Decision times · North West
How long planning decisions take in Trafford
57 days. Ranked 187 of 343.
In the year to September 2026, the median planning application decided by Trafford took 57 days from submission to decision — 1 day beyond the eight week target. That is measured across 583 decisions where the council published both dates.
How Trafford compares
Year to September 2026
Trafford takes longer than the country as a whole: 1 day above the national median of 56 days. Nationally 55% of applications are decided within eight weeks; here it is 49%.
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, 106 days is the more useful number: nine applications in ten were decided inside it.
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Within eight weeks the statutory target 285 49%
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Eight to thirteen weeks the major development band 211 36%
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Over thirteen weeks commonly an agreed extension 87 15%
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 | 57 | 187 of 343 |
| June 2026 | 55 | 137 of 328 |
| September 2025 | 54 | 122 of 324 |
| June 2025 | 54 | 77 of 313 |
| March 2025 | 54 | 79 of 315 |
| December 2024 | 54 | 80 of 319 |
Against the same twelve months a year earlier, when the median was 54 days, Trafford has moved down 65 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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Trees 49 decided 42 days
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Amendments 43 decided 45 days
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Prior approval 18 decided 45 days
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Conditions 93 decided 48 days
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Lawful development 46 decided 54 days
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Householder 246 decided 62 days
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Advertising 19 decided 63 days
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Full applications 51 decided 91 days
What Trafford decides
Year to September 2026
Trafford issued 583 decisions in the year to September 2026. Of the clear-cut outcomes, 85% were approvals: 399 granted against 72 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 Trafford?
The median planning application decided by Trafford in the year to September 2026 took 57 days from submission to decision, 1 day beyond the eight week target. That is measured across 583 decisions where the council published both a start date and a decision date. It ranks 187 of 343 UK councils on decision speed.
Does Trafford meet the eight week target?
49% of the 583 decisions Trafford made in the year to September 2026 came within eight weeks of the application being received, and 85% within thirteen weeks. Nine in ten were decided within 106 days. Councils can agree an extension of time with an applicant, so a decision past eight weeks is not necessarily a missed deadline.
Is Trafford faster or slower than average?
Trafford is slower than average: its median of 57 days is 1 day above the national median of 56 days.
Is Trafford getting faster or slower?
Against the same twelve month window a year earlier, when its median was 54 days, Trafford has moved down 65 places in the table. Its median has risen by 3 days.
What proportion of applications does Trafford approve?
85% of the clear-cut outcomes Trafford issued in the year to September 2026 were approvals: 399 granted against 72 refused. Split decisions, withdrawals and other outcomes are excluded from that percentage.
Cite these figures
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Trafford planning decision times, year to September 2026: median 57 days from application to decision (1 day beyond the eight week target), across 583 decisions with both dates published. 49% were decided within the eight week statutory target, 85% within thirteen weeks; nine in ten within 106 days. Ranked 187 of 343 UK councils on decision speed (national median 56 days). 85% of clear-cut outcomes were approvals. Source: PlanIndex, planindex.co.uk.