Which council has the highest planning approval rate in the UK?

Dacorum has the highest approval rate at 99.7% based on 1,135 decisions.

Which council is hardest to get planning permission from?

Of the councils we track, East Hertfordshire has the lowest approval rate at 73.2% based on 16,563 decisions.

What is the average planning approval rate in the UK?

Across 232 councils and 2,592,681 decisions, the average approval rate is 90.1%. But rates vary enormously by council, ward and project type.

Hardest and Easiest Councils for Planning Permission

10 Easiest Councils for Planning Permission

These councils approve the highest proportion of applications. But a high council-wide rate doesn't guarantee your application will sail through — ward and proposal type shift the odds significantly.

#	Council	Decisions	Rate
1	Dacorum	1,135	99.7%
2	Fareham	2,490	99.1%
3	Aberdeenshire	1,022	98.8%
4	Mansfield	2,946	98.8%
5	City of London	9,789	98.7%
6	North Ayrshire	999	98.7%
7	Somerset	553	98.7%
8	LLDC	3,226	98.6%
9	Mid Devon	5,869	98.6%
10	Falkirk	545	98.5%

Found your council? See what's happening at street level →

10 Hardest Councils for Planning Permission

These councils have the toughest track records. If your property falls in one of these areas, understanding your local data before applying isn't optional — it's essential.

#	Council	Decisions	Rate
1	East Hertfordshire	16,563	73.2%
2	Maldon	3,963	75.3%
3	Brent	32,531	76.0%
4	Greenwich	22,217	78.1%
5	Bradford	26,787	78.8%
6	Hillingdon	30,009	78.9%
7	Redbridge	33,149	79.0%
8	Waltham Forest	21,278	79.1%
9	Havering	23,213	79.3%
10	Barking & Dagenham	9,122	79.3%

