Decision times · London
How long planning decisions take in Kensington and Chelsea
118 days.
In the year to December 2026, the median planning application decided by Kensington and Chelsea took 118 days from submission to decision — 62 days beyond the eight week target. That is measured across 2,649 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 Kensington and Chelsea compares
Year to December 2026
Kensington and Chelsea takes longer than the country as a whole: 61 days above the national median of 57 days. Nationally 49% of applications are decided within eight weeks; here it is 22%.
The average here is 117 days. For planning around, 191 days is the more useful number: nine applications in ten were decided inside it.
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Within eight weeks the statutory target 589 22%
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Eight to thirteen weeks the major development band 466 18%
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Over thirteen weeks commonly an agreed extension 1,594 60%
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 71 decided 51 days
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Advertising 133 decided 104 days
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Lawful development 69 decided 118 days
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Conditions 428 decided 119 days
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Prior approval 11 decided 132 days
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Full applications 1,003 decided 133 days
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Heritage and listed buildings 363 decided 138 days
What Kensington and Chelsea decides
Year to December 2026
Kensington and Chelsea issued 2,649 decisions in the year to December 2026. Of the clear-cut outcomes, 95% were approvals: 2,238 granted against 106 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 Kensington and Chelsea?
The median planning application decided by Kensington and Chelsea in the year to December 2026 took 118 days from submission to decision, 62 days beyond the eight week target. That is measured across 2,649 decisions where the council published both a start date and a decision date.
Does Kensington and Chelsea meet the eight week target?
22% of the 2,649 decisions Kensington and Chelsea made in the year to December 2026 came within eight weeks of the application being received, and 40% within thirteen weeks. Nine in ten were decided within 191 days. Councils can agree an extension of time with an applicant, so a decision past eight weeks is not necessarily a missed deadline.
Is Kensington and Chelsea faster or slower than average?
Kensington and Chelsea is slower than average: its median of 118 days is 61 days above the national median of 57 days.
What proportion of applications does Kensington and Chelsea approve?
95% of the clear-cut outcomes Kensington and Chelsea issued in the year to December 2026 were approvals: 2,238 granted against 106 refused. Split decisions, withdrawals and other outcomes are excluded from that percentage.
Cite these figures
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Kensington and Chelsea planning decision times, year to December 2026: median 118 days from application to decision (62 days beyond the eight week target), across 2,649 decisions with both dates published. 22% were decided within the eight week statutory target, 40% within thirteen weeks; nine in ten within 191 days. 95% 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/kensington-and-chelsea">Planning decision times, from PlanIndex</a></p>