West Lancashire planning approval rate
West Lancashire council approved 94.6% of planning applications and refused 5.4%, based on 6,958 decisions analysed. Ranked 241st out of 300 councils for strictness.
Last updated: August 2026 · Based on decisions from January 2020 to August 2026
94.6%
overall approval rate
6,958
Decisions analysed
6,579
Approved
379
Refused
40
Wards covered
Planning in West Lancashire? 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 West Lancashire. Householder and full planning applications typically have the highest volume.
100.0%
97.3%
80.6%
85.1%
67.7%
100.0%
100.0%
60.0%
Approval rate by project type
These rates are based on what homeowners are actually building in West Lancashire, mined from 6,958 proposal descriptions.
97.6%
99.2%
94.3%
100.0%
99.7%
97.0%
99.6%
96.9%
100.0%
100.0%
100.0%
97.7%
100.0%
100.0%
100.0%
Approval rate by ward
Planning outcomes vary significantly by ward within West Lancashire. Click any ward for detailed statistics.
Rural North East Ward
94.9%
Burscough Bridge & Rufford Ward
92.7%
Rural West Ward
91.7%
Aughton & Holborn Ward
97.6%
Aughton And Downholland
96.7%
Rural South Ward
91.2%
Parbold
97.0%
Tarleton Village Ward
94.0%
Ormskirk East Ward
92.5%
Wrightington
96.2%
Up Holland Ward
94.7%
Scarisbrick
94.1%
Tarleton
94.8%
Derby
97.5%
Aughton Park
94.6%
Burscough West
91.2%
Ormskirk West Ward
93.0%
North Meols & Hesketh Bank Ward
90.6%
Newburgh
95.6%
Scott
96.8%
Wards in West Lancashire
Rural North East Ward
94.9% approval · 529 decisions
Burscough Bridge & Rufford Ward
92.7% approval · 441 decisions
Rural West Ward
91.7% approval · 384 decisions
Aughton & Holborn Ward
97.6% approval · 370 decisions
Aughton And Downholland
96.7% approval · 336 decisions
Rural South Ward
91.2% approval · 331 decisions
Parbold
97.0% approval · 267 decisions
Tarleton Village Ward
94.0% approval · 266 decisions
Ormskirk East Ward
92.5% approval · 252 decisions
Wrightington
96.2% approval · 238 decisions
Up Holland Ward
94.7% approval · 227 decisions
Scarisbrick
94.1% approval · 221 decisions
Tarleton
94.8% approval · 213 decisions
Derby
97.5% approval · 197 decisions
Aughton Park
94.6% approval · 186 decisions
Burscough West
91.2% approval · 181 decisions
Ormskirk West Ward
93.0% approval · 171 decisions
North Meols & Hesketh Bank Ward
90.6% approval · 160 decisions
Newburgh
95.6% approval · 158 decisions
Scott
96.8% approval · 156 decisions
Recent comparable decisions
The most recent residential planning decisions in West Lancashire, showing how the council decides real applications.
Erection of outdoor kitchen pavilion with hipped slate roof. · Burscough Bridge & Rufford Ward · Thu 06 Aug 2026
Demolition of existing timber enclosure to side elevation and replacement with a · Tarleton Village Ward · Thu 06 Aug 2026
Garage conversion with elevational alterations and front porch extension · Burscough Bridge & Rufford Ward · Thu 06 Aug 2026
Showing 3 recent comparable decisions. See more in the full report →
What gets approved near your property?
In West Lancashire, 1 in 19 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 West Lancashire
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free planning check for West Lancashire →
✓ Common refusal reasons in West Lancashire
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free. Based on 6,958 decisions.
Compare with nearby councils
Frequently asked questions about planning in West Lancashire
What is the planning approval rate in West Lancashire?
Based on 6,958 planning decisions analysed since 2020, West Lancashire approved 94.6% of applications and refused 5.4%. The council is ranked 241st out of 300 UK councils for approval rate.
How many planning applications are refused in West Lancashire?
West Lancashire refuses 5.4% of planning applications, roughly 1 in 19. That is lower than the UK average of 11.4%. Out of 6,958 decided applications since 2020, 379 were refused. PlanningLens lets you check any postcode to see which applications were refused near a specific property.
Which areas of West Lancashire have the highest planning approval rates?
The highest approval rates in West Lancashire are in Skelmersdale South (98.6%), Knowsley (98.1%), and Aughton & Holborn Ward (97.6%). Approval rates vary significantly by ward, see the full ward breakdown above.
What types of planning application are most common in West Lancashire?
The most common planning application types in West Lancashire are: Full (3,472 decisions, 100.0% approved), Trees (1,203, 97.3%), and Discharge of Conditions (832, 80.6%).
How long does a planning application take in West Lancashire?
Planning applications in West Lancashire take an average of 13.1 weeks to reach a decision, measured across 6,913 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. West Lancashire decides approximately 1,160 planning applications per year.
How do I check planning applications in West Lancashire?
You can search planning applications in West Lancashire directly on the council's official planning portal. PlanningLens also lets you check any postcode against 6,958 historical decisions in West Lancashire to see what's been approved and refused near a specific property.
How is PlanningLens approval rate data for West Lancashire calculated?
PlanningLens scrapes West Lancashire'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.