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All 232 Councils Ranked

#	Council	Decisions	Rate
1	Dacorum	1,135	99.7%
2	Fareham	2,490	99.1%
3	Aberdeenshire	1,022	98.8%
4	Mansfield	2,946	98.8%
5	City of London	9,789	98.7%
6	North Ayrshire	999	98.7%
7	Somerset	553	98.7%
8	LLDC	3,226	98.6%
9	Mid Devon	5,869	98.6%
10	Falkirk	545	98.5%
11	Monmouthshire	1,350	98.4%
12	Shetland	6,267	98.4%
13	Moray	1,150	98.3%
14	Clackmannanshire	965	98.2%
15	Harlow	2,497	98.0%
16	Dumfries & Galloway	22,558	97.7%
17	Gosport	1,526	97.6%
18	OPDC	1,230	97.3%
19	Carlisle	4,219	97.1%
20	South Lanarkshire	25,858	96.9%
21	South Norfolk	3,731	96.8%
22	Hambleton	4,027	96.5%
23	Rushmoor	4,157	96.5%
24	Angus	13,888	96.1%
25	Orkney	7,933	96.0%
26	Cheltenham	13,600	95.9%
27	Huntingdonshire	4,137	95.9%
28	Melton	3,647	95.8%
29	Argyll & Bute	3,738	95.7%
30	Midlothian	951	95.7%
31	Cotswold	23,108	95.6%
32	East Ayrshire	1,112	95.6%
33	Lincoln	6,781	95.3%
34	South Ribble	4,090	95.3%
35	South Tyneside	3,235	95.3%
36	Stirling	12,182	95.2%
37	Stockton-on-Tees	2,158	95.2%
38	Bolsover	2,043	95.1%
39	Canterbury	10,484	95.0%
40	County Durham	14,377	95.0%
41	Winchester	6,515	94.9%
42	Broxtowe	4,581	94.7%
43	Tamworth	5,798	94.7%
44	East Lindsey	6,795	94.6%
45	North Norfolk	2,008	94.6%
46	North Northamptonshire	4,238	94.6%
47	Knowsley	4,280	94.5%
48	North York Moors	3,130	94.5%
49	Perth & Kinross	22,100	94.5%
50	Highland	1,987	94.4%
51	North Tyneside	5,719	94.4%
52	South Holland	1,293	94.4%
53	West Lancashire	6,536	94.4%
54	Aberdeen	21,448	94.3%
55	Swindon	3,908	94.3%
56	West Oxfordshire	6,435	94.3%
57	Broadland	3,348	94.1%
58	Dundee	10,343	94.1%
59	Mid Sussex	7,819	94.0%
60	North East Lincolnshire	3,036	94.0%
61	Rugby	6,135	94.0%
62	Cornwall	6,212	93.9%
63	Yorkshire Dales NPA	4,168	93.9%
64	Gateshead	7,156	93.8%
65	Stevenage	3,606	93.8%
66	Derbyshire Dales	3,869	93.7%
67	Newcastle-under-Lyme	526	93.7%
68	Arun	3,032	93.6%
69	Nottingham	6,278	93.6%
70	Wandsworth	26,261	93.5%
71	Derby	3,995	93.4%
72	Bath & NE Somerset	36,819	93.3%
73	Lancaster	4,014	93.3%
74	Southwark	28,675	93.3%
75	Adur & Worthing	13,786	93.2%
76	Chorley	3,509	93.2%
77	Dover	6,755	93.2%
78	King's Lynn & West Norfolk	2,011	93.2%
79	South Downs	10,511	93.2%
80	Torridge	8,020	93.2%
81	Bromsgrove & Redditch	1,868	93.1%
82	Newcastle upon Tyne	8,785	93.1%
83	Plymouth	6,550	93.0%
84	Three Rivers	3,012	93.0%
85	Sandwell	6,354	92.9%
86	Solihull	4,406	92.9%
87	Blaby	2,288	92.7%
88	Rotherham	2,503	92.7%
89	Norwich	8,179	92.6%
90	Kensington & Chelsea	33,175	92.5%
91	Dorset	8,267	92.4%
92	Telford & Wrekin	15,051	92.4%
93	Torfaen	4,592	92.4%
94	Babergh Mid Suffolk	4,495	92.3%
95	Gedling	4,194	92.3%
96	Camden	19,373	92.1%
97	Hammersmith & Fulham	19,357	92.1%
98	Exmoor NPA	1,828	92.0%
99	Darlington	2,301	91.6%
100	Hinckley & Bosworth	3,754	91.6%
101	Lewes & Eastbourne	1,948	91.5%
102	Oxford	5,477	91.5%
103	Doncaster	11,315	91.4%
104	Rutland	21,322	91.3%
105	Bury	4,896	91.2%
106	Horsham	12,372	91.2%
107	Lake District NPA	7,872	91.2%
108	Test Valley	5,558	91.2%
109	Great Yarmouth	2,418	91.0%
110	Tewkesbury	6,410	91.0%
111	Rossendale	453	90.9%
112	Sheffield	6,165	90.8%
113	Tendring	316	90.8%
114	Westminster	60,698	90.8%
115	Fife	5,321	90.7%
116	Southampton	1,007	90.7%
117	West Lothian	13,423	90.7%
118	Forest of Dean	6,046	90.6%
119	East Cambridgeshire	10,928	90.5%
120	Exeter	6,750	90.5%
121	Pembrokeshire Coast NPA	2,969	90.5%
122	Spelthorne	717	90.5%
123	Surrey Heath	4,021	90.5%
124	Cambridge	5,770	90.4%
125	North East Derbyshire	6,406	90.3%
126	York	10,877	90.3%
127	Luton	3,235	90.2%
128	North Somerset	19,330	90.2%
129	Basildon	578	90.1%
130	South Ayrshire	364	90.1%
131	Tonbridge & Malling	7,950	90.1%
132	Barnsley	24,616	90.0%
133	Newport	4,824	90.0%
