Tonbridge & Malling planning approval rate
Tonbridge & Malling council approved 90.3% of planning applications and refused 9.7%, based on 8,694 decisions analysed. Ranked 132nd out of 300 councils for strictness.
Last updated: August 2026 · Based on decisions from January 2020 to August 2026
90.3%
overall approval rate
8,694
Decisions analysed
7,854
Approved
840
Refused
35
Wards covered
Planning in Tonbridge & Malling? 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 Tonbridge & Malling. Householder and full planning applications typically have the highest volume.
90.6%
94.9%
94.9%
96.3%
95.9%
Approval rate by project type
These rates are based on what homeowners are actually building in Tonbridge & Malling, mined from 8,694 proposal descriptions.
86.5%
93.0%
90.0%
89.2%
85.5%
84.0%
85.3%
95.3%
87.2%
88.7%
90.4%
82.5%
86.8%
85.5%
92.0%
Approval rate by ward
Planning outcomes vary significantly by ward within Tonbridge & Malling. Click any ward for detailed statistics.
Hildenborough
88.2%
East Malling West Malling And Offham
92.1%
Pilgrims With Ightham
88.7%
Borough Green And Long Mill
86.6%
Aylesford South And Ditton
96.2%
Wrotham, Ightham And Stansted
86.5%
Bourne
93.8%
Kings Hill
91.0%
West Malling And Leybourne
88.6%
Downs And Mereworth
85.9%
Judd
89.8%
Hadlow And East Peckham
87.0%
Cage Green And Angel
94.0%
Castle
91.1%
East & West Peckham Mereworth And Wbury
91.1%
Vauxhall
94.0%
Aylesford North And North Downs
92.2%
Higham
92.9%
Aylesford North And Walderslade
88.0%
Medway
94.6%
Wards in Tonbridge & Malling
Hildenborough
88.2% approval · 602 decisions
East Malling West Malling And Offham
92.1% approval · 478 decisions
Pilgrims With Ightham
88.7% approval · 444 decisions
Borough Green And Long Mill
86.6% approval · 440 decisions
Aylesford South And Ditton
96.2% approval · 424 decisions
Wrotham, Ightham And Stansted
86.5% approval · 377 decisions
Bourne
93.8% approval · 370 decisions
Kings Hill
91.0% approval · 344 decisions
West Malling And Leybourne
88.6% approval · 324 decisions
Downs And Mereworth
85.9% approval · 313 decisions
Judd
89.8% approval · 303 decisions
Hadlow And East Peckham
87.0% approval · 284 decisions
Cage Green And Angel
94.0% approval · 281 decisions
Castle
91.1% approval · 271 decisions
East & West Peckham Mereworth And Wbury
91.1% approval · 257 decisions
Vauxhall
94.0% approval · 251 decisions
Aylesford North And North Downs
92.2% approval · 243 decisions
Higham
92.9% approval · 239 decisions
Aylesford North And Walderslade
88.0% approval · 234 decisions
Medway
94.6% approval · 205 decisions
Recent comparable decisions
The most recent residential planning decisions in Tonbridge & Malling, showing how the council decides real applications.
Partial/full tile repairs to the north roof, due to long term weathering damage · East & West Peckham Mereworth And Wbury · Fri 14 Aug 2026
Demolition of existing store to rear, construction of single storey rear and sid · Birling Leybourne And Ryarsh · Fri 14 Aug 2026
T1. Silver birch. Stands within rear garden. 8m high with lat spread of 4m. Prop · East Malling West Malling And Offham · Thu 13 Aug 2026
Showing 3 recent comparable decisions. See more in the full report →
What gets approved near your property?
In Tonbridge & Malling, 1 in 10 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 Tonbridge & Malling
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free planning check for Tonbridge & Malling →
✓ Common refusal reasons in Tonbridge & Malling
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free. Based on 8,694 decisions.
Compare with nearby councils
Frequently asked questions about planning in Tonbridge & Malling
What is the planning approval rate in Tonbridge & Malling?
Based on 8,694 planning decisions analysed since 2020, Tonbridge & Malling approved 90.3% of applications and refused 9.7%. The council is ranked 132nd out of 300 UK councils for approval rate.
How many planning applications are refused in Tonbridge & Malling?
Tonbridge & Malling refuses 9.7% of planning applications, roughly 1 in 10. That is lower than the UK average of 11.4%. Out of 8,694 decided applications since 2020, 840 were refused. PlanningLens lets you check any postcode to see which applications were refused near a specific property.
Which areas of Tonbridge & Malling have the highest planning approval rates?
The highest approval rates in Tonbridge & Malling are in Aylesford South And Ditton (96.2%), Snodland East And Ham Hill (96.1%), and Medway (94.6%). Approval rates vary significantly by ward, see the full ward breakdown above.
What types of planning application are most common in Tonbridge & Malling?
The most common planning application types in Tonbridge & Malling are: Other (6,354 decisions, 90.6% approved), Trees (1,459, 94.9%), and Listed Building (569, 94.9%).
How long does a planning application take in Tonbridge & Malling?
Planning applications in Tonbridge & Malling take an average of 12.8 weeks to reach a decision, measured across 8,660 decisions with a recorded timeline. That is slower than 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. Tonbridge & Malling decides approximately 1,449 planning applications per year.
How do I check planning applications in Tonbridge & Malling?
You can search planning applications in Tonbridge & Malling directly on the council's official planning portal. PlanningLens also lets you check any postcode against 8,694 historical decisions in Tonbridge & Malling to see what's been approved and refused near a specific property.
How is PlanningLens approval rate data for Tonbridge & Malling calculated?
PlanningLens scrapes Tonbridge & Malling'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.