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East of England

Watford planning statistics

Householder applications decided in the year to June 2026, compared with the rest of England.

Within 8 weeks, no extension

79.6%

42nd of 297

16.9 points faster than England

Granted

79.9%

283rd of 297

10.6 points lower than England

Extension of time

16.1%

39th of 297

16.2 points lower than England

Decisions (12 months)

304

Watford decided 304 householder applications in the year to June 2026, granting 79.9%.

79.6% were decided within 8 weeks with no extension, against 62.7% across England (42nd of 297 for speed).

A further 16.1% were decided under an extension of time agreed with the applicant.

That is up from 76.4% a year earlier.

Of 19 householder appeals decided in the same period, 47.4% were allowed.

How quickly decisions are made

Watford against England, share of householder decisions each quarter

  • Within 8 weeks, no extension
  • Extension of time
  • England, within 8 weeks
Source: MHCLG PS2, OGL v3. Chart: buildwiz.uk
Show data
QuarterWithin 8 weeks, no extensionExtension of timeEngland, within 8 weeks
2008 Q195.3%0.0%89.5%
2008 Q297.3%0.0%89.4%
2008 Q395.5%0.0%89.7%
2008 Q494.0%0.0%90.3%
2009 Q197.3%0.0%90.3%
2009 Q294.7%0.0%91.7%
2009 Q3100.0%0.0%91.4%
2009 Q498.5%0.0%91.0%
2010 Q1100.0%0.0%88.8%
2010 Q295.8%0.0%89.8%
2010 Q395.9%0.0%88.4%
2010 Q497.7%0.0%87.7%
2011 Q1100.0%0.0%86.4%
2011 Q2100.0%0.0%85.9%
2011 Q3100.0%0.0%84.9%
2011 Q498.5%0.0%84.9%
2012 Q198.2%0.0%83.7%
2012 Q2100.0%0.0%84.2%
2012 Q397.9%0.0%82.9%
2012 Q498.5%0.0%85.2%
2013 Q1100.0%0.0%85.7%
2013 Q2100.0%0.0%86.3%
2013 Q3100.0%0.0%85.3%
2013 Q4100.0%0.0%86.3%
2014 Q1100.0%0.0%85.4%
2014 Q2100.0%0.0%84.9%
2014 Q3100.0%0.0%82.5%
2014 Q4100.0%0.0%82.1%
2015 Q1100.0%0.0%80.4%
2015 Q292.7%4.9%80.6%
2015 Q397.4%2.6%79.2%
2015 Q487.4%11.7%80.0%
2016 Q192.6%7.4%78.3%
2016 Q287.2%11.1%79.8%
2016 Q387.6%11.5%77.7%
2016 Q483.8%10.5%78.0%
2017 Q170.1%23.4%77.3%
2017 Q278.2%20.0%78.5%
2017 Q386.6%12.6%76.1%
2017 Q489.9%7.1%77.1%
2018 Q181.4%9.3%73.7%
2018 Q282.9%10.6%74.0%
2018 Q389.2%6.3%72.7%
2018 Q494.7%3.0%72.7%
2019 Q192.0%6.0%69.9%
2019 Q285.0%13.0%72.1%
2019 Q384.8%7.1%69.6%
2019 Q491.5%8.5%71.5%
2020 Q185.1%13.9%68.4%
2020 Q293.0%7.0%63.9%
2020 Q382.7%13.6%63.8%
2020 Q490.7%8.5%65.3%
2021 Q194.8%5.2%59.4%
2021 Q294.0%6.0%58.4%
2021 Q381.4%16.7%53.1%
2021 Q487.4%10.1%53.0%
2022 Q187.1%8.6%51.6%
2022 Q290.6%6.3%56.0%
2022 Q389.8%7.6%53.3%
2022 Q492.7%7.3%54.1%
2023 Q193.0%7.0%53.5%
2023 Q291.4%7.5%58.5%
2023 Q392.6%4.2%59.0%
2023 Q495.1%3.7%59.8%
2024 Q191.8%7.1%58.8%
2024 Q286.4%4.5%64.4%
2024 Q379.0%8.6%64.2%
2024 Q475.7%9.5%65.6%
2025 Q167.9%13.6%62.1%
2025 Q282.1%9.5%65.0%
2025 Q380.5%11.7%62.5%
2025 Q472.3%25.3%64.7%
2026 Q183.3%16.7%60.6%
2026 Q283.3%9.7%62.7%

