Highest Planning Approval Rates by Council
Which UK councils approve the most planning applications? Rankings based on approval percentage from the last 24 months of decided applications.
| # | Council | Approval Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Ayrshire | 98.5% |
| 2 | Western Isles | 98.3% |
| 3 | City of London | 97.5% |
| 4 | North Lanarkshire | 96.9% |
| 5 | North Kesteven | 96.7% |
| 6 | Cumberland | 96.3% |
| 7 | Essex | 96% |
| 8 | Shetlands | 95.9% |
| 9 | Monmouthshire | 95.8% |
| 10 | Gosport | 95.6% |
| 11 | Cardiff | 95.5% |
| 12 | Leicestershire | 95.4% |
| 13 | Oadby and Wigston | 95.3% |
| 14 | Canterbury | 95.1% |
| 15 | Sedgemoor | 95.1% |
| 16 | Loch Lomond | 95% |
| 17 | Newark and Sherwood | 95% |
| 18 | Moray | 94.8% |
| 19 | Renfrewshire | 94.8% |
| 20 | Fermanagh and Omagh | 94.5% |
| 21 | Hartlepool | 94.5% |
| 22 | Lincoln | 94.5% |
| 23 | Redcar and Cleveland | 94.3% |
| 24 | Darlington | 94% |
| 25 | St Helens | 93.9% |
| 26 | Broads | 93.9% |
| 27 | Neath | 93.9% |
| 28 | Ryedale | 93.8% |
| 29 | Belfast | 93.6% |
| 30 | Aberdeenshire | 93.6% |
| 31 | Tunbridge Wells | 93.6% |
| 32 | Fareham | 93.5% |
| 33 | Carlisle | 93.3% |
| 34 | Rushmoor | 93.3% |
| 35 | New Forest (Park) | 93.2% |
| 36 | Rhondda | 93.2% |
| 37 | Derry and Strabane | 93.2% |
| 38 | Guernsey | 93.1% |
| 39 | Adur and Worthing | 93.1% |
| 40 | North Norfolk | 93% |
| 41 | Winchester | 93% |
| 42 | Cheltenham | 93% |
| 43 | West Oxfordshire | 93% |
| 44 | South Ribble | 92.9% |
| 45 | Old Oak Park Royal | 92.7% |
| 46 | Eastbourne | 92.7% |
| 47 | Southwark | 92.7% |
| 48 | Amber Valley | 92.6% |
| 49 | Dumfries | 92.6% |
| 50 | Blaby | 92.6% |
| 51 | Allerdale | 92.6% |
| 52 | Isle of Man | 92.6% |
| 53 | Mid Ulster | 92.5% |
| 54 | Copeland | 92.4% |
| 55 | North Devon | 92.4% |
| 56 | Causeway and Glens | 92.4% |
| 57 | Anglesey | 92.3% |
| 58 | Clackmannanshire | 92.3% |
| 59 | Knowsley | 92.3% |
| 60 | Norwich | 92.2% |
| 61 | East Lindsey | 92.1% |
| 62 | North Tyneside | 91.9% |
| 63 | Vale of White Horse | 91.9% |
| 64 | Cotswold | 91.9% |
| 65 | Lewes | 91.7% |
| 66 | South Oxfordshire | 91.7% |
| 67 | Tonbridge | 91.6% |
| 68 | Stockport | 91.6% |
| 69 | Rugby | 91.5% |
| 70 | Newcastle under Lyme | 91.4% |
| 71 | Falkirk | 91.4% |
| 72 | Highland | 91.3% |
| 73 | Ards and North Down | 91.3% |
| 74 | South Kesteven | 91.3% |
| 75 | Wyre Forest | 91.2% |
| 76 | Blackpool | 91.2% |
| 77 | East Suffolk | 91.1% |
| 78 | Stevenage | 91.1% |
| 79 | Bolsover | 91% |
| 80 | Havering | 91% |
| 81 | Melton | 90.9% |
| 82 | Durham | 90.8% |
| 83 | Armagh Banbridge Craigavon | 90.8% |
| 84 | Denbighshire | 90.8% |
| 85 | North East Derbyshire | 90.8% |
| 86 | Derbyshire | 90.7% |
| 87 | Oldham | 90.6% |
| 88 | Aberdeen | 90.6% |
| 89 | Bath | 90.6% |
| 90 | Hambleton | 90.6% |
| 91 | Solihull | 90.6% |
| 92 | Forest of Dean | 90.5% |
| 93 | South Lanarkshire | 90.4% |
| 94 | Gateshead | 90.4% |
| 95 | Tower Hamlets | 90.3% |
| 96 | Camden | 90.2% |
| 97 | Hammersmith and Fulham | 90.1% |
| 98 | Tewkesbury | 90.1% |
| 99 | Lisburn and Castlereagh | 89.9% |
| 100 | Shropshire | 89.8% |
| 101 | Babergh Mid Suffolk | 89.8% |
| 102 | Bromsgrove Redditch | 89.8% |
| 103 | North Hertfordshire | 89.7% |
| 104 | Dartford | 89.7% |
| 105 | Castle Point | 89.7% |
| 106 | West Suffolk | 89.6% |
| 107 | North Yorkshire | 89.6% |
| 108 | Blaenau Gwent | 89.5% |
| 109 | North Warwickshire | 89.4% |
| 110 | Jersey | 89.3% |
| 111 | Newry Mourne Down | 89.3% |
| 112 | Corby | 89.2% |
| 113 | Dundee | 89.2% |
| 114 | Hinckley and Bosworth | 89.2% |
| 115 | Herefordshire | 89.2% |
| 116 | Cherwell | 89.2% |
| 117 | Sevenoaks | 89.1% |
| 118 | Worcester | 89.1% |
| 119 | West Northamptonshire | 89.1% |
