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Planning application timescales: how long to expect
How long does a planning application really take? Forget the rosy figures claiming the vast majority of planning applications are determined within time, because these flagrantly use "extension of time performance agreements" to artificially give an unrealistic picture. The statutory timescales of 13 weeks for major developments and 8 weeks for other developments has become something of a bad joke. What do you do when an applicant blames you for their application taking longer than this?
It can be helpful to set applicants' expectations into the right ball park by quoting official MHCLG figures on the percentage of applications determined within the 13 or 8 week statutory timescale. MHCLG now distinguish between statutory timescales including and excluding extension of time Performance Agreements. The table below gives the figures for every LPA excluding extensions of time agreements. A more detailed breakdown for each local authority by type of development can be found on the MHCLG planning application statistics dashboard for PS2 returns here.
To check out whether your LPA is getting better or worse over time see our tortoise-verses-hare table of change over time.
Percentage of planning applications decided within statutory timescales,
EXCLUDING extensions of time, for the year ending March 2025
| Local Planning Authority - year ending 31 March 2025, *excluding extensions of time | % major devt applns decided within 13 wks* | % non-major devt decided within 8 wks* | % Householder applns decided within 8 wks* | ||
| England average | 19% | 41% | 64% | ||
| Adur | 0% | 40% | 66% | ||
| Amber Valley | 13% | 41% | 69% | ||
| Arun | 39% | 81% | 98% | ||
| Ashfield | 16% | 39% | 79% | ||
| Ashford | 28% | 42% | 83% | ||
| Babergh | 40% | 50% | 81% | ||
| Barking and Dagenham | 20% | 68% | 88% | ||
| Barnet | 15% | 57% | 77% | ||
| Barnsley | 0% | 26% | 55% | ||
| Basildon | 15% | 31% | 65% | ||
| Basingstoke and Deane | 4% | 23% | 64% | ||
| Bassetlaw | 28% | 48% | 59% | ||
| Bath and North East Somerset | 22% | 30% | 53% | ||
| Bedford | 13% | 27% | 58% | ||
| Bexley | 0% | 48% | 80% | ||
| Local Planning Authority - year ending 31 March 2025, *excluding extensions of time | % major devt applns decided within 13 wks* | % non-major devt decided within 8 wks* | % Householder applns decided within 8 wks* | ||
| Birmingham | 15% | 20% | 26% | ||
| Blaby | 20% | 41% | 57% | ||
| Blackburn with Darwen | 21% | 54% | 79% | ||
| Blackpool | 7% | 33% | 75% | ||
| Bolsover | 13% | 56% | 85% | ||
| Bolton | 13% | 37% | 54% | ||
| Boston | 26% | 43% | 66% | ||
| Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole | 10% | 24% | 42% | ||
| Bracknell Forest | 10% | 16% | 50% | ||
| Bradford | 18% | 58% | 73% | ||
| Braintree | 11% | 46% | 73% | ||
| Breckland | 27% | 41% | 79% | ||
| Brent | 5% | 57% | 70% | ||
| Brentwood | 30% | 18% | 40% | ||
| Brighton and Hove | 8% | 46% | 59% | ||
| Bristol, City of | 10% | 22% | 49% | ||
| Broadland | 13% | 25% | 70% | ||
| Bromley | 0% | 39% | 71% | ||
| Bromsgrove | 15% | 38% | 62% | ||
| Broxbourne | 0% | 25% | 46% | ||
| Broxtowe | 38% | 43% | 71% | ||
| Buckinghamshire | 23% | 35% | 58% | ||
| Burnley | 6% | 49% | 86% | ||
| Bury | 31% | 59% | 73% | ||
| Local Planning Authority - year ending 31 March 2025, *excluding extensions of time | % major devt applns decided within 13 wks* | % non-major devt decided within 8 wks* | % Householder applns decided within 8 wks* | ||
