Tower Hamlets planning approval rate
Tower Hamlets council approved 88.9% of planning applications and refused 11.1%, based on 25,697 decisions analysed. Ranked 103rd out of 300 councils for strictness.
Last updated: August 2026 · Based on decisions from January 2020 to August 2026
88.9%
overall approval rate
25,697
Decisions analysed
22,852
Approved
2,845
Refused
39
Wards covered
Planning in Tower Hamlets? 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 Tower Hamlets. Householder and full planning applications typically have the highest volume.
89.6%
82.2%
85.2%
Approval rate by project type
These rates are based on what homeowners are actually building in Tower Hamlets, mined from 25,697 proposal descriptions.
80.8%
88.3%
92.2%
75.1%
84.3%
91.7%
78.1%
83.4%
83.7%
83.1%
50.2%
88.9%
76.0%
80.9%
75.0%
Approval rate by ward
Planning outcomes vary significantly by ward within Tower Hamlets. Click any ward for detailed statistics.
Whitechapel
87.6%
Spitalfields and Banglatown
87.0%
Bow West
85.5%
Canary Wharf
93.9%
Blackwall and Cubitt Town
89.6%
St Katharines and Wapping
91.8%
Weavers
83.8%
Bow East
86.0%
Lansbury
90.2%
Mile End
84.4%
WHITECHAPEL
98.4%
Bethnal Green East
87.6%
Poplar
90.5%
Bethnal Green West
85.1%
Stepney Green
79.8%
St Dunstans
75.7%
SPITALFIELDS AND BANGLATOWN
99.3%
Island Gardens
77.0%
Shadwell
83.5%
WEAVERS
99.1%
Wards in Tower Hamlets
Whitechapel
87.6% approval · 1,599 decisions
Spitalfields and Banglatown
87.0% approval · 1,314 decisions
Bow West
85.5% approval · 1,179 decisions
Canary Wharf
93.9% approval · 1,169 decisions
Blackwall and Cubitt Town
89.6% approval · 937 decisions
St Katharines and Wapping
91.8% approval · 857 decisions
Weavers
83.8% approval · 729 decisions
Bow East
86.0% approval · 720 decisions
Lansbury
90.2% approval · 702 decisions
Mile End
84.4% approval · 622 decisions
WHITECHAPEL
98.4% approval · 568 decisions
Bethnal Green East
87.6% approval · 476 decisions
Poplar
90.5% approval · 422 decisions
Bethnal Green West
85.1% approval · 422 decisions
Stepney Green
79.8% approval · 415 decisions
St Dunstans
75.7% approval · 408 decisions
SPITALFIELDS AND BANGLATOWN
99.3% approval · 401 decisions
Island Gardens
77.0% approval · 391 decisions
Shadwell
83.5% approval · 358 decisions
WEAVERS
99.1% approval · 343 decisions
Recent comparable decisions
The most recent residential planning decisions in Tower Hamlets, showing how the council decides real applications.
PA/26/01078/NC
All windows and patio/balcony doors to be replaced with uPVC units. External cup · Bromley North · 13/08/2026
PA/26/01014/NC
Retrospective Change of use from a dwellinghouse (Use Class C3) to a House of Mu · Bethnal Green West · 13/08/2026
PA/25/02250/NC
Construction of a two-storey side extension to Unit 1 with rear terrace and fron · Bow East · 12/08/2026
Showing 3 recent comparable decisions. See more in the full report →
What gets approved near your property?
In Tower Hamlets, 1 in 9 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 Tower Hamlets
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free planning check for Tower Hamlets →
✓ Common refusal reasons in Tower Hamlets
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free. Based on 25,697 decisions.
Compare with nearby councils
Frequently asked questions about planning in Tower Hamlets
What is the planning approval rate in Tower Hamlets?
Based on 25,697 planning decisions analysed since 2020, Tower Hamlets approved 88.9% of applications and refused 11.1%. The council is ranked 103rd out of 300 UK councils for approval rate.
How many planning applications are refused in Tower Hamlets?
Tower Hamlets refuses 11.1% of planning applications, roughly 1 in 9. That is close to the UK average of 11.4%. Out of 25,697 decided applications since 2020, 2,845 were refused. PlanningLens lets you check any postcode to see which applications were refused near a specific property.
Which areas of Tower Hamlets have the highest planning approval rates?
The highest approval rates in Tower Hamlets are in LIMEHOUSE (100.0%), EAST INDIA AND LANSBURY (99.5%), and BROMLEY-BY-BOW (99.4%). Approval rates vary significantly by ward, see the full ward breakdown above.
What types of planning application are most common in Tower Hamlets?
The most common planning application types in Tower Hamlets are: Other (23,368 decisions, 89.6% approved), Full (2,045, 82.2%), and Prior Approval (284, 85.2%).
How long does a planning application take in Tower Hamlets?
Planning applications in Tower Hamlets take an average of 12.4 weeks to reach a decision, measured across 21,050 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. Tower Hamlets decides approximately 4,283 planning applications per year.
How do I check planning applications in Tower Hamlets?
You can search planning applications in Tower Hamlets directly on the council's official planning portal. PlanningLens also lets you check any postcode against 25,697 historical decisions in Tower Hamlets to see what's been approved and refused near a specific property.
How is PlanningLens approval rate data for Tower Hamlets calculated?
PlanningLens scrapes Tower Hamlets' 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.