Woking Council approves 85.8% of planning applications, based on 7,909 real decisions analysed from the council’s public planning portal. The national average across all councils tracked by PlanningLens is 88.6%. Woking sits 2.8 percentage points below the national average.
According to PlanningLens analysis of 1,423 decided applications, Woking Council approved 83.9% of planning applications in 2025. Across 7,909 decisions analysed since January 2020, the overall approval rate in Woking is 85.8%; the national average across UK councils tracked by PlanningLens is 88.6%.
Source: PlanningLens (planninglens.co.uk) analysis of Woking council planning portal records · Updated August 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 Woking.
| Application Type | Approved | Refused | Total | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full | 3,063 | 711 | 3,774 | 81.2% |
| Trees | 1,673 | 88 | 1,761 | 95.0% |
| Discharge of Conditions | 1,006 | 34 | 1,040 | 96.7% |
| Certificate of Lawfulness | 425 | 119 | 544 | 78.1% |
| Other | 399 | 118 | 517 | 77.2% |
| Advertisement | 110 | 15 | 125 | 88.0% |
| Prior Approval | 39 | 35 | 74 | 52.7% |
| Listed Building | 66 | 6 | 72 | 91.7% |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heathlands | 1,024 | 193 | 1,217 | 84.1% |
| Horsell | 917 | 124 | 1,041 | 88.1% |
| Pyrford | 877 | 133 | 1,010 | 86.8% |
| Byfleet And West Byfleet | 831 | 119 | 950 | 87.5% |
| Canalside | 792 | 155 | 947 | 83.6% |
| Mount Hermon | 738 | 81 | 819 | 90.1% |
| St Johns | 468 | 86 | 554 | 84.5% |
| Knaphill | 446 | 89 | 535 | 83.4% |
| Hoe Valley | 422 | 95 | 517 | 81.6% |
| Goldsworth Park | 241 | 46 | 287 | 84.0% |
| Not Available, if this is a comment please see the Documents Tab | 8 | 2 | 10 | 80.0% |
How Woking’s planning approval rate has changed year by year, down 0.4pp since 2021.
Bar height reflects approval rate. Colour: green ≥85%, amber ≥70%, red below 70%.
Real residential planning decisions from Woking council. Each reference links to the council's own planning portal so you can verify the details yourself.
| Reference | Proposal | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| PLAN/2026/0454 Byfleet And West Byfleet | Erection of a single storey side and rear extension following demolition of exis | Approved |
| PLAN/2026/0427 St Johns | Retrospective planning permission for a rear outbuilding. | Approved |
| PLAN/2026/0392 Mount Hermon | Erection of a part single storey, part two storey rear extension. New rear porch | Approved |
| PLAN/2026/0365 Horsell | Erection of a first-floor side extension, addition of forward-projecting pitched | Approved |
| PLAN/2026/0425 Horsell | Erection of a front porch extension. | Refused |
| AMEND/2026/0015 Pyrford | Non Material Amendment to planning permission PLAN/2026/0077 (Erection of a sing | Approved |
| TREE/2026/8138 Mount Hermon | T1 : Oak Positioned on the front northern boundary, on the grass mound in front | Approved |
| TREE/2026/8114 Pyrford | T1 - Oak: Reduce canopy on south side by 2-3m. Retain radial spread of 6-7m. T2 | Approved |
| TREE/2026/8113 Canalside | T1 - Oak Tree: Remove lower branches from the ground up to 4.5m in front garden | Approved |
| PLAN/2026/0434 Goldsworth Park | Certificate of Proposed Lawful Development for a single storey side and rear ext | Refused |
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 Woking's 7,909 real decisions. Free, emailed in minutes.
Check my postcodeCompare Woking's planning approval rates with neighbouring areas:
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Dig deeper into Woking'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 Woking. Enter your postcode to instantly see approval rates for your ward and application type, based on 7,909 real decisions from Woking 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 Woking'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 7,909 planning decisions, the overall approval rate in Woking is 85.8%. The national average across councils tracked by PlanningLens is 88.6%. Rates vary significantly by ward and application type.
PlanningLens has analysed 7,909 planning decisions from Woking council. 6,783 were approved and 1,126 were refused. These figures cover decisions from January 2020 to the present.
The average approval rate in Woking is 85.8%, 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 Woking? 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.