| Calderdale | 21% | 39% | 63% | ||
| Cambridge | 18% | 46% | 89% | ||
| Camden | 0% | 36% | 40% | ||
| Cannock Chase | 0% | 46% | 91% | ||
| Canterbury | 19% | 21% | 34% | ||
| Castle Point | 29% | 76% | 90% | ||
| Central Bedfordshire | 18% | 43% | 83% | ||
| Charnwood | 13% | 45% | 77% | ||
| Chelmsford | 29% | 60% | 88% | ||
| Cheltenham | 40% | 48% | 78% | ||
| Cherwell | 14% | 37% | 54% | ||
| Cheshire East | 5% | 18% | 39% | ||
| Cheshire West and Chester | 10% | 7% | 35% | ||
| Chesterfield | 25% | 28% | 53% | ||
| Chichester | 27% | 34% | 68% | ||
| Chorley | 6% | 49% | 72% | ||
| City of London | 0% | 16% | 33% | ||
| Colchester | 33% | 51% | 71% | ||
| Cornwall | 17% | 43% | 73% | ||
| Cotswold | 26% | 41% | 49% | ||
| County Durham | 18% | 31% | 52% | ||
| Coventry | 36% | 82% | 90% | ||
| Crawley | 0% | 29% | 34% | ||
| Croydon | 13% | 45% | 64% | ||
| Cumberland | 29% | 46% | 73% | ||
| Local Planning Authority - year ending 31 March 2025, *excluding extensions of time | % major devt applns decided within 13 wks* | % non-major devt decided within 8 wks* | % Householder applns decided within 8 wks* | ||
| Dacorum | 25% | 30% | 73% | ||
| Darlington | 27% | 29% | 64% | ||
| Dartford | 36% | 31% | 56% | ||
| Dartmoor National Park | 0% | 49% | 70% | ||
| Derby | 15% | 32% | 53% | ||
| Derbyshire Dales | 13% | 33% | 72% | ||
| Doncaster | 13% | 45% | 82% | ||
| Dorset | 25% | 44% | 76% | ||
| Dover | 10% | 29% | 55% | ||
| Dudley | 30% | 57% | 74% | ||
| Local Planning Authority - year ending 31 March 2025, *excluding extensions of time | % major devt applns decided within 13 wks* | % non-major devt decided within 8 wks* | % Householder applns decided within 8 wks* | ||
| Ealing | 7% | 47% | 60% | ||
| East Cambridgeshire | 13% | 34% | 70% | ||
| East Devon | 11% | 30% | 63% | ||
| East Hampshire | 6% | 19% | 33% | ||
| East Hertfordshire | 4% | 40% | 76% | ||
| East Lindsey | 28% | 43% | 67% | ||
| East Riding of Yorkshire | 41% | 62% | 86% | ||
| East Staffordshire | 36% | 35% | 54% | ||
| East Suffolk | 19% | 26% | 49% | ||
| Eastbourne | 8% | 36% | 74% | ||
| Eastleigh | 13% | 63% | 68% | ||
| Ebbsfleet Development Corporation | 6% | 20% | 74% | ||
| Elmbridge | 26% | 34% | 64% | ||
| Enfield | 21% | 74% | 94% | ||
| Epping Forest | 4% | 39% | 76% | ||
| Epsom and Ewell | 25% | 55% | 85% | ||
| Erewash | 30% | 53% | 82% | ||
| Exeter | 15% | 34% | 58% | ||
| Exmoor National Park | -% | 27% | 50% | ||
| Local Planning Authority - year ending 31 March 2025, *excluding extensions of time | % major devt applns decided within 13 wks* | % non-major devt decided within 8 wks* | % Householder applns decided within 8 wks* | ||
| Fareham | 22% | 60% | 92% | ||
| Fenland | 14% | 22% | 66% | ||
| Folkestone and Hythe | 15% | 74% | 93% | ||
| Forest of Dean | 35% | 33% | 61% | ||
| Fylde | 10% | 34% | 55% | ||
| Gateshead | 18% | 26% | 31% | ||
| Gedling | 8% | 29% | 63% | ||
| Gloucester | 42% | 33% | 66% | ||
| Gosport | 29% | 38% | 79% | ||
| Gravesham | 33% | 52% | 82% | ||
| Great Yarmouth | 0% | 28% | 19% | ||
| Greenwich | 0% | 61% | 79% | ||
| Guildford | 6% | 19% | 43% | ||
| Local Planning Authority - year ending 31 March 2025, *excluding extensions of time | % major devt applns decided within 13 wks* | % non-major devt decided within 8 wks* | % Householder applns decided within 8 wks* | ||
| Hackney | 13% | 39% | 49% | ||
| Halton | 8% | 20% | 79% | ||
| Hammersmith and Fulham | 7% | 34% | 36% | ||
| Harborough | 35% | 35% | 62% | ||
| Haringey | 0% | 45% | 53% | ||
