Decision times · Northern Ireland
How long planning decisions take in Antrim and Newtownabbey
79 days. Ranked 300 of 343.
In the year to September 2026, the median planning application decided by Antrim and Newtownabbey took 79 days from submission to decision — 23 days beyond the eight week target. That is measured across 566 decisions where the council published both dates.
How Antrim and Newtownabbey compares
Year to September 2026
Antrim and Newtownabbey takes longer than the country as a whole: 23 days above the national median of 56 days. Nationally 55% of applications are decided within eight weeks; here it is 27%.
The average here is 95 days, longer than the median because a handful of applications take very much longer than the rest. For planning around, 172 days is the more useful number: nine applications in ten were decided inside it.
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Within eight weeks the statutory target 152 27%
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Eight to thirteen weeks the major development band 205 36%
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Over thirteen weeks commonly an agreed extension 209 37%
The last few years
Each row is a full twelve months of decisions, ending in the quarter shown
Rolling twelve month windows overlap by nine months, so this reads as a trend rather than as four separate quarters. Only windows our records reach far enough back to measure in full are listed.
| Twelve months to | Median days | UK rank |
|---|---|---|
| September 2026 | 79 | 300 of 343 |
| June 2026 | 78 | 298 of 328 |
| March 2026 | 78 | 222 of 243 |
| December 2025 | 70 | 210 of 236 |
| September 2025 | 98 | 309 of 324 |
| June 2025 | 101 | 300 of 313 |
| March 2025 | 100 | 303 of 315 |
| December 2024 | 100 | 309 of 319 |
Against the same twelve months a year earlier, when the median was 98 days, Antrim and Newtownabbey has moved up 9 places in the table.
By type of application
Year to September 2026 · types with at least ten decisions
The headline median mixes every kind of application together. A householder extension and an outline application for a housing site are not the same job, and the difference between them is usually larger than the difference between two councils.
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Amendments 26 decided 62 days
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Reserved matters 26 decided 64 days
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Conditions 92 decided 65 days
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Full applications 318 decided 81 days
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Outline 34 decided 85 days
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Advertising 26 decided 93 days
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Heritage and listed buildings 12 decided 123 days
What Antrim and Newtownabbey decides
Year to September 2026
Antrim and Newtownabbey issued 566 decisions in the year to September 2026. Of the clear-cut outcomes, 93% were approvals: 417 granted against 32 refused. Split decisions, withdrawals and other outcomes sit outside that percentage rather than being counted as either.
Speed and approval rate are separate things. A council that refuses quickly is not doing the same job as one that negotiates an approval slowly, and neither figure alone says which served the applicant better.
Common questions
How long does a planning decision take in Antrim and Newtownabbey?
The median planning application decided by Antrim and Newtownabbey in the year to September 2026 took 79 days from submission to decision, 23 days beyond the eight week target. That is measured across 566 decisions where the council published both a start date and a decision date. It ranks 300 of 343 UK councils on decision speed.
Does Antrim and Newtownabbey meet the eight week target?
27% of the 566 decisions Antrim and Newtownabbey made in the year to September 2026 came within eight weeks of the application being received, and 63% within thirteen weeks. Nine in ten were decided within 172 days. Councils can agree an extension of time with an applicant, so a decision past eight weeks is not necessarily a missed deadline.
Is Antrim and Newtownabbey faster or slower than average?
Antrim and Newtownabbey is slower than average: its median of 79 days is 23 days above the national median of 56 days.
Is Antrim and Newtownabbey getting faster or slower?
Against the same twelve month window a year earlier, when its median was 98 days, Antrim and Newtownabbey has moved up 9 places in the table. Its median has fallen by 19 days.
What proportion of applications does Antrim and Newtownabbey approve?
93% of the clear-cut outcomes Antrim and Newtownabbey issued in the year to September 2026 were approvals: 417 granted against 32 refused. Split decisions, withdrawals and other outcomes are excluded from that percentage.
Cite these figures
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Antrim and Newtownabbey planning decision times, year to September 2026: median 79 days from application to decision (23 days beyond the eight week target), across 566 decisions with both dates published. 27% were decided within the eight week statutory target, 63% within thirteen weeks; nine in ten within 172 days. Ranked 300 of 343 UK councils on decision speed (national median 56 days). 93% of clear-cut outcomes were approvals. Source: PlanIndex, planindex.co.uk.