Decision times · East of England
How long planning decisions take in King’s Lynn and West Norfolk
56 days. Ranked 159 of 343.
In the year to September 2026, the median planning application decided by King’s Lynn and West Norfolk took 56 days from submission to decision — exactly the eight week target. That is measured across 491 decisions where the council published both dates.
How King’s Lynn and West Norfolk compares
Year to September 2026
King’s Lynn and West Norfolk sits exactly on the national median of 56 days. Nationally 55% of applications are decided within eight weeks; here it is 51%.
The average here is 70 days, longer than the median because a handful of applications take very much longer than the rest. For planning around, 112 days is the more useful number: nine applications in ten were decided inside it.
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Within eight weeks the statutory target 251 51%
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Eight to thirteen weeks the major development band 160 33%
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Over thirteen weeks commonly an agreed extension 80 16%
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 | 56 | 159 of 343 |
| June 2026 | 56 | 179 of 328 |
| September 2025 | 52 | 97 of 324 |
| June 2025 | 53 | 58 of 313 |
| March 2025 | 53 | 61 of 315 |
| December 2024 | 53 | 62 of 319 |
Against the same twelve months a year earlier, when the median was 52 days, King’s Lynn and West Norfolk has moved down 62 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 10 decided 27 days
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Conditions 77 decided 36 days
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Trees 68 decided 51 days
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Outline 28 decided 56 days
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Heritage and listed buildings 29 decided 57 days
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Lawful development 18 decided 57 days
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Full applications 230 decided 62 days
What King’s Lynn and West Norfolk decides
Year to September 2026
King’s Lynn and West Norfolk issued 491 decisions in the year to September 2026. Of the clear-cut outcomes, 86% were approvals: 299 granted against 47 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 King’s Lynn and West Norfolk?
The median planning application decided by King’s Lynn and West Norfolk in the year to September 2026 took 56 days from submission to decision, exactly the eight week target. That is measured across 491 decisions where the council published both a start date and a decision date. It ranks 159 of 343 UK councils on decision speed.
Does King’s Lynn and West Norfolk meet the eight week target?
51% of the 491 decisions King’s Lynn and West Norfolk made in the year to September 2026 came within eight weeks of the application being received, and 84% within thirteen weeks. Nine in ten were decided within 112 days. Councils can agree an extension of time with an applicant, so a decision past eight weeks is not necessarily a missed deadline.
Is King’s Lynn and West Norfolk faster or slower than average?
King’s Lynn and West Norfolk sits exactly on the national median of 56 days.
Is King’s Lynn and West Norfolk getting faster or slower?
Against the same twelve month window a year earlier, when its median was 52 days, King’s Lynn and West Norfolk has moved down 62 places in the table. Its median has risen by 4 days.
What proportion of applications does King’s Lynn and West Norfolk approve?
86% of the clear-cut outcomes King’s Lynn and West Norfolk issued in the year to September 2026 were approvals: 299 granted against 47 refused. Split decisions, withdrawals and other outcomes are excluded from that percentage.
Cite these figures
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King’s Lynn and West Norfolk planning decision times, year to September 2026: median 56 days from application to decision (exactly the eight week target), across 491 decisions with both dates published. 51% were decided within the eight week statutory target, 84% within thirteen weeks; nine in ten within 112 days. Ranked 159 of 343 UK councils on decision speed (national median 56 days). 86% of clear-cut outcomes were approvals. Source: PlanIndex, planindex.co.uk.