| Harlow | 11% | 45% | 80% | ||
| Harrow | 20% | 47% | 68% | ||
| Hart | 29% | 40% | 71% | ||
| Hartlepool | 12% | 35% | 50% | ||
| Hartlepool Development Corporation | 33% | 32% | -% | ||
| Hastings | 43% | 57% | 82% | ||
| Havant | 9% | 23% | 40% | ||
| Havering | 11% | 41% | 65% | ||
| Herefordshire, County of | 14% | 7% | 30% | ||
| Hertsmere | 5% | 28% | 47% | ||
| High Peak | 8% | 17% | 46% | ||
| Hillingdon | 0% | 36% | 64% | ||
| Hinckley and Bosworth | 18% | 35% | 70% | ||
| Horsham | 13% | 28% | 69% | ||
| Hounslow | 13% | 43% | 52% | ||
| Huntingdonshire | 8% | 22% | 47% | ||
| Hyndburn | 31% | 46% | 67% | ||
| Local Planning Authority - year ending 31 March 2025, *excluding extensions of time | % major devt applns decided within 13 wks* | % non-major devt decided within 8 wks* | % Householder applns decided within 8 wks* | ||
| Ipswich | 13% | 52% | 79% | ||
| Isle of Wight | 29% | 66% | 94% | ||
| Isles of Scilly | 33% | 38% | 63% | ||
| Islington | 0% | 35% | 35% | ||
| Kensington and Chelsea | 7% | 56% | 57% | ||
| King’s Lynn and West Norfolk | 39% | 41% | 79% | ||
| Kingston upon Hull, City of | 14% | 26% | 50% | ||
| Kingston upon Thames | 10% | 49% | 77% | ||
| Kirklees | 7% | 26% | 52% | ||
| Knowsley | 38% | 32% | 64% | ||
| Lake District National Park | 18% | 50% | 66% | ||
| Lambeth | 25% | 46% | 53% | ||
| Lancaster | 25% | 46% | 71% | ||
| Leeds | 14% | 46% | 71% | ||
| Leicester | 13% | 22% | 25% | ||
| Lewes | 15% | 30% | 53% | ||
| Lewisham | 17% | 57% | 71% | ||
| Lichfield | 10% | 35% | 69% | ||
| Lincoln | 38% | 58% | 85% | ||
| Liverpool | 13% | 44% | 55% | ||
| London Legacy Development Corporation8 | 5% | 23% | 25% | ||
| Luton | 28% | 58% | 60% | ||
| Local Planning Authority - year ending 31 March 2025, *excluding extensions of time | % major devt applns decided within 13 wks* | % non-major devt decided within 8 wks* | % Householder applns decided within 8 wks* | ||
| Maidstone | 38% | 58% | 86% | ||
| Maldon | 33% | 45% | 84% | ||
| Malvern Hills | 31% | 34% | 57% | ||
| Manchester | 38% | 71% | 89% | ||
| Mansfield | 32% | 29% | 58% | ||
| Medway | 35% | 61% | 90% | ||
| Melton | 3% | 7% | 14% | ||
| Merton | 15% | 42% | 61% | ||
| Mid Devon | 22% | 47% | 72% | ||
| Mid Suffolk | 11% | 47% | 77% | ||
| Mid Sussex | 23% | 45% | 76% | ||
| Middlesbrough | 18% | 44% | 47% | ||
| Middlesbrough Development Corporation | 22% | 38% | #VALUE! | ||
| Milton Keynes | 20% | 48% | 66% | ||
| Mole Valley | 21% | 48% | 79% | ||
| Local Planning Authority - year ending 31 March 2025, *excluding extensions of time | % major devt applns decided within 13 wks* | % non-major devt decided within 8 wks* | % Householder applns decided within 8 wks* | ||
| New Forest | 19% | 39% | 83% | ||
| New Forest National Park | 17% | 38% | 46% | ||
| Newark and Sherwood | 11% | 45% | 68% | ||
| Newcastle-under-Lyme | 24% | 56% | 64% | ||
| Newcastle upon Tyne | 10% | 43% | 52% | ||
| Newham | 23% | 37% | 66% | ||
| North Devon | 5% | 35% | 51% | ||
| North East Derbyshire | 33% | 38% | 60% | ||
| North East Lincolnshire | 28% | 28% | 59% | ||
| North Hertfordshire | 24% | 42% | 69% | ||
| North Kesteven | 15% | 26% | 68% | ||
| North Lincolnshire | 31% | 29% | 61% | ||
| North Norfolk | 16% | 46% | 70% | ||
| Local Planning Authority - year ending 31 March 2025, *excluding extensions of time | % major devt applns decided within 13 wks* | % non-major devt decided within 8 wks* | % Householder applns decided within 8 wks* | ||
| North Northamptonshire | 12% | 33% | 53% | ||
| North Somerset | 16% | 36% | 60% | ||
