Decision times · East of England
How long planning decisions take in Hertsmere
57 days.
In the year to December 2026, the median planning application decided by Hertsmere took 57 days from submission to decision — 1 day beyond the eight week target. That is measured across 833 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 Hertsmere compares
Year to December 2026
Hertsmere sits exactly on the national median of 57 days. Nationally 49% of applications are decided within eight weeks; here it is 50%.
The average here is 85 days, longer than the median because a handful of applications take very much longer than the rest. For planning around, 150 days is the more useful number: nine applications in ten were decided inside it.
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Within eight weeks the statutory target 415 50%
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Eight to thirteen weeks the major development band 232 28%
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Over thirteen weeks commonly an agreed extension 186 22%
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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Outline 10 decided 37 days
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Prior approval 22 decided 43 days
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Trees 69 decided 44 days
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Lawful development 108 decided 55 days
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Conditions 119 decided 61 days
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Householder 257 decided 65 days
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Amendments 30 decided 69 days
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Full applications 115 decided 88 days
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Heritage and listed buildings 13 decided 90 days
What Hertsmere decides
Year to December 2026
Hertsmere issued 833 decisions in the year to December 2026. Of the clear-cut outcomes, 87% were approvals: 388 granted against 56 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 Hertsmere?
The median planning application decided by Hertsmere in the year to December 2026 took 57 days from submission to decision, 1 day beyond the eight week target. That is measured across 833 decisions where the council published both a start date and a decision date.
Does Hertsmere meet the eight week target?
50% of the 833 decisions Hertsmere made in the year to December 2026 came within eight weeks of the application being received, and 78% within thirteen weeks. Nine in ten were decided within 150 days. Councils can agree an extension of time with an applicant, so a decision past eight weeks is not necessarily a missed deadline.
Is Hertsmere faster or slower than average?
Hertsmere sits exactly on the national median of 57 days.
What proportion of applications does Hertsmere approve?
87% of the clear-cut outcomes Hertsmere issued in the year to December 2026 were approvals: 388 granted against 56 refused. Split decisions, withdrawals and other outcomes are excluded from that percentage.
Cite these figures
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Hertsmere planning decision times, year to December 2026: median 57 days from application to decision (1 day beyond the eight week target), across 833 decisions with both dates published. 50% were decided within the eight week statutory target, 78% within thirteen weeks; nine in ten within 150 days. 87% 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/hertsmere">Planning decision times, from PlanIndex</a></p>