Decision times · East of England
How long planning decisions take in Bedford
53 days.
In the year to December 2026, the median planning application decided by Bedford took 53 days from submission to decision — 3 days inside the eight week target. That is measured across 736 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 Bedford compares
Year to December 2026
Bedford decides faster than the country as a whole: 4 days below the national median of 57 days. Nationally 49% of applications are decided within eight weeks; here it is 59%.
The average here is 68 days, longer than the median because a handful of applications take very much longer than the rest. For planning around, 119 days is the more useful number: nine applications in ten were decided inside it.
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Within eight weeks the statutory target 435 59%
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Eight to thirteen weeks the major development band 174 24%
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Over thirteen weeks commonly an agreed extension 127 17%
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 47 decided 29 days
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Trees 112 decided 37 days
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Conditions 200 decided 48 days
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Lawful development 50 decided 50 days
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Full applications 173 decided 63 days
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Heritage and listed buildings 19 decided 73 days
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Advertising 11 decided 74 days
What Bedford decides
Year to December 2026
Bedford issued 736 decisions in the year to December 2026. Of the clear-cut outcomes, 77% were approvals: 167 granted against 49 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 Bedford?
The median planning application decided by Bedford in the year to December 2026 took 53 days from submission to decision, 3 days inside the eight week target. That is measured across 736 decisions where the council published both a start date and a decision date.
Does Bedford meet the eight week target?
59% of the 736 decisions Bedford made in the year to December 2026 came within eight weeks of the application being received, and 83% within thirteen weeks. Nine in ten were decided within 119 days. Councils can agree an extension of time with an applicant, so a decision past eight weeks is not necessarily a missed deadline.
Is Bedford faster or slower than average?
Bedford is faster than average: its median of 53 days is 4 days below the national median of 57 days.
What proportion of applications does Bedford approve?
77% of the clear-cut outcomes Bedford issued in the year to December 2026 were approvals: 167 granted against 49 refused. Split decisions, withdrawals and other outcomes are excluded from that percentage.
Cite these figures
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Bedford planning decision times, year to December 2026: median 53 days from application to decision (3 days inside the eight week target), across 736 decisions with both dates published. 59% were decided within the eight week statutory target, 83% within thirteen weeks; nine in ten within 119 days. 77% 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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