| North Tyneside | 32% | 61% | 88% | ||
| North Warwickshire | 16% | 37% | 69% | ||
| North West Leicestershire | 23% | 29% | 57% | ||
| North York Moors National Park | 57% | 59% | 69% | ||
| North Yorkshire | 15% | 35% | 62% | ||
| Northumberland | 20% | 33% | 58% | ||
| Northumberland National Park | 100% | 68% | 88% | ||
| Norwich | 14% | 60% | 81% | ||
| Nottingham | 16% | 42% | 51% | ||
| Nuneaton and Bedworth | 0% | 24% | 65% | ||
| Local Planning Authority - year ending 31 March 2025, *excluding extensions of time | % major devt applns decided within 13 wks* | % non-major devt decided within 8 wks* | % Householder applns decided within 8 wks* | ||
| Oadby and Wigston | 0% | 56% | 65% | ||
| Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation | 0% | 88% | 100% | ||
| Oldham | 32% | 29% | 54% | ||
| Oxford | 11% | 47% | 60% | ||
| Peak District National Park | 45% | 48% | 63% | ||
| Pendle | 33% | 59% | 77% | ||
| Peterborough | 27% | 44% | 57% | ||
| Plymouth | 56% | 64% | 71% | ||
| Portsmouth | 14% | 34% | 50% | ||
| Preston | 27% | 41% | 57% | ||
| Local Planning Authority - year ending 31 March 2025, *excluding extensions of time | % major devt applns decided within 13 wks* | % non-major devt decided within 8 wks* | % Householder applns decided within 8 wks* | ||
| Reading | 33% | 29% | 51% | ||
| Redbridge | 37% | 59% | 79% | ||
| Redcar and Cleveland | 25% | 55% | 69% | ||
| Redditch | 22% | 43% | 84% | ||
| Reigate and Banstead | 9% | 46% | 76% | ||
| Ribble Valley | 63% | 40% | 58% | ||
| Richmond upon Thames | 8% | 55% | 61% | ||
| Rochdale | 28% | 23% | 57% | ||
| Rochford | 10% | 22% | 60% | ||
| Rossendale | 0% | 33% | 64% | ||
| Rother | 18% | 39% | 57% | ||
| Rotherham | 32% | 49% | 73% | ||
| Rugby | 17% | 37% | 51% | ||
| Runnymede | 3% | 26% | 54% | ||
| Rushcliffe | 11% | 42% | 66% | ||
| Rushmoor | 38% | 53% | 80% | ||
| Rutland | 38% | 60% | 83% | ||
| Local Planning Authority - year ending 31 March 2025, *excluding extensions of time | % major devt applns decided within 13 wks* | % non-major devt decided within 8 wks* | % Householder applns decided within 8 wks* | ||
| Salford | 16% | 36% | 55% | ||
| Sandwell | 17% | 56% | 71% | ||
| Sefton | 24% | 48% | 75% | ||
| Sevenoaks | 28% | 55% | 76% | ||
| Sheffield | 29% | 44% | 67% | ||
| Shropshire | 30% | 61% | 84% | ||
| Slough | 4% | 27% | 34% | ||
| Solihull | 5% | 27% | 53% | ||
| Somerset | 12% | 32% | 70% | ||
| South Cambridgeshire | 26% | 38% | 86% | ||
| South Derbyshire | 15% | 50% | 78% | ||
| South Downs National Park | 13% | 30% | 48% | ||
| South Gloucestershire | 16% | 30% | 64% | ||
| Local Planning Authority - year ending 31 March 2025, *excluding extensions of time | % major devt applns decided within 13 wks* | % non-major devt decided within 8 wks* | % Householder applns decided within 8 wks* | ||
| South Hams | 22% | 53% | 70% | ||
| South Holland | 20% | 45% | 75% | ||
| South Kesteven | 14% | 21% | 40% | ||
| South Norfolk | 12% | 19% | 68% | ||
| South Oxfordshire | 32% | 42% | 73% | ||
| South Ribble | 55% | 57% | 80% | ||
| South Staffordshire | 27% | 41% | 57% | ||
| South Tyneside | 10% | 39% | 66% | ||
| Southampton | 10% | 41% | 60% | ||
| Southend-on-Sea | 16% | 38% | 63% | ||
| Southwark | 6% | 59% | 79% | ||
| Spelthorne | 36% | 59% | 79% | ||
| St Albans | 17% | 22% | 40% | ||
| St. Helens | 6% | 38% | 84% | ||
| Local Planning Authority - year ending 31 March 2025, *excluding extensions of time | % major devt applns decided within 13 wks* | % non-major devt decided within 8 wks* | % Householder applns decided within 8 wks* | ||
