Planning Approval Rate in South Cambridgeshire
South Cambridgeshire is somewhat more approving than the England average for planning permission: it approves 92.6% of applications and decides 91.1% of them within the statutory time limit, ranking #73 of 310 English authorities. This page sets out how hard it is to get planning permission in South Cambridgeshire, how quickly the council decides, and how it compares with its neighbours — from official government figures plus the live planning activity PlanWatch tracks across South Cambridgeshire District Council.
Source: official MHCLG planning statistics (PS2), 1 January 2025 to 31 December 2025. Based on 1,516 decisions (1,404 granted, 112 refused).
How South Cambridgeshire compares
| South Cambridgeshire | 92.6% |
| East of England average | 86.1% |
| England average | 87% |
South Cambridgeshire is 5.6 points easier than the England average.
How hard is it to get planning permission in South Cambridgeshire?
South Cambridgeshire is in the more approving third of English authorities, granting 92.6% of the applications it decides (rank 73rd of 310). That puts it somewhat more approving than the England average — 92.6% approved against an England average of 87%. Within East of England it is the 5th most approving of 45 local planning authorities, where the regional average is 86.1%. Refusals are uncommon here: 112 of its 1,516 decisions were refusals (7.4%). On the split by scale it is about as likely to approve major schemes as small ones: 95.7% of major developments approved versus 94.2% of householder and other small-scale work, from 69 major decisions.
On timing it is about average on speed, deciding 91.1% of applications within the statutory period against 90.6% nationally. Its figures rest on one of the heavier caseloads of 1,516 decisions over 1 January 2025 to 31 December 2025, where the typical English authority decides around 783. Among its East of England neighbours it sits between Stevenage (94%, more approving) and Broadland (92.6%, stricter). For context in East of England, Norwich approves the most (95.6%) and Epping Forest the least (66.1%).
Compare South Cambridgeshire with nearby councils
Approval rates for other authorities in East of England. See the full East of England league table.
Approval rate by development scale in South Cambridgeshire
Live planning activity in South Cambridgeshire District Council
From the latest planning data PlanWatch holds (to 4 September 2026). These are the records we've collected — the freshness the annual government table lacks.
What people apply for in South Cambridgeshire District Council
Where planning activity concentrates in South Cambridgeshire District Council
Recent applications in South Cambridgeshire District Council
Track live decisions near a postcode on the PlanWatch South Cambridgeshire page.
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Planning permission in South Cambridgeshire: common questions
Is it hard to get planning permission in South Cambridgeshire?
On the latest official figures South Cambridgeshire is somewhat more approving than the England average and in the more approving third of English authorities, approving 92.6% of the 1,516 applications it decided over 1 January 2025 to 31 December 2025 against 87% for England.
What percentage of planning applications does South Cambridgeshire approve or refuse?
Refusals are uncommon here: 92.6% approved and 7.4% refused — 1,404 granted and 112 refused of 1,516 decisions, with major schemes approved at 95.7% and householder and other work at 94.2%.
How quickly does South Cambridgeshire decide planning applications?
On timing South Cambridgeshire is about average on speed: 91.1% of applications were decided within the statutory period — eight weeks for most, thirteen for major schemes — against 90.6% nationally.
Is South Cambridgeshire stricter than nearby councils?
South Cambridgeshire's 92.6% approval rate makes it the 5th most approving of 45 authorities in East of England, against a 86.1% regional average. Neighbouring Stevenage approves 94% and Broadland 92.6%.
Can I use South Cambridgeshire's approval rate to predict whether my application will be approved?
No — the approval rate is a historic average across every application South Cambridgeshire decided, not a prediction for any individual application; your outcome depends on the site, the proposal, local planning policy and any objections.
Methodology & limits
Approval, refusal and in-time rates come from the government's official PS2 planning application statistics (Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government), covering 1 January 2025 to 31 December 2025. This dataset is England-only and published annually, so it lags live activity. Live figures are the applications PlanWatch has collected for South Cambridgeshire District Council and are not a complete council register. Refusal reasons and delegated-vs-committee splits are not published in this data.
This is a historic average, not a prediction. It cannot tell you whether your application will be approved — that depends on your site, proposal, local policy and any objections.
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