Decision times · East Midlands
How long planning decisions take in North Kesteven
50 days. Ranked 38 of 343.
In the year to September 2026, the median planning application decided by North Kesteven took 50 days from submission to decision — 6 days inside the eight week target. That is measured across 484 decisions where the council published both dates.
How North Kesteven compares
Year to September 2026
North Kesteven decides faster than the country as a whole: 6 days below the national median of 56 days. Nationally 55% of applications are decided within eight weeks; here it is 58%.
The average here is 65 days, longer than the median because a handful of applications take very much longer than the rest. For planning around, 134 days is the more useful number: nine applications in ten were decided inside it.
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Within eight weeks the statutory target 283 58%
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Eight to thirteen weeks the major development band 120 25%
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Over thirteen weeks commonly an agreed extension 81 17%
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 | 50 | 38 of 343 |
| June 2026 | 50 | 58 of 328 |
| March 2026 | 42 | 25 of 243 |
| December 2025 | 41 | 36 of 236 |
| September 2025 | 49 | 76 of 324 |
| June 2025 | 55 | 96 of 313 |
| March 2025 | 55 | 98 of 315 |
| December 2024 | 55 | 96 of 319 |
Against the same twelve months a year earlier, when the median was 49 days, North Kesteven has moved up 38 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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Prior approval 62 decided 25 days
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Trees 128 decided 39 days
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Conditions 61 decided 51 days
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Householder 100 decided 60 days
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Outline 10 decided 62 days
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Heritage and listed buildings 25 decided 66 days
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Amendments 14 decided 70 days
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Full applications 61 decided 114 days
What North Kesteven decides
Year to September 2026
North Kesteven issued 484 decisions in the year to September 2026. Of the clear-cut outcomes, 98% were approvals: 387 granted against 6 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 North Kesteven?
The median planning application decided by North Kesteven in the year to September 2026 took 50 days from submission to decision, 6 days inside the eight week target. That is measured across 484 decisions where the council published both a start date and a decision date. It ranks 38 of 343 UK councils on decision speed.
Does North Kesteven meet the eight week target?
58% of the 484 decisions North Kesteven made in the year to September 2026 came within eight weeks of the application being received, and 83% within thirteen weeks. Nine in ten were decided within 134 days. Councils can agree an extension of time with an applicant, so a decision past eight weeks is not necessarily a missed deadline.
Is North Kesteven faster or slower than average?
North Kesteven is faster than average: its median of 50 days is 6 days below the national median of 56 days.
Is North Kesteven getting faster or slower?
Against the same twelve month window a year earlier, when its median was 49 days, North Kesteven has moved up 38 places in the table. Its median has risen by 1 day.
What proportion of applications does North Kesteven approve?
98% of the clear-cut outcomes North Kesteven issued in the year to September 2026 were approvals: 387 granted against 6 refused. Split decisions, withdrawals and other outcomes are excluded from that percentage.
Cite these figures
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North Kesteven planning decision times, year to September 2026: median 50 days from application to decision (6 days inside the eight week target), across 484 decisions with both dates published. 58% were decided within the eight week statutory target, 83% within thirteen weeks; nine in ten within 134 days. Ranked 38 of 343 UK councils on decision speed (national median 56 days). 98% of clear-cut outcomes were approvals. Source: PlanIndex, planindex.co.uk.