Project updates, practice news, and the occasional hot take. You might just find the spark you’re looking for.
Planning has official timescales. Real projects tend to treat them as a polite suggestion rather than a fixed promise.
What are the official planning timescales?
Eight weeks. Thirteen weeks. Occasionally someone asks whether it can be quicker than that, usually with a hopeful tone.
In England, the official determination periods are quite clear on paper:
Householder applications: 8 weeks
These cover works to a single dwelling, such as extensions, alterations, dormers or outbuildings.
Minor planning applications: 8 weeks
Typically small-scale developments beyond a single home, such as a small number of new dwellings or modest commercial schemes.
Major planning applications: 13 weeks
Larger or more complex developments, usually involving multiple homes, significant commercial floorspace, or sites with wider impacts.
Those clocks start ticking once an application is validated, not when it’s first submitted, which is an important distinction and one that often catches people out.
Every now and then, decisions do land neatly within those target windows. When they do, it’s usually seen as a small victory rather than the norm.
Why does planning permission often take longer than expected?
Delays can come from a few different directions, and it’s rarely just one thing.
Capacity is a big part of it. Planning departments are busy, and that isn’t changing any time soon. Officers are balancing live applications alongside enforcement work, appeals, committee reports and internal consultations, often with limited resources. Even well-prepared submissions can move slowly in that environment.
That said, the quality of the proposal does matter.
Unclear, poorly coordinated or weakly justified applications are far more likely to stall. Missing information, inconsistent drawings, vague design reasoning or underdeveloped planning arguments often trigger requests for clarification or amendments, which can quickly add weeks or months to the process.
Other common contributors include internal consultations with highways or conservation officers, public objections that need to be addressed, referral to planning committee, or extensions of time agreed to avoid a rushed refusal.
None of this automatically means a scheme is failing. But the clearer and more robust an application is from the outset, the less opportunity there is for delay to creep in.
When does the planning clock actually start?
This is where time is most easily lost without anyone really noticing.
The planning clock doesn’t begin when an application is submitted. It starts when the council validates it, confirming that all drawings, reports and forms are present, accurate and consistent. If something is missing, mislabelled or contradictory, the application simply waits until it’s resolved.
This is one of the most common — and most avoidable — causes of early delay.
Once validated, the application moves through consultation, internal review and officer assessment before either being determined under delegated powers or referred to committee.
Does going to committee delay a decision?
In most cases, yes — but usually by weeks rather than months.
Committees meet on fixed cycles, often monthly, so an application that narrowly misses one agenda may need to wait for the next. That extra time doesn’t mean the scheme is failing or heading for refusal; it just means the decision needs to be taken in public.
Many committee applications are approved. They simply require elected members to make the final call rather than officers alone.
If you want a deeper explanation of how that works, read our article here:- What does a planning committee actually do?
Can pre-application advice speed things up later?
Pre-application advice adds time at the front end, which can feel frustrating when you’re keen to get moving. In practice, it often saves time overall.
Pre-app discussions allow officers to flag concerns early, identify policy issues and confirm what supporting information they’ll expect with a full submission. For larger, sensitive or commercial projects, this early engagement is often where the most useful progress happens.
It doesn’t guarantee approval — nothing does — but it does tend to reduce surprises later on.
So… how long does planning permission usually take?
If everything lines up, a straightforward householder application might be decided in around 8–10 weeks from validation.
More complex schemes often take several months, particularly if amendments, committee referral or extended consultation are involved. Larger commercial or sensitive sites can take longer still, sometimes deliberately, because rushed decisions have a habit of resurfacing later in less helpful ways.
Planning isn’t slow because planners enjoy delay. It’s slow because it’s balancing policy, public interest, technical input and legal process, often with fewer resources than anyone would like.
We see the same patterns repeatedly on projects across Lichfield, Derby, Nottingham, Solihull and the wider Midlands. The postcode changes, but the mechanics rarely do.
Knowing that upfront won’t make the process faster, but it does make it a lot less frustrating.
Planning Permission FAQ's
How long does planning permission take?
Most straightforward applications are decided within 8–13 weeks from validation, but many take longer in practice.
Why does planning permission take so long?
Staffing pressures, consultations, amendments and committee referral are the most common reasons, but bad drawings also don't help.
Can planning permission be fast-tracked?
There’s no formal fast-track, but good preparation and early engagement help more than chasing deadlines.
Does planning committee usually mean refusal?
There’s no formal fast-track, but good preparation and early engagement help more than chasing deadlines.
What happens if a council misses a deadline?
Not much. There may be an option to appeal for non-determination, though that isn’t always the best route. Each case needs its own strategy.
