Wigan planning approval rate
Wigan council approved 88.6% of planning applications and refused 11.4%, based on 5,457 decisions analysed. Ranked 100th out of 284 councils for strictness.
Last updated: June 2026 · Based on decisions from January 2020 to present
88.6%
overall approval rate
5,457
Decisions analysed
4,837
Approved
620
Refused
29
Wards covered
Planning in Wigan? 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 Wigan. Householder and full planning applications typically have the highest volume.
90.3%
86.9%
85.9%
84.0%
96.9%
84.6%
91.0%
76.9%
Approval rate by project type
These rates are based on what homeowners are actually building in Wigan, mined from 5,457 proposal descriptions.
89.4%
90.6%
89.4%
89.0%
84.6%
93.1%
84.6%
87.8%
50.9%
92.1%
82.4%
75.6%
88.9%
71.4%
88.0%
90.0%
Approval rate by ward
Planning outcomes vary significantly by ward within Wigan. Click any ward for detailed statistics.
Wigan Central
86.6%
Standish With Langtree
90.0%
Lowton East
91.0%
Leigh South
90.0%
Orrell
89.4%
Winstanley
88.5%
Golborne And Lowton West
92.6%
Tyldesley
90.3%
Leigh West
89.7%
Shevington With Lower Ground
95.5%
Hindley
90.9%
Wigan West
81.0%
Leigh East
88.7%
Worsley Mesnes
87.4%
Bryn
91.1%
Aspull New Springs Whelley
76.5%
Astley
88.3%
Ashton In Makerfield South
93.4%
Shevington With Lower Ground And Moor
80.7%
Leigh Central And Higher Folds
85.5%
Wards in Wigan
Wigan Central
86.6% approval · 366 decisions
Standish With Langtree
90.0% approval · 330 decisions
Lowton East
91.0% approval · 299 decisions
Leigh South
90.0% approval · 281 decisions
Orrell
89.4% approval · 246 decisions
Winstanley
88.5% approval · 209 decisions
Golborne And Lowton West
92.6% approval · 189 decisions
Tyldesley
90.3% approval · 186 decisions
Leigh West
89.7% approval · 175 decisions
Shevington With Lower Ground
95.5% approval · 155 decisions
Hindley
90.9% approval · 154 decisions
Wigan West
81.0% approval · 147 decisions
Leigh East
88.7% approval · 133 decisions
Worsley Mesnes
87.4% approval · 127 decisions
Bryn
91.1% approval · 124 decisions
Aspull New Springs Whelley
76.5% approval · 98 decisions
Astley
88.3% approval · 94 decisions
Ashton In Makerfield South
93.4% approval · 91 decisions
Shevington With Lower Ground And Moor
80.7% approval · 83 decisions
Leigh Central And Higher Folds
85.5% approval · 83 decisions
Recent comparable decisions
The most recent residential planning decisions in Wigan, showing how the council decides real applications.
New roof and increase in eaves height to existing single storey side and rear ad · Orrell · Thu 18 Jun 2026
Single storey rear extension with alterations to outbuilding · Wigan West · Thu 18 Jun 2026
First floor front and side extension, single storey rear extension · Standish With Langtree · Wed 17 Jun 2026
Showing 3 of 200 comparable decisions. See all 200 in the full report →
What gets approved near your property?
In Wigan, 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 Wigan
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free planning check for Wigan →
✓ Common refusal reasons in Wigan
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free. Based on 5,457 decisions.
Compare with nearby councils
Frequently asked questions about planning in Wigan
What is the planning approval rate in Wigan?
Based on 5,457 planning decisions analysed since 2020, Wigan approved 88.6% of applications and refused 11.4%. The council is ranked 100th out of 284 UK councils for approval rate.
How many planning applications are refused in Wigan?
Wigan refuses 11.4% of planning applications, roughly 1 in 9. That is close to the UK average of 11.7%. Out of 5,457 decided applications since 2020, 620 were refused. PlanningLens lets you check any postcode to see which applications were refused near a specific property.
Which areas of Wigan have the highest planning approval rates?
The highest approval rates in Wigan are in Shevington With Lower Ground (95.5%), Ashton In Makerfield South (93.4%), and Golborne And Lowton West (92.6%). Approval rates vary significantly by ward, see the full ward breakdown above.
What types of planning application are most common in Wigan?
The most common planning application types in Wigan are: Full (3,274 decisions, 90.3% approved), Other (1,042, 86.9%), and Certificate of Lawfulness (450, 81.6%).
How long does a planning application take in Wigan?
Planning applications in Wigan take an average of 13.0 weeks to reach a decision, measured across 5,327 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. Wigan decides approximately 910 planning applications per year.
How do I check planning applications in Wigan?
You can search planning applications in Wigan directly on the council's official planning portal. PlanningLens also lets you check any postcode against 5,457 historical decisions in Wigan to see what's been approved and refused near a specific property.
How is PlanningLens approval rate data for Wigan calculated?
PlanningLens scrapes Wigan'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.