Tonbridge & Malling Council approves 90.3% of planning applications, based on 8,694 real decisions analysed from the council’s public planning portal. The national average across all councils tracked by PlanningLens is 88.6%. Tonbridge & Malling sits 1.7 percentage points above the national average.
According to PlanningLens analysis of 1,416 decided applications, Tonbridge & Malling Council approved 94.1% of planning applications in 2025. Across 8,694 decisions analysed since January 2020, the overall approval rate in Tonbridge & Malling is 90.3%; the national average across UK councils tracked by PlanningLens is 88.6%.
Source: PlanningLens (planninglens.co.uk) analysis of Tonbridge & Malling 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 Tonbridge & Malling.
| Application Type | Approved | Refused | Total | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Other | 5,756 | 598 | 6,354 | 90.6% |
| Trees | 1,384 | 75 | 1,459 | 94.9% |
| Listed Building | 540 | 29 | 569 | 94.9% |
| Certificate of Lawfulness | 0 | 131 | 131 | 0.0% |
| Advertisement | 104 | 4 | 108 | 96.3% |
| Prior Approval | 70 | 3 | 73 | 95.9% |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hildenborough | 531 | 71 | 602 | 88.2% |
| East Malling West Malling And Offham | 440 | 38 | 478 | 92.1% |
| Pilgrims With Ightham | 394 | 50 | 444 | 88.7% |
| Borough Green And Long Mill | 381 | 59 | 440 | 86.6% |
| Aylesford South And Ditton | 408 | 16 | 424 | 96.2% |
| Wrotham, Ightham And Stansted | 326 | 51 | 377 | 86.5% |
| Bourne | 347 | 23 | 370 | 93.8% |
| Kings Hill | 313 | 31 | 344 | 91.0% |
| West Malling And Leybourne | 287 | 37 | 324 | 88.6% |
| Downs And Mereworth | 269 | 44 | 313 | 85.9% |
| Judd | 272 | 31 | 303 | 89.8% |
| Hadlow And East Peckham | 247 | 37 | 284 | 87.0% |
| Cage Green And Angel | 264 | 17 | 281 | 94.0% |
| Castle | 247 | 24 | 271 | 91.1% |
| East & West Peckham Mereworth And Wbury | 234 | 23 | 257 | 91.1% |
| Vauxhall | 236 | 15 | 251 | 94.0% |
| Aylesford North And North Downs | 224 | 19 | 243 | 92.2% |
| Higham | 222 | 17 | 239 | 92.9% |
| Aylesford North And Walderslade | 206 | 28 | 234 | 88.0% |
| Medway | 194 | 11 | 205 | 94.6% |
| Borough Green And Platt | 169 | 19 | 188 | 89.9% |
| East Malling | 164 | 20 | 184 | 89.1% |
| Ditton | 163 | 15 | 178 | 91.6% |
| Aylesford South | 151 | 14 | 165 | 91.5% |
| Birling Leybourne And Ryarsh | 121 | 12 | 133 | 91.0% |
Showing top 25 of 35 wards by volume. Your free property report includes the full ward breakdown.
See full ward breakdown →How Tonbridge & Malling’s planning approval rate has changed year by year, up 3.9pp since 2021.
Bar height reflects approval rate. Colour: green ≥85%, amber ≥70%, red below 70%.
Real residential planning decisions from Tonbridge & Malling council. Each reference links to the council's own planning portal so you can verify the details yourself.
| Reference | Proposal | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| 26/01081/FL East & West Peckham Mereworth And Wbury | Partial/full tile repairs to the north roof, due to long term weathering damage | Approved |
| 26/00726/FL Birling Leybourne And Ryarsh | Demolition of existing store to rear, construction of single storey rear and sid | Approved |
| 26/01335/TNCA East Malling West Malling And Offham | T1. Silver birch. Stands within rear garden. 8m high with lat spread of 4m. Prop | Approved |
| 26/00817/LB Pilgrims With Ightham | Listed Building Application: Part retrospective: Replacement of existing timber | Approved |
| 26/00137/FL Aylesford South And Ditton | Double storey rear and side extensions and construction of a separate garage | Approved |
| 25/01383/FL East Malling West Malling And Offham | Change of use of land to create an extension to the existing holiday park to sit | Approved |
| 26/01145/FL Pilgrims With Ightham | Replacement windows | Approved |
| 26/01074/FL Larkfield | Section 73 application to vary Condition 4 (Parking) of planning permission 25/0 | Approved |
| 25/00907/FL Bourne | Proposed single self built dwelling house with adjacent stables and demolishing | Approved |
| 25/00055/FL East Malling West Malling And Offham | Erection of a chalet bungalow to the rear of 8 Cottenham Close (Self/custom buil | 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 Tonbridge & Malling's 8,694 real decisions. Free, emailed in minutes.
Check my postcodeCompare Tonbridge & Malling's planning approval rates with neighbouring areas:
Dig deeper into Tonbridge & Malling'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 Tonbridge & Malling. Enter your postcode to instantly see approval rates for your ward and application type, based on 8,694 real decisions from Tonbridge & Malling 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 Tonbridge & Malling'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 8,694 planning decisions, the overall approval rate in Tonbridge & Malling is 90.3%. The national average across councils tracked by PlanningLens is 88.6%. Rates vary significantly by ward and application type.
PlanningLens has analysed 8,694 planning decisions from Tonbridge & Malling council. 7,854 were approved and 840 were refused. These figures cover decisions from January 2020 to the present.
The average approval rate in Tonbridge & Malling is 90.3%, 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 Tonbridge & Malling? 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.