Decision times · Northern Ireland
How long planning decisions take in Antrim and Newtownabbey
82 days.
In the year to December 2026, the median planning application decided by Antrim and Newtownabbey took 82 days from submission to decision — 26 days beyond the eight week target. That is measured across 547 decisions where the council published both dates.
This council carries a figure but no rank
Not ranked yet: our records do not yet pass the historical coverage, monthly continuity, missing-date and refresh checks for this window. The figure above is still what the published dates say; it is left out of the league table so it cannot distort the ranking. See the methodology.
How Antrim and Newtownabbey compares
Year to December 2026
Antrim and Newtownabbey takes longer than the country as a whole: 25 days above the national median of 57 days. Nationally 49% of applications are decided within eight weeks; here it is 25%.
The average here is 106 days, longer than the median because a handful of applications take very much longer than the rest. For planning around, 199 days is the more useful number: nine applications in ten were decided inside it.
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Within eight weeks the statutory target 139 25%
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Eight to thirteen weeks the major development band 186 34%
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Over thirteen weeks commonly an agreed extension 222 41%
By type of application
Year to December 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 25 decided 43 days
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Reserved matters 26 decided 64 days
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Conditions 77 decided 69 days
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Advertising 34 decided 80 days
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Outline 27 decided 81 days
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Full applications 317 decided 85 days
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Heritage and listed buildings 10 decided 148 days
What Antrim and Newtownabbey decides
Year to December 2026
Antrim and Newtownabbey issued 547 decisions in the year to December 2026. Of the clear-cut outcomes, 94% were approvals: 503 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 December 2026 took 82 days from submission to decision, 26 days beyond the eight week target. That is measured across 547 decisions where the council published both a start date and a decision date.
Does Antrim and Newtownabbey meet the eight week target?
25% of the 547 decisions Antrim and Newtownabbey made in the year to December 2026 came within eight weeks of the application being received, and 59% within thirteen weeks. Nine in ten were decided within 199 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 82 days is 25 days above the national median of 57 days.
What proportion of applications does Antrim and Newtownabbey approve?
94% of the clear-cut outcomes Antrim and Newtownabbey issued in the year to December 2026 were approvals: 503 granted against 32 refused. Split decisions, withdrawals and other outcomes are excluded from that percentage.
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Antrim and Newtownabbey planning decision times, year to December 2026: median 82 days from application to decision (26 days beyond the eight week target), across 547 decisions with both dates published. 25% were decided within the eight week statutory target, 59% within thirteen weeks; nine in ten within 199 days. 94% of clear-cut outcomes were approvals. Source: PlanIndex, planindex.co.uk.
Or take the data itself: this council's history (CSV) or the full league table (CSV).
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<p>Data: <a href="https://planindex.co.uk/planning-decision-times/antrim-and-newtownabbey">Planning decision times, from PlanIndex</a></p>