Swindon planning approval rate
Swindon council approved 95.0% of planning applications and refused 5.0%, based on 4,609 decisions analysed. Ranked 240th out of 292 councils for strictness.
Last updated: August 2026 · Based on decisions from January 2020 to August 2026
95.0%
overall approval rate
4,609
Decisions analysed
4,379
Approved
230
Refused
52
Wards covered
Planning in Swindon? 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 Swindon. Householder and full planning applications typically have the highest volume.
93.1%
99.6%
93.0%
97.3%
100.0%
89.5%
Approval rate by project type
These rates are based on what homeowners are actually building in Swindon, mined from 4,609 proposal descriptions.
93.9%
93.7%
93.2%
90.5%
96.2%
90.4%
94.1%
90.3%
95.4%
97.1%
93.0%
91.7%
93.8%
Approval rate by ward
Planning outcomes vary significantly by ward within Swindon. Click any ward for detailed statistics.
Not Applicable
99.6%
Blunsdon And Highworth
95.6%
Ridgeway
94.8%
Old Town
96.4%
St Margaret And South Marston
95.6%
Chiseldon And Lawn
96.2%
Wroughton And Wichelstowe
96.6%
Eastcott
93.6%
Central
94.9%
St Andrews
96.9%
Haydon Wick
93.9%
Gorse Hill & Pinehurst
90.1%
Old Town & Lawn
97.8%
Rodbourne Cheney
93.9%
Shaw
94.0%
Priory Vale
94.6%
Penhill And Upper Stratton
93.3%
St Margaret
90.7%
Wroughton & Chiseldon
91.7%
Walcot And Park North
94.7%
Wards in Swindon
Not Applicable
99.6% approval · 462 decisions
Blunsdon And Highworth
95.6% approval · 344 decisions
Ridgeway
94.8% approval · 267 decisions
Old Town
96.4% approval · 249 decisions
St Margaret And South Marston
95.6% approval · 227 decisions
Chiseldon And Lawn
96.2% approval · 208 decisions
Wroughton And Wichelstowe
96.6% approval · 206 decisions
Eastcott
93.6% approval · 203 decisions
Central
94.9% approval · 178 decisions
St Andrews
96.9% approval · 163 decisions
Haydon Wick
93.9% approval · 163 decisions
Gorse Hill & Pinehurst
90.1% approval · 142 decisions
Old Town & Lawn
97.8% approval · 136 decisions
Rodbourne Cheney
93.9% approval · 132 decisions
Shaw
94.0% approval · 100 decisions
Priory Vale
94.6% approval · 92 decisions
Penhill And Upper Stratton
93.3% approval · 89 decisions
St Margaret
90.7% approval · 86 decisions
Wroughton & Chiseldon
91.7% approval · 84 decisions
Walcot And Park North
94.7% approval · 76 decisions
Recent comparable decisions
The most recent residential planning decisions in Swindon, showing how the council decides real applications.
Erection of single storey rear extension and conversion of garage into habitable · Old Town & Lawn · Fri 21 Aug 2026
Prior Approval for the demolition of existing conservatory and creating a larger · Penhill & Pinehurst · Fri 21 Aug 2026
Prior Approval Notification for the erection of a flat roof single storey rear e · Wroughton & Wichelstowe · Fri 21 Aug 2026
Showing 3 recent comparable decisions. See more in the full report →
What gets approved near your property?
In Swindon, 1 in 20 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 Swindon
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free planning check for Swindon →
✓ Common refusal reasons in Swindon
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free. Based on 4,609 decisions.
Compare with nearby councils
Frequently asked questions about planning in Swindon
What is the planning approval rate in Swindon?
Based on 4,609 planning decisions analysed since 2020, Swindon approved 95.0% of applications and refused 5.0%. The council is ranked 240th out of 292 UK councils for approval rate.
How many planning applications are refused in Swindon?
Swindon refuses 5.0% of planning applications, roughly 1 in 20. That is lower than the UK average of 11.4%. Out of 4,609 decided applications since 2020, 230 were refused. PlanningLens lets you check any postcode to see which applications were refused near a specific property.
Which areas of Swindon have the highest planning approval rates?
The highest approval rates in Swindon are in Not Applicable (99.6%), Old Town & Lawn (97.8%), and Liden, Eldene And Park South (97.1%). Approval rates vary significantly by ward, see the full ward breakdown above.
What types of planning application are most common in Swindon?
The most common planning application types in Swindon are: Full (1,933 decisions, 93.1% approved), Trees (1,083, 99.6%), and Other (799, 93.0%).
How long does a planning application take in Swindon?
Planning applications in Swindon take an average of 7.6 weeks to reach a decision, measured across 699 decisions with a recorded timeline. That is inside 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. Swindon decides approximately 768 planning applications per year.
How do I check planning applications in Swindon?
You can search planning applications in Swindon directly on the council's official planning portal. PlanningLens also lets you check any postcode against 4,609 historical decisions in Swindon to see what's been approved and refused near a specific property.
How is PlanningLens approval rate data for Swindon calculated?
PlanningLens scrapes Swindon'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.