Online application numbers in England and Wales

Welcome to June’s issue of the Planning Portal Market Insight Report, where we report on the latest figures for applications submitted online via the Planning Portal.

There was a total of 53,746 applications submitted through the Planning Portal in June 2023. This is 2% higher than the number of total applications that were submitted in June 2022. Even though a small percentage, this is the first time this year that applications have been higher than the corresponding month last year. For the year to the end of June, applications have been 5.5% lower than in 2022 for the same period.

The regional view

We saw that all regions received more applications when compared to June last year, other than the North West which saw a decline of 1%. The biggest increase was seen in Wales, which was up by 7% when compared to last year. We also saw a large increase in the North East, which was up by 5% when compared to 2022.

The map depicted below shows the percentage change in applications per region in June 2023 compared with June 2022.

Applications by type?

The table below shows how applications by type have risen or fallen, compared with June last year.

Most application types were lower in volume this month when compared to June 2022. The biggest decrease was at the smaller end of the development spectrum. Of the main application types, only two saw an increase. Full Applications were up by 9% and Works to Protected Trees was also above last June’s numbers by 25%.

Householder and Associated Applications

There were 15,133 Householder applications submitted in June 2023, compared with 16,932 in June last year. This means that Householder and Associated Consents were down 11% this month when compared to the same month last year.?

Figures for other home improvement project applications include 4,035 Lawful Development Certificates, which is a decline of 1% when compared with last year’s figure of 3,986, as well as 1,202 Larger Home Prior Approval applications, compared to 1,477 in June last year. A drop of 19%.

Full Planning applications?

There were 10,865 Full Planning applications submitted during June, which is up 9% when compared to last year’s figures of 9,996 in June 2022. Other than a tiny percentage increase in January, this is the first time since August 2021 that Full Planning applications have been higher than the corresponding month in the preceding year.

This June we also saw a total of 411 Outline applications, which is a reduction of 11% when compared to 461 applications in the same month last year.

Prior Approval: Development by Telecoms Operators

In June we processed a total of 296 of this specific application type, which is a 16% decrease compared to 351 applications in June 2022. This is because this kind of application is typically project-based rather than seasonal, as previously reported.

Planning fees processed for online applications?

In June, we processed a total of ￡22,269,730 in planning fees on behalf of local authorities. This figure is 9% lower than last June, despite application numbers being up by 2%. This is due to a lower average fee value.

The Planning Portal has access to online application data exclusively available at the point of submission to Local Planning Authorities. The insights this data provides allows you to gain an early insight of what’s being applied for throughout England and Wales. If you would like to access this data on a more granular level, please email: [email protected]

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