Share of applications granted

Watford against England

  • Watford
  • England
Source: MHCLG PS2, OGL v3. Chart: buildwiz.uk
Show data
QuarterWatfordEngland
2008 Q174.4%85.1%
2008 Q280.5%86.1%
2008 Q378.6%86.3%
2008 Q491.6%85.3%
2009 Q184.9%85.9%
2009 Q286.0%86.8%
2009 Q3100.0%87.4%
2009 Q480.9%86.9%
2010 Q182.5%87.0%
2010 Q284.2%88.0%
2010 Q387.6%87.7%
2010 Q484.9%87.5%
2011 Q179.1%87.9%
2011 Q283.0%88.5%
2011 Q383.5%88.3%
2011 Q480.6%88.3%
2012 Q175.4%88.2%
2012 Q293.2%89.2%
2012 Q386.2%89.0%
2012 Q477.3%88.9%
2013 Q185.7%89.8%
2013 Q285.7%90.6%
2013 Q380.0%90.3%
2013 Q480.9%89.6%
2014 Q180.0%89.8%
2014 Q283.0%90.5%
2014 Q381.5%90.0%
2014 Q486.7%89.2%
2015 Q180.0%89.3%
2015 Q276.4%90.2%
2015 Q387.0%90.0%
2015 Q476.7%89.2%
2016 Q173.1%90.0%
2016 Q270.9%90.3%
2016 Q374.3%90.2%
2016 Q485.7%89.7%
2017 Q185.0%89.9%
2017 Q271.8%90.5%
2017 Q377.2%90.0%
2017 Q478.8%90.1%
2018 Q167.8%90.5%
2018 Q283.7%91.0%
2018 Q372.1%91.2%
2018 Q472.0%90.5%
2019 Q175.0%90.3%
2019 Q273.0%91.0%
2019 Q374.1%90.6%
2019 Q457.5%89.8%
2020 Q175.2%89.9%
2020 Q269.8%90.2%
2020 Q379.1%90.6%
2020 Q471.2%90.3%
2021 Q161.5%90.9%
2021 Q270.7%91.2%
2021 Q371.8%91.0%
2021 Q463.9%90.1%
2022 Q185.3%90.0%
2022 Q277.3%90.4%
2022 Q376.3%89.8%
2022 Q484.4%89.4%
2023 Q182.0%89.3%
2023 Q281.7%89.2%
2023 Q375.8%88.6%
2023 Q481.7%88.2%
2024 Q183.5%88.2%
2024 Q278.4%89.1%
2024 Q376.5%89.4%
2024 Q485.1%88.6%
2025 Q179.0%89.3%
2025 Q283.2%90.4%
2025 Q377.9%90.1%
2025 Q485.5%90.1%
2026 Q176.4%90.6%
2026 Q279.2%91.0%

How long decisions took

Householder decisions over the last 12 months

  • Within 8 weeks79.6%
  • 8 to 13 weeks3.9%
  • 13 to 26 weeks0.3%
  • Over 26 weeks0.0%
  • Extension of time agreed16.1%
Source: MHCLG PS2, OGL v3. Chart: buildwiz.uk
Show data
Time takenDecisions
Within 8 weeks242
8 to 13 weeks12
13 to 26 weeks1
Over 26 weeks0
Extension of time agreed49

Appeals

Decided
19
Allowed
47.4%
Median wait
10 weeks

Householder appeals to the Planning Inspectorate decided in the same 12 months. England: 34.4% allowed.

Local constraints

  • Watford has published 10 conservation areas.
  • Watford has not published Article 4 data to the national planning data platform.

Both can remove permitted development rights. Not every council has published its data yet, so check with the council before relying on permitted development.

Next steps for your extension

Compare every council · How we calculate these figures

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