Watford Council approves 74.1% of planning applications, based on 3,250 real decisions analysed from the council’s public planning portal. The national average across all councils tracked by PlanningLens is 85.0%. Watford sits 10.9 percentage points below the national average.
According to PlanningLens analysis of 953 decided applications, Watford Council approved 90.7% of planning applications in 2025. Across 3,250 decisions on record (June 2021 to September 2026), the overall approval rate in Watford is 74.1%; the national average across UK councils tracked by PlanningLens is 85.0%.
Source: PlanningLens (planninglens.co.uk) analysis of Watford council planning portal records · Data to 28 September 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 Watford.
| Application Type | Approved | Refused | Total | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full | 2,909 | 141 | 3,050 | 95.4% |
| Certificate of Lawfulness | 707 | 142 | 849 | 83.3% |
| Trees | 427 | 24 | 451 | 94.7% |
| Other | 226 | 32 | 258 | 87.6% |
| Advertisement | 151 | 23 | 174 | 86.8% |
| Discharge of Conditions | 93 | 31 | 124 | 75.0% |
| Prior Approval | 18 | 33 | 51 | 35.3% |
| Listed Building | 47 | 1 | 48 | 97.9% |
| Change of Use | 24 | 0 | 24 | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Park | 693 | 61 | 754 | 91.9% |
| Nascot | 621 | 37 | 658 | 94.4% |
| Central | 517 | 53 | 570 | 90.7% |
| Tudor | 405 | 40 | 445 | 91.0% |
| Oxhey | 394 | 34 | 428 | 92.1% |
| Stanborough | 326 | 22 | 348 | 93.7% |
| Meriden | 292 | 26 | 318 | 91.8% |
| Leggatts | 291 | 20 | 311 | 93.6% |
| Callowland | 274 | 35 | 309 | 88.7% |
| Vicarage | 269 | 33 | 302 | 89.1% |
| Woodside | 277 | 24 | 301 | 92.0% |
| Holywell | 199 | 37 | 236 | 84.3% |
| TR Leavesden | 12 | 1 | 13 | 92.3% |
How Watford’s planning approval rate has changed year by year, up 3.3pp since 2021.
Bar height reflects approval rate. Colour: green ≥85%, amber ≥70%, red below 70%.
Real residential planning decisions from Watford council. Each reference links to the council's own planning portal so you can verify the details yourself.
| Reference | Proposal | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| 26/00579/LDC Park | Lawful development certificate for proposed erection of garden outbuilding for s | Refused |
| 26/00621/FULH Meriden | Erection of a front porch and alterations to the roofs of the existing single-st | Approved |
| 26/00569/FULH Nascot | Erection of left and right infill extension, double storey glazed entrance hall, | Approved |
| 26/00726/LDC Park | Lawful development certificate for proposed new front porch and conversion of th | Approved |
| 26/00718/LDC Leggatts | Lawful Development Certificate for a proposed dormer loft extension and 2 roof l | Approved |
| 26/00673/FULH Park | Erection of a single storey wrap around extension & first floor rear extension | Approved |
| 26/00618/LDC Meriden | Lawful Development Certificate for a hip-to-gable roof extension and rear dormer | Approved |
| 26/00562/FULH | Erection of double storey side extension and porch extension | Approved |
| 26/00714/LDC Vicarage | Lawful development certificate for proposed loft conversion including rear dorme | Approved |
| 26/00700/LDC Park | Lawful Development Certificate for a hip to gable loft conversion with three sky | 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 Watford's 3,250 real decisions. Free, emailed in minutes.
Check my postcodeCompare Watford's planning approval rates with neighbouring areas:
More council comparisons coming soon.
Dig deeper into Watford'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 Watford. Enter your postcode to instantly see approval rates for your ward and application type, based on 3,250 real decisions from Watford 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 Watford'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 3,250 planning decisions, the overall approval rate in Watford is 74.1%. The national average across councils tracked by PlanningLens is 85.0%. Rates vary significantly by ward and application type.
PlanningLens has analysed 3,250 planning decisions from Watford council. 2,407 were approved and 843 were refused. These figures cover every decision on record for the council, June 2021 to September 2026.
The average approval rate in Watford is 74.1%, 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 Watford? 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.