Winchester planning approval rate
Winchester council approved 94.9% of planning applications and refused 5.1%, based on 6,515 decisions analysed. Ranked 233rd out of 284 councils for strictness.
Last updated: June 2026 · Based on decisions from January 2020 to present
94.9%
overall approval rate
6,515
Decisions analysed
6,184
Approved
331
Refused
16
Wards covered
Planning in Winchester? 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 Winchester. Householder and full planning applications typically have the highest volume.
94.3%
98.0%
94.6%
96.4%
93.0%
93.1%
Approval rate by project type
These rates are based on what homeowners are actually building in Winchester, mined from 6,515 proposal descriptions.
94.8%
97.8%
97.5%
95.4%
92.3%
96.1%
98.3%
95.9%
81.5%
97.1%
92.7%
96.4%
92.7%
100.0%
77.8%
Approval rate by ward
Planning outcomes vary significantly by ward within Winchester. Click any ward for detailed statistics.
ST MICHAEL WARD
96.9%
WONSTON AND MICHELDEVER WARD
96.8%
BADGER FARM AND OLIVERS BATTERY WARD
94.9%
WHITELEY AND SHEDFIELD WARD
92.4%
ST PAUL WARD
97.7%
ALRESFORD AND ITCHEN VALLEY WARD
95.5%
ST BARNABAS WARD
93.7%
ST BARTHOLOMEW WARD
94.7%
BISHOPS WALTHAM
95.1%
DENMEAD WARD
91.1%
SOUTHWICK AND WICKHAM WARD
93.5%
CENTRAL MEON VALLEY WARD
92.0%
THE WORTHYS WARD
94.2%
COLDEN COMMON AND TWYFORD WARD
95.7%
ST LUKE WARD
94.7%
UPPER MEON VALLEY WARD
95.5%
Wards in Winchester
ST MICHAEL WARD
96.9% approval · 1,008 decisions
WONSTON AND MICHELDEVER WARD
96.8% approval · 623 decisions
BADGER FARM AND OLIVERS BATTERY WARD
94.9% approval · 533 decisions
WHITELEY AND SHEDFIELD WARD
92.4% approval · 516 decisions
ST PAUL WARD
97.7% approval · 472 decisions
ALRESFORD AND ITCHEN VALLEY WARD
95.5% approval · 466 decisions
ST BARNABAS WARD
93.7% approval · 441 decisions
ST BARTHOLOMEW WARD
94.7% approval · 395 decisions
BISHOPS WALTHAM
95.1% approval · 385 decisions
DENMEAD WARD
91.1% approval · 360 decisions
SOUTHWICK AND WICKHAM WARD
93.5% approval · 339 decisions
CENTRAL MEON VALLEY WARD
92.0% approval · 338 decisions
THE WORTHYS WARD
94.2% approval · 310 decisions
COLDEN COMMON AND TWYFORD WARD
95.7% approval · 184 decisions
ST LUKE WARD
94.7% approval · 94 decisions
UPPER MEON VALLEY WARD
95.5% approval · 44 decisions
Recent comparable decisions
The most recent residential planning decisions in Winchester, showing how the council decides real applications.
Change of use of Barnes House from a House in Multiple Occupation (HMO) to a Der · ST MICHAEL WARD · Wed 04 Mar 2026
The Demolition of two existing barns and erection of a single replacement buildi · ALRESFORD AND ITCHEN VALLEY WARD · Wed 04 Mar 2026
Demolition of conservatory and erection of single storey rear extension · DENMEAD WARD · Tue 03 Mar 2026
Showing 3 of 200 comparable decisions. See all 200 in the full report →
What gets approved near your property?
In Winchester, 1 in 20 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 Winchester
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free planning check for Winchester →
✓ Common refusal reasons in Winchester
✓ Your 10 nearest comparable planning decisions
✓ Appeal success rates
✓ PDF report to share with your architect
Free. Based on 6,515 decisions.
Compare with nearby councils
Frequently asked questions about planning in Winchester
What is the planning approval rate in Winchester?
Based on 6,515 planning decisions analysed since 2020, Winchester approved 94.9% of applications and refused 5.1%. The council is ranked 233rd out of 284 UK councils for approval rate.
How many planning applications are refused in Winchester?
Winchester refuses 5.1% of planning applications, roughly 1 in 20. That is lower than the UK average of 11.7%. Out of 6,515 decided applications since 2020, 331 were refused. PlanningLens lets you check any postcode to see which applications were refused near a specific property.
Which areas of Winchester have the highest planning approval rates?
The highest approval rates in Winchester are in ST PAUL WARD (97.7%), ST MICHAEL WARD (96.9%), and WONSTON AND MICHELDEVER WARD (96.8%). Approval rates vary significantly by ward, see the full ward breakdown above.
What types of planning application are most common in Winchester?
The most common planning application types in Winchester are: Full (3,333 decisions, 94.3% approved), Trees (1,466, 98.0%), and Other (868, 94.6%).
How long does a planning application take in Winchester?
Planning applications in Winchester take an average of 10.9 weeks to reach a decision, measured across 6,477 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. Winchester decides approximately 1,086 planning applications per year.
How do I check planning applications in Winchester?
You can search planning applications in Winchester directly on the council's official planning portal. PlanningLens also lets you check any postcode against 6,515 historical decisions in Winchester to see what's been approved and refused near a specific property.
How is PlanningLens approval rate data for Winchester calculated?
PlanningLens scrapes Winchester'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.