Research Reveals the Hardest & Easiest Places to Get Planning Permission in the UK
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Getting planning permission in the UK is not always the easiest task, and it can be extremely frustrating to wait for approval before renovating your home. But, did you know that where you live can also have an impact on whether you get approved or not?
We looked at 8 years of planning application data from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, to calculate the percentage of applications that were accepted and rejected. From more than 300 district planning authorities analysed, we’ve uncovered the local authority areas with the highest and lowest planning permission requests, the number of major and minor requests, as well as the number of requests submitted during the COVID-19 pandemic.
From this data, The City of London was revealed to be the best place to live for home renovators as it’s the easiest area to win home planning permission, while Maldon is the hardest. In London, a huge 98.7% of planning permission requests were granted, while 40.4% of applications were denied in Maldon, across an eight-year period.
What is Planning Permission?
If you’re unclear on what exactly planning permission is, why people need it, or the different types of planning permission, we’re here to explain. Firstly, planning permission refers to the consent from your local authority for a proposed building change. You’ll likely need planning permission if you want to build something new, such as a small building away from the main building. You’ll also need it to make a major change to your building, like adding a conservatory or extension. Or if you want to change the use of your building altogether.
There are a few different types of planning permission given that are suited to various projects and buildings. These include:
- Full planning permission: This type offer permission for a full, detailed project that has been shown to the local authority and meets their conditions.
- Outline planning permission: This is essentially a ‘permission in principle’ and used to outline a proposed building before going through the expense and effort of full permission to see if it’s doable in the first place. Another application will need to be made for any other details not included in the original permission.
- Householder planning permission: This is a simplified process for proposals to change or extend a house (not a flat) within the boundary of the property.
Typically, it takes around 8 weeks for planning permission to be either granted or denied. Once approved, the permission will last for approximately 3 years, which is plenty of time to make the changes you proposed.
Interestingly, since the lockdowns, we’ve actually seen fewer requests for planning permission. This could very likely be down to the DIY trend that’s boomed over the last couple of years, which we will be exploring later on, so stay tuned!
Home Improvements You Need Planning Permission For
You’ll likely need to seek planning permission for the following home improvement projects:
- Extensions
- Garages
- Sheds
- Outbuildings
- Windows and doors if your property is listed
- Permanent wind turbines and solar panels
- Fences
- Gates
- Walls
Many of these projects will have conditions and depend on the type of property you’re in. If you do the work without getting proper planning permission, you could end up being served an enforcement notice, which will order you to undo all the changes made.
So, if you’re ever unsure on whether you need planning permission or not, instead of taking the risk and going ahead anyway, we strongly recommend checking with your local council to be 100% sure.
The Top 5 Easiest Places to Get Planning Permission

Numerous factors affect how likely an application will be approved, as different areas have specific building regulations, planning constraints and development targets. Residents in the City of London are the most likely to have their application granted, with a 98.7% approval rate. This is great news for residents looking to make small improvements to their homes. The Borough of Copeland in western Cumbria was a close second, with 96.4% of planning permission requests approved over eight years. This was followed by the Isles of Scilly (95.6%), off the beautiful Cornwall coast, Richmondshire in North Yorkshire (95.5%) and Wigan in the Greater Manchester area (95.4%).
The Top 5 Hardest Places to Get Planning Permission

There are many reasons why your planning permission application could be refused. The most common reasons are:
- Overshadowing or loss of privacy to neighbouring properties
- Harm to listed buildings
- Negative impact on the neighbourhood
- Poor quality or size
- Negative effect on character and appearance
- Traffic and parking
- Harm to green land
- Doesn’t fit within the local or national planning policies
Local Authority Submitting the Most Requests
We also looked at which local authorities were submitting the most planning permission requests and found that Cornwall residents are the ones who want to renovate their homes or build something new the most, with 106,995 total requests. Unsurprisingly, Westminster, the bustling government area in Central London, submitted 90,902 planning permission requests to alter and add structures. Wiltshire (47,084), Shropshire (45,804) and Wandsworth (45,134) were also high on our list of the most submitted requests, which is understandable when you consider how much more space and land these places have compared to London and other major cities.
Local Authority Submitting the Least Requests
Located just off the Cornwall coast, the Isles of Scilly have submitted the least amount of planning permission requests over the last 8 years. 946 requests were submitted, with 944 of those being minor improvements and just 2 for major changes. As we mentioned earlier, 95.6% of those requests were approved, so it’s a good place to be for those who like making small improvements to their home.
Local Authority with the Most Granted & Denied Major Requests

The provision for a major development request would be a site area of over 0.5 Hectares or a floor space of over 1,000sqm. The local authority which granted the most major requests were Cornwall, with 6399 major requests approved. Birmingham came in second with 5609 major requests granted, and this was followed closely by Leeds with 5387 requests, Wiltshire with 4983 approved requests and Manchester with 4170 requests.
Interestingly, Cornwall was also the top place with the most denied major requests too, with 1374 refused - so you definitely need a bit of luck on your side here. Cheshire East had 1043 requests denied, while Maldon didn’t approve of 728 major requests. 707 major requests for Shropshire were denied, and 660 requests in Wiltshire didn’t get the go-ahead.
Local Authority with the Most Granted & Denied Minor Requests

Anything smaller than the requirements for major developments would be classed as minor requests. So if the floor space is under 1,000sqm or the site area is less than 1 Hectares this would be a minor development. Once again, Cornwall came out on top with 85,692 minor requests granted, followed by Westminster with 77,494, Wandsworth with 38,485, Shropshire with 35,986 approved requests and Wiltshire with 35,954 requested granted.
Both Cornwall (13,530 denied) and Westminster (11,155 denied) also refused the most minor requests in the UK over the last 8 years. Barnet came in third after refusing 9820 requests followed by Croydon with 9151 denied requests and Brent with 8154 requests not granted.
Planning Applications and Covid-19
During Covid-19, there was a significant shift in planning permission applications.
Lockdown one - 23rd March 2020 - 10th May 2020 (lockdown eased)
- 120,645 total planning permission requests submitted
- 98,933 total granted requests
- 21,712 total denied requests
- 82.00% of all requests granted
Lockdown two - 31st October 2020 - 2nd December 2020
- 112,020 total planning permission requests submitted
- 91,532 total granted requests
- 20,488 total denied requests
- 81.71% of all requests granted
Lockdown three - 4th January 2021 - 8th March 2021 (Lockdown eased)
- 111,267 total planning permission requests submitted
- 90,975 total granted requests
- 20,292 total denied requests
- 81.76% of all requests granted
During Covid and the various lockdowns, it seems that planning permission request submissions drastically dropped in comparison to pre-covid. But why? Well, many planning permissions that were due to expire during a lockdown were extended thanks to construction delays that Covid caused, meaning they didn’t need to re-apply.
As we can see from the data above, more planning permission requests were submitted in the first lockdown, this is likely because, at the time, no one knew to what extent workers were going to stop. The numbers then plummeted during the second and third lockdown when it was clear that many tradespeople weren’t able to work as much.
Now things are getting back to normal, we expect there to be a boom in planning permission requests.
People also began taking home improvements into their own hands while they had no other options. DIY trends peaked on social media such as Instagram and TikTok and, according to a survey carried out by Aviva, 85% of 2,000 UK respondents engaged in home improvement projects during lockdown.
Statista also revealed that online sales of home improvements and gardening products rose with the sales of plants, seeds and bulbs increasing by 48.2%, paint sales increased by 47.1%, building material sales increased by 31.4%, and the number of tools and equipment bought rose by 14.7%.