Winchester Council approves 94.0% of planning applications, based on 4,162 real decisions analysed from the council’s public planning portal. The national average across all councils tracked by PlanningLens is 85.0%. Winchester sits 9.0 percentage points above the national average.
According to PlanningLens analysis of 961 decided applications, Winchester Council approved 94.2% of planning applications in 2025. Across 4,162 decisions on record (November 2018 to September 2026), the overall approval rate in Winchester is 94.0%; the national average across UK councils tracked by PlanningLens is 85.0%.
Source: PlanningLens (planninglens.co.uk) analysis of Winchester council planning portal records · Data to 29 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 Winchester.
| Application Type | Approved | Refused | Total | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full | 3,418 | 207 | 3,625 | 94.3% |
| Trees | 1,670 | 34 | 1,704 | 98.0% |
| Other | 1,035 | 55 | 1,090 | 95.0% |
| Listed Building | 377 | 14 | 391 | 96.4% |
| Certificate of Lawfulness | 289 | 42 | 331 | 87.3% |
| Advertisement | 138 | 12 | 150 | 92.0% |
| Prior Approval | 132 | 9 | 141 | 93.6% |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| St Michael | 1,119 | 38 | 1,157 | 96.7% |
| Wonston And Micheldever | 683 | 22 | 705 | 96.9% |
| Badger Farm And Olivers Battery | 578 | 30 | 608 | 95.1% |
| Whiteley And Shedfield | 526 | 43 | 569 | 92.4% |
| St Paul | 540 | 11 | 551 | 98.0% |
| Alresford And Itchen Valley | 525 | 26 | 551 | 95.3% |
| St Barnabas | 459 | 30 | 489 | 93.9% |
| St Bartholomew | 426 | 25 | 451 | 94.5% |
| Bishops Waltham | 402 | 23 | 425 | 94.6% |
| Denmead | 374 | 39 | 413 | 90.6% |
| Central Meon Valley | 354 | 29 | 383 | 92.4% |
| Southwick And Wickham | 358 | 23 | 381 | 94.0% |
| The Worthys | 346 | 19 | 365 | 94.8% |
| Colden Common And Twyford | 201 | 8 | 209 | 96.2% |
| St Luke | 111 | 5 | 116 | 95.7% |
| Upper Meon Valley | 50 | 2 | 52 | 96.2% |
How Winchester’s planning approval rate has changed year by year, down 1.8pp since 2018.
Bar height reflects approval rate. Colour: green ≥85%, amber ≥70%, red below 70%.
Real residential planning decisions from Winchester council. Each reference links to the council's own planning portal so you can verify the details yourself.
| Reference | Proposal | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| 26/01534/HOU The Worthys | Proposed 5 m single storey side extension with minor internal and external alter | Approved |
| 26/01465/DIC St Michael | Discharge condition 7 (replacement gate spec) for application 25/01365/LIS | Approved |
| 26/01427/HOU Colden Common And Twyford | Garage conversion to habitable floor space (includes minor elevational alteratio | Approved |
| 25/00008/HOU The Worthys | PART SINGLE STOREY AND PART TWO STOREY EXTENSIONS AND ALTERATIONS TO DWELLING. | Approved |
| 26/01573/HOU St Paul | Ground and First Floor Extension with associated Internal Works | Approved |
| 26/01911/DIC St Bartholomew | Window details for new bathroom window | Approved |
| 26/01527/LIS St Michael | Conversion and refurbishment (including reconfiguring the layout and installing | Approved |
| 26/01526/FUL St Michael | Conversion and refurbishment (including reconfiguring the layout and installing | Approved |
| 26/01372/FUL St Michael | Updated layout for 8no car spaces with two disabled spaces. Replacement timber w | Approved |
| 26/01343/HOU St Bartholomew | Replacement single storey rear extension, external insulation and cladding of ex | 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 Winchester's 4,162 real decisions. Free, emailed in minutes.
Check my postcodeCompare Winchester's planning approval rates with neighbouring areas:
Dig deeper into Winchester'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 Winchester. Enter your postcode to instantly see approval rates for your ward and application type, based on 4,162 real decisions from Winchester 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 Winchester'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 4,162 planning decisions, the overall approval rate in Winchester is 94.0%. The national average across councils tracked by PlanningLens is 85.0%. Rates vary significantly by ward and application type.
PlanningLens has analysed 4,162 planning decisions from Winchester council. 3,910 were approved and 252 were refused. These figures cover every decision on record for the council, November 2018 to September 2026.
The average approval rate in Winchester is 94.0%, 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 Winchester? 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.