| 120 | North Northamptonshire | 89.1% |
| 121 | Horsham | 89.1% |
| 122 | North Somerset | 89% |
| 123 | Thanet | 89% |
| 124 | Wokingham | 89% |
| 125 | Derby | 88.9% |
| 126 | South Downs | 88.9% |
| 127 | Fylde | 88.9% |
| 128 | Sutton | 88.8% |
| 129 | Dover | 88.8% |
| 130 | Wrexham | 88.8% |
| 131 | Mid Sussex | 88.8% |
| 132 | Hastings | 88.8% |
| 133 | Harborough | 88.8% |
| 134 | Peak District | 88.7% |
| 135 | Erewash | 88.6% |
| 136 | Dorset | 88.6% |
| 137 | Southampton | 88.6% |
| 138 | Hart | 88.6% |
| 139 | Bexley | 88.5% |
| 140 | West Lindsey | 88.5% |
| 141 | Merthyr Tydfil | 88.4% |
| 142 | Basingstoke | 88.4% |
| 143 | Hull | 88.4% |
| 144 | Fenland | 88.4% |
| 145 | Maldon | 88.4% |
| 146 | York | 88.3% |
| 147 | South Cambridgeshire | 88.2% |
| 148 | East Riding | 88.1% |
| 149 | Rochford | 88% |
| 150 | Brentwood | 88% |
| 151 | Rutland | 87.9% |
| 152 | Oxford | 87.9% |
| 153 | Brecon Beacons | 87.8% |
| 154 | East Cambridgeshire | 87.7% |
| 155 | Mid East Antrim | 87.7% |
| 156 | Antrim and Newtownabbey | 87.6% |
| 157 | Huntingdonshire | 87.6% |
| 158 | West Berkshire | 87.5% |
| 159 | Tendring | 87.5% |
| 160 | Thurrock | 87.4% |
| 161 | Newcastle upon Tyne | 87.4% |
| 162 | Perth | 87.2% |
| 163 | Ipswich | 87.1% |
| 164 | Cambridge | 87.1% |
| 165 | Havant | 87% |
| 166 | Isle of Wight | 87% |
| 167 | Eastleigh | 86.9% |
| 168 | Nottingham | 86.8% |
| 169 | Halton | 86.7% |
| 170 | Basildon | 86.7% |
| 171 | Brighton and Hove | 86.6% |
| 172 | Tameside | 86.5% |
| 173 | Woking | 86.5% |
| 174 | North York Moors | 86.5% |
| 175 | Waverley | 86.4% |
| 176 | Three Rivers | 86.4% |
| 177 | Warwick | 86.4% |
| 178 | Surrey Heath | 86.4% |
| 179 | Chelmsford | 86.4% |
| 180 | Dacorum | 86.4% |
| 181 | East Lothian | 86.4% |
| 182 | Swindon | 86.4% |
| 183 | Inverclyde | 86.3% |
| 184 | Exmoor | 86.3% |
| 185 | Torridge | 86.3% |
| 186 | Epsom and Ewell | 86.2% |
| 187 | Crawley | 86.2% |
| 188 | Swansea | 86.2% |
| 189 | Bassetlaw | 86.1% |
| 190 | Hackney | 86% |
| 191 | Sunderland | 86% |
| 192 | Orkney | 86% |
| 193 | Chorley | 85.9% |
| 194 | Midlothian | 85.9% |
| 195 | Wakefield | 85.8% |
| 196 | Kensington | 85.8% |
| 197 | BCP | 85.7% |
| 198 | Kettering | 85.7% |
| 199 | West Somerset | 85.7% |
| 200 | Tandridge | 85.6% |
Last updated: 22 September 2026
Planning permission approval rates vary significantly across UK local planning authorities. While most planning applications are ultimately approved nationally, some councils grant consent at notably higher rates than others. This can reflect differences in pre-application advice quality, local planning policy, the mix of application types received, or the level of speculative development pressure in the area.
Local planning authorities with very high planning application approval rates often have strong pre-application processes that filter out unviable proposals before formal submission. These councils typically offer good pre-application advice, helping applicants refine schemes to meet local plan policies before committing to a full planning application. Conversely, areas with lower planning permission approval rates may face more contentious development pressure, have stricter local development policies, or receive a higher proportion of speculative or substandard applications.
These planning application decision statistics cover all application types decided by UK councils, including full planning applications, householder extensions, listed building consents, change of use, and discharge of conditions. Only local planning authorities with at least 50 decided applications in the last 24 months are included to ensure the approval rate percentages are statistically meaningful.