134	Cannock Chase	2,556	89.9%
135	Chichester	2,709	89.9%
136	Basingstoke & Deane	11,049	89.8%
137	Brighton & Hove	3,163	89.8%
138	City of Edinburgh	34,504	89.8%
139	Powys	7,013	89.8%
140	Wakefield	12,601	89.7%
141	Warwick	12,594	89.7%
142	Wigan	4,758	89.6%
143	Dudley	13,083	89.4%
144	Kingston upon Hull	6,152	89.4%
145	Maidstone	418	89.2%
146	Swale	416	89.2%
147	Cheshire East	12,643	89.0%
148	Tower Hamlets	26,296	89.0%
149	Rushcliffe	7,470	88.8%
150	Liverpool	48,036	88.6%
151	Oldham	6,836	88.6%
152	Reigate & Banstead	13,287	88.6%
153	Sunderland	10,482	88.6%
154	Portsmouth	9,214	88.5%
155	Haringey	23,488	88.4%
156	Dartford	7,102	88.2%
157	Isle of Wight	14,098	88.2%
158	Trafford	13,295	88.2%
159	Glasgow	39,359	88.1%
160	Ceredigion	37,412	87.9%
161	Epsom & Ewell	8,139	87.9%
162	Manchester	13,750	87.9%
163	Bolton	3,753	87.8%
164	Hounslow	72,195	87.7%
165	New Forest	8,940	87.7%
166	Calderdale	13,254	87.6%
167	Sefton	6,453	87.5%
168	Newark & Sherwood	9,966	87.4%
169	Richmond	32,316	87.3%
170	Runnymede	13,387	87.2%
171	Tameside	3,465	87.1%
172	Thanet	27,009	87.1%
173	Bristol	24,529	86.9%
174	South Gloucestershire	15,285	86.9%
175	Sevenoaks	12,687	86.8%
176	Castle Point	2,500	86.7%
177	Hackney	18,634	86.6%
178	Leeds	44,615	86.6%
179	Dartmoor NPA	4,244	86.4%
180	Gravesham	550	86.4%
181	Hastings	5,869	86.4%
182	Pendle	3,290	86.4%
183	Flintshire	5,930	86.3%
184	Kirklees	29,619	86.3%
185	Swansea	2,873	86.1%
186	Ealing	67,567	86.0%
187	Merton	17,557	85.9%
188	Chelmsford	505	85.7%
189	Hart	9,970	85.5%
190	Windsor & Maidenhead	6,575	85.2%
191	Gloucester	4,057	85.1%
192	Hertsmere	3,094	85.1%
193	Bexley	20,572	84.9%
194	Lichfield	2,583	84.9%
195	Blackpool	554	84.7%
196	Newham	20,907	84.7%
197	Lambeth	30,422	84.6%
198	Bassetlaw	4,404	84.5%
199	Sutton	17,407	83.9%
200	Birmingham	33,111	83.8%
201	Brentwood	11,640	83.8%
202	Coventry	1,909	83.8%
203	Leicester	538	83.3%
204	Caerphilly	1,944	83.2%
205	Middlesbrough	3,412	83.1%
206	Selby	5,669	83.0%
207	Lewisham	24,367	82.9%
208	Islington	85,229	82.8%
209	Oadby & Wigston	2,159	82.8%
210	Slough	6,928	82.2%
211	Cardiff	4,367	81.9%
212	Barnet	53,415	81.8%
213	Guildford	16,972	81.7%
214	Wyre	405	81.2%
215	Bromley	36,212	80.9%
216	Croydon	38,435	80.8%
217	Pembrokeshire	5,895	80.7%
218	Harrow	12,600	80.6%
219	Kingston	23,239	80.0%
220	Thurrock	10,618	80.0%
221	Enfield	29,826	79.8%
222	Southend-on-Sea	587	79.4%
223	Barking & Dagenham	9,122	79.3%
224	Havering	23,213	79.3%
225	Waltham Forest	21,278	79.1%
226	Redbridge	33,149	79.0%
227	Hillingdon	30,009	78.9%
228	Bradford	26,787	78.8%
229	Greenwich	22,217	78.1%
230	Brent	32,531	76.0%
231	Maldon	3,963	75.3%
232	East Hertfordshire	16,563	73.2%

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What the data tells us

1

The gap between councils is enormous. Dacorum approves 99.7% of applications. East Hertfordshire approves just 73.2%. Same country, completely different planning environments.

2

Council averages mask what actually matters. A council with a 78% approval rate still refuses thousands of applications. The difference between approval and refusal comes down to your specific ward, your neighbours, and your proposal.

3

National averages hide local variation. These rankings are a useful starting point, but the decisions that predict your outcome are the ones near your property — not the ones across the borough.

Hardest and Easiest Councils for Planning Permission

Check Your Postcode for Approval Chances

10 Easiest Councils for Planning Permission

10 Hardest Councils for Planning Permission

Your council's approval rate is just the starting point

All 232 Councils Ranked

What the data tells us

The UK average is meaningless. Your street isn't average.

More national planning data