Wigan Council approves 89.1% of planning applications, based on 4,527 real decisions analysed from the council’s public planning portal. The national average across all councils tracked by PlanningLens is 85.0%. Wigan sits 4.1 percentage points above the national average.
According to PlanningLens analysis of 638 decided applications, Wigan Council approved 85.6% of planning applications in 2025. Across 4,527 decisions on record (January 2020 to September 2026), the overall approval rate in Wigan is 89.1%; the national average across UK councils tracked by PlanningLens is 85.0%.
Source: PlanningLens (planninglens.co.uk) analysis of Wigan council planning portal records · Data to 29 September 2026 · Quote freely with attribution
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Not all applications are treated equally. Extension types, listed building consent, and change of use applications each have very different success rates in Wigan.
| Application Type | Approved | Refused | Total | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full | 3,075 | 335 | 3,410 | 90.2% |
| Other | 943 | 138 | 1,081 | 87.2% |
| Certificate of Lawfulness | 391 | 96 | 487 | 80.3% |
| Change of Use | 177 | 29 | 206 | 85.9% |
| Trees | 187 | 7 | 194 | 96.4% |
| Advertisement | 155 | 28 | 183 | 84.7% |
| Discharge of Conditions | 85 | 16 | 101 | 84.2% |
| Listed Building | 73 | 7 | 80 | 91.2% |
| Prior Approval | 10 | 3 | 13 | 76.9% |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wigan Central | 339 | 50 | 389 | 87.1% |
| Standish With Langtree | 317 | 38 | 355 | 89.3% |
| Lowton East | 285 | 31 | 316 | 90.2% |
| Leigh South | 266 | 28 | 294 | 90.5% |
| Orrell | 235 | 30 | 265 | 88.7% |
| Winstanley | 203 | 24 | 227 | 89.4% |
| Golborne And Lowton West | 181 | 14 | 195 | 92.8% |
| Tyldesley | 168 | 18 | 186 | 90.3% |
| Leigh West | 163 | 19 | 182 | 89.6% |
| Hindley | 148 | 14 | 162 | 91.4% |
| Shevington With Lower Ground | 148 | 7 | 155 | 95.5% |
| Wigan West | 120 | 30 | 150 | 80.0% |
| Worsley Mesnes | 121 | 17 | 138 | 87.7% |
| Leigh East | 118 | 15 | 133 | 88.7% |
| Bryn | 113 | 11 | 124 | 91.1% |
| Aspull New Springs Whelley | 87 | 23 | 110 | 79.1% |
| Astley | 98 | 11 | 109 | 89.9% |
| Leigh Central And Higher Folds | 85 | 15 | 100 | 85.0% |
| Shevington With Lower Ground And Moor | 81 | 17 | 98 | 82.7% |
| Ashton In Makerfield South | 91 | 7 | 98 | 92.9% |
| Douglas | 72 | 19 | 91 | 79.1% |
| Tyldesley And Mosley Common | 70 | 16 | 86 | 81.4% |
| Atherton South And Lilford | 62 | 17 | 79 | 78.5% |
| Ince | 50 | 16 | 66 | 75.8% |
| Pemberton | 53 | 12 | 65 | 81.5% |
Showing top 25 of 29 wards by volume. Your free property report includes the full ward breakdown.
See full ward breakdown →How Wigan’s planning approval rate has changed year by year, down 5.2pp since 2020.
Bar height reflects approval rate. Colour: green ≥85%, amber ≥70%, red below 70%.
Real residential planning decisions from Wigan council. Each reference links to the council's own planning portal so you can verify the details yourself.
| Reference | Proposal | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| A/26/101439/PDE Lowton East | Single storey rear extension projecting 3.86 metres, height to the eaves 2.59 me | Approved |
| A/26/101336/HH Winstanley | Single storey rear extension together with ramp to rear | Approved |
| A/26/101267/WTTPO Standish With Langtree | T1 Oak - prune over hang back to boundary by 2 metres | Approved |
| A/26/100933/HH Leigh Central And Higher Folds | Single storey rear extension linking to garage together with external alteration | Approved |
| A/26/101319/HH Orrell | Ground floor bay window and first floor front extension | Approved |
| A/26/101247/HH Orrell | Porch and dormers to front, part single/part two storey rear extension, dormer t | Approved |
| A/26/101046/FULL Pemberton | Erection of 6 Outdoor Padel Tennis Courts (Use Class F2 (c)) with 3 metre high m | Approved |
| A/26/100889/HH Shevington With Lower Ground And Moor | Single storey rear extension together with alterations to garage following demol | Approved |
| A/26/101363/HH Pemberton | Single storey side extension | Approved |
| A/26/101268/WTTPO Standish With Langtree | T1 Sycamore - Tree is in decline and shedding bark through out crown, client wou | 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 Wigan's 4,527 real decisions. Free, emailed in minutes.
Check my postcodeCompare Wigan's planning approval rates with neighbouring areas:
Dig deeper into Wigan'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 Wigan. Enter your postcode to instantly see approval rates for your ward and application type, based on 4,527 real decisions from Wigan 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 Wigan'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 4,527 planning decisions, the overall approval rate in Wigan is 89.1%. The national average across councils tracked by PlanningLens is 85.0%. Rates vary significantly by ward and application type.
PlanningLens has analysed 4,527 planning decisions from Wigan council. 4,035 were approved and 492 were refused. These figures cover every decision on record for the council, January 2020 to September 2026.
The average approval rate in Wigan is 89.1%, 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 Wigan? 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.