Swindon Council approves 95.0% of planning applications, based on 4,587 real decisions analysed from the council’s public planning portal. The national average across all councils tracked by PlanningLens is 88.6%. Swindon sits 6.4 percentage points above the national average.
According to PlanningLens analysis of 195 decided applications, Swindon Council approved 95.4% of planning applications in 2025. Across 4,587 decisions analysed since January 2020, the overall approval rate in Swindon is 95.0%; the national average across UK councils tracked by PlanningLens is 88.6%.
Source: PlanningLens (planninglens.co.uk) analysis of Swindon council planning portal records · Updated August 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 Swindon.
| Application Type | Approved | Refused | Total | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full | 1,785 | 134 | 1,919 | 93.0% |
| Trees | 1,078 | 4 | 1,082 | 99.6% |
| Other | 739 | 56 | 795 | 93.0% |
| Certificate of Lawfulness | 580 | 31 | 611 | 94.9% |
| Advertisement | 106 | 3 | 109 | 97.2% |
| Listed Building | 44 | 0 | 44 | 100.0% |
| Prior Approval | 17 | 2 | 19 | 89.5% |
| Discharge of Conditions | 6 | 0 | 6 | 100.0% |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Not Applicable | 460 | 2 | 462 | 99.6% |
| Blunsdon And Highworth | 329 | 15 | 344 | 95.6% |
| Ridgeway | 253 | 14 | 267 | 94.8% |
| Old Town | 240 | 9 | 249 | 96.4% |
| St Margaret And South Marston | 217 | 10 | 227 | 95.6% |
| Chiseldon And Lawn | 200 | 8 | 208 | 96.2% |
| Wroughton And Wichelstowe | 199 | 7 | 206 | 96.6% |
| Eastcott | 190 | 13 | 203 | 93.6% |
| Central | 168 | 9 | 177 | 94.9% |
| St Andrews | 158 | 5 | 163 | 96.9% |
| Haydon Wick | 151 | 10 | 161 | 93.8% |
| Gorse Hill & Pinehurst | 128 | 14 | 142 | 90.1% |
| Old Town & Lawn | 131 | 3 | 134 | 97.8% |
| Rodbourne Cheney | 123 | 8 | 131 | 93.9% |
| Shaw | 94 | 6 | 100 | 94.0% |
| Priory Vale | 87 | 5 | 92 | 94.6% |
| Penhill And Upper Stratton | 83 | 6 | 89 | 93.3% |
| St Margaret | 78 | 8 | 86 | 90.7% |
| Wroughton & Chiseldon | 77 | 7 | 84 | 91.7% |
| Walcot And Park North | 72 | 4 | 76 | 94.7% |
| Covingham And Dorcan | 71 | 4 | 75 | 94.7% |
| Lydiard And Freshbrook | 66 | 3 | 69 | 95.7% |
| Liden, Eldene And Park South | 67 | 2 | 69 | 97.1% |
| Mannington And Western | 56 | 4 | 60 | 93.3% |
| Western | 57 | 3 | 60 | 95.0% |
Showing top 25 of 52 wards by volume. Your free property report includes the full ward breakdown.
See full ward breakdown →How Swindon’s planning approval rate has changed year by year, up 0.7pp since 2018.
Bar height reflects approval rate. Colour: green ≥85%, amber ≥70%, red below 70%.
Real residential planning decisions from Swindon council. Each reference links to the council's own planning portal so you can verify the details yourself.
| Reference | Proposal | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| S/25/0992 Ridgeway | Erection of 71 no. dwellings, creation of access, landscaping, infrastructure an | Approved |
| S/PHOU/26/0909 Gorse Hill | Prior Approval Notification for the erection of a single storey rear extension m | Refused |
| S/HOU/26/0852 St Andrews West & Tadpole | Erection of a single storey side extension; loft conversion with dormer window & | Approved |
| S/HOU/26/0833 Walcot | Erection of a two storey side and single storey rear extension. | Approved |
| S/HOU/26/0816 Lydiard, Freshbrook & Toothill | Erection of single storey side extension | Approved |
| S/LBC/26/0709 Chiseldon & Ridgeway | Removal of the existing render from three of the four elevations of the dwelling | Approved |
| S/26/0697 Lower Stratton | Erection of 94.2m long, 2.4m high fencing around 50% of the perimeter. | Approved |
| S/HOU/26/0839 Wroughton & Wichelstowe | Erection of a two storey side extension and a single storey side extension follo | Approved |
| S/HOU/26/0789 Wroughton & Wichelstowe | Erection of a single storey rear extension. Loft conversion with rear dormers. | Approved |
| S/26/0782 Queens Park | Change of use of existing first and second floors from Retail to 6 flats (Class | 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 Swindon's 4,587 real decisions. Free, emailed in minutes.
Check my postcodeCompare Swindon's planning approval rates with neighbouring areas:
Dig deeper into Swindon'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 Swindon. Enter your postcode to instantly see approval rates for your ward and application type, based on 4,587 real decisions from Swindon 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 Swindon'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 4,587 planning decisions, the overall approval rate in Swindon is 95.0%. The national average across councils tracked by PlanningLens is 88.6%. Rates vary significantly by ward and application type.
PlanningLens has analysed 4,587 planning decisions from Swindon council. 4,357 were approved and 230 were refused. These figures cover decisions from January 2020 to the present.
The average approval rate in Swindon is 95.0%, 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 Swindon? 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.