| Stafford | 10% | 17% | 62% | ||
| Staffordshire Moorlands | 0% | 27% | 43% | ||
| Stevenage | 16% | 63% | 89% | ||
| Stockport | 9% | 32% | 79% | ||
| Stockton-on-Tees | 18% | 49% | 72% | ||
| Stoke-on-Trent | 20% | 39% | 62% | ||
| Stratford-on-Avon | 11% | 27% | 61% | ||
| Stroud | 15% | 44% | 70% | ||
| Sunderland | 30% | 50% | 77% | ||
| Surrey Heath | 4% | 45% | 75% | ||
| Sutton | 17% | 70% | 91% | ||
| Swale | 15% | 19% | 52% | ||
| Swindon | 15% | 45% | 86% | ||
| Local Planning Authority - year ending 31 March 2025, *excluding extensions of time | % major devt applns decided within 13 wks* | % non-major devt decided within 8 wks* | % Householder applns decided within 8 wks* | ||
| Tameside | 5% | 45% | 67% | ||
| Tamworth | 43% | 49% | 54% | ||
| Tandridge | 28% | 42% | 65% | ||
| Teignbridge | 9% | 38% | 63% | ||
| Telford and Wrekin | 53% | 80% | 95% | ||
| Tendring | 45% | 59% | 86% | ||
| Test Valley | 37% | 49% | 83% | ||
| Tewkesbury | 17% | 15% | 49% | ||
| Thanet | 11% | 38% | 57% | ||
| The Broads Authority | 75% | 51% | 70% | ||
| Three Rivers | 36% | 54% | 85% | ||
| Thurrock | 8% | 35% | 79% | ||
| Tonbridge and Malling | 20% | 29% | 47% | ||
| Torbay | 19% | 44% | 37% | ||
| Torridge | 28% | 59% | 79% | ||
| Tower Hamlets | 0% | 55% | 67% | ||
| Trafford | 15% | 46% | 76% | ||
| Tunbridge Wells | 44% | 59% | 82% | ||
| Local Planning Authority - year ending 31 March 2025, *excluding extensions of time | % major devt applns decided within 13 wks* | % non-major devt decided within 8 wks* | % Householder applns decided within 8 wks* | ||
| Uttlesford | 16% | 29% | 68% | ||
| Vale of White Horse | 20% | 46% | 64% | ||
| Wakefield | 11% | 20% | 49% | ||
| Walsall | 17% | 28% | 53% | ||
| Waltham Forest | 31% | 56% | 79% | ||
| Wandsworth | 16% | 52% | 58% | ||
| Warrington | 21% | 40% | 77% | ||
| Warwick | 18% | 34% | 42% | ||
| Watford | 0% | 64% | 77% | ||
| Waverley | 16% | 43% | 66% | ||
| Wealden | 19% | 41% | 65% | ||
| Welwyn Hatfield | 20% | 34% | 60% | ||
| Local Planning Authority - year ending 31 March 2025, *excluding extensions of time | % major devt applns decided within 13 wks* | % non-major devt decided within 8 wks* | % Householder applns decided within 8 wks* | ||
| West Berkshire | 13% | 18% | 27% | ||
| West Devon | 37% | 46% | 61% | ||
| West Lancashire | 39% | 26% | 42% | ||
| West Lindsey | 34% | 35% | 67% | ||
| West Northamptonshire | 7% | 21% | 31% | ||
| West Oxfordshire | 17% | 41% | 78% | ||
| West Suffolk | 13% | 24% | 55% | ||
| Westminster | 14% | 45% | 43% | ||
| Westmorland and Furness | 24% | 32% | 57% | ||
| Wigan | 22% | 20% | 41% | ||
| Wiltshire | 10% | 31% | 57% | ||
| Winchester | 15% | 25% | 63% | ||
| Windsor and Maidenhead | 12% | 36% | 60% | ||
| Local Planning Authority - year ending 31 March 2025, *excluding extensions of time | % major devt applns decided within 13 wks* | % non-major devt decided within 8 wks* | % Householder applns decided within 8 wks* | ||
| Wirral | 7% | 27% | 39% | ||
| Woking | 19% | 33% | 37% | ||
| Wokingham | 22% | 46% | 80% | ||
| Wolverhampton | 46% | 63% | 74% | ||
| Worcester | 0% | 39% | 70% | ||
| Worthing | 13% | 51% | 54% | ||
| Wychavon | 19% | 34% | 66% | ||
| Wyre | 10% | 17% | 41% | ||
| Wyre Forest | 25% | 39% | 63% | ||
| York | 11% | 29% | 58% | ||
| Yorkshire Dales National Park | 0% | 30% | 64% |
Source: 'Planning Performance Dashboard Year ending March 2025' on the .GOV website here
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