | 84 | 83.3% |
| Pontarddulais - Area 1 | 71 | 11 | 82 | 86.6% |
| Llangyfelach - Area 1 | 76 | 5 | 81 | 93.8% |
| Penderry - Area 1 | 75 | 3 | 78 | 96.2% |
| Gowerton - Area 2 | 64 | 10 | 74 | 86.5% |
| Newton - Area 2 | 65 | 4 | 69 | 94.2% |
| Penyrheol - Area 2 | 52 | 12 | 64 | 81.2% |
| Penllergaer - Area 1 | 55 | 6 | 61 | 90.2% |
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 10.9pp 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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2026/1011/FUL Landore - Area 1 | Change of use to create an HMO for 4 people with external alterations to elevati | Refused |
| 2026/0998/FUL Llangyfelach - Area 1 | Single storey side and rear extension | Approved |
| 2025/2416/FUL Morriston - Area 1 | New detached dwelling | Refused |
| 2025/1532/FUL Bishopston - Area 2 | Construction of a new 4 bedroom dwelling with integral garage. | Approved |
| 2026/1076/LBC Uplands - Bay Area | Repair and re-instatement of the roof structure of the existing detached garage | Approved |
| 2026/1031/FUL Llansamlet - Area 1 | The enlargement of an existing roller shutter opening within an established indu | Approved |
| 2025/1840/FUL Castle - Bay Area | Conversion of upper three commercial floors to residential and one additional fl | Approved |
| 2026/1093/FUL Sketty - Bay Area | Single storey rear extension | Approved |
| 2026/1066/FUL Mumbles - Area 2 | Raised timber deck, pergola, and associated boundary fencing | Approved |
| 2026/0925/DOC Waterfront - Bay Area | Replacement of existing timber windows and doors with new PVC units - Discharge | 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 3,860 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 3,860 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 3,860 planning decisions, the overall approval rate in Swansea is 85.8%. The national average across councils tracked by PlanningLens is 88.6%. Rates vary significantly by ward and application type.
PlanningLens has analysed 3,860 planning decisions from Swansea council. 3,313 were approved and 547 were refused. These figures cover decisions from January 2020 to the present.
The average approval rate in Swansea is 85.8%, 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.