Decision times · South East
How long planning decisions take in South Downs National Park
54 days. Ranked 84 of 343.
In the year to September 2026, the median planning application decided by South Downs National Park took 54 days from submission to decision — 2 days inside the eight week target. That is measured across 886 decisions where the council published both dates.
How South Downs National Park compares
Year to September 2026
South Downs National Park decides faster than the country as a whole: 2 days below the national median of 56 days. Nationally 55% of applications are decided within eight weeks; here it is 59%.
The average here is 56 days, longer than the median because a handful of applications take very much longer than the rest. For planning around, 84 days is the more useful number: nine applications in ten were decided inside it.
-
Within eight weeks the statutory target 527 59%
-
Eight to thirteen weeks the major development band 303 34%
-
Over thirteen weeks commonly an agreed extension 56 6%
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 | 54 | 84 of 343 |
| June 2026 | 53 | 87 of 328 |
| March 2026 | 53 | 98 of 243 |
| December 2025 | 52 | 121 of 236 |
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.
-
Amendments 30 decided 23 days
-
Prior approval 52 decided 45 days
-
Trees 173 decided 49 days
-
Conditions 187 decided 51 days
-
Lawful development 46 decided 56 days
-
Advertising 11 decided 57 days
-
Heritage and listed buildings 50 decided 59 days
-
Householder 190 decided 61 days
-
Full applications 121 decided 63 days
What South Downs National Park decides
Year to September 2026
South Downs National Park issued 886 decisions in the year to September 2026. Of the clear-cut outcomes, 92% were approvals: 659 granted against 60 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 South Downs National Park?
The median planning application decided by South Downs National Park in the year to September 2026 took 54 days from submission to decision, 2 days inside the eight week target. That is measured across 886 decisions where the council published both a start date and a decision date. It ranks 84 of 343 UK councils on decision speed.
Does South Downs National Park meet the eight week target?
59% of the 886 decisions South Downs National Park made in the year to September 2026 came within eight weeks of the application being received, and 94% within thirteen weeks. Nine in ten were decided within 84 days. Councils can agree an extension of time with an applicant, so a decision past eight weeks is not necessarily a missed deadline.
Is South Downs National Park faster or slower than average?
South Downs National Park is faster than average: its median of 54 days is 2 days below the national median of 56 days.
What proportion of applications does South Downs National Park approve?
92% of the clear-cut outcomes South Downs National Park issued in the year to September 2026 were approvals: 659 granted against 60 refused. Split decisions, withdrawals and other outcomes are excluded from that percentage.
Cite these figures
Click the text to select the whole citation.
South Downs National Park planning decision times, year to September 2026: median 54 days from application to decision (2 days inside the eight week target), across 886 decisions with both dates published. 59% were decided within the eight week statutory target, 94% within thirteen weeks; nine in ten within 84 days. Ranked 84 of 343 UK councils on decision speed (national median 56 days). 92% of clear-cut outcomes were approvals. Source: PlanIndex, planindex.co.uk.