Planning decisions in Northumberland County
How long Northumberland County takes to decide a planning application and how many it approves, from the 3,474 decisions it made in the twelve months to September 2026. Days run from validation to decision, the clock the council reports against; the wait from receipt is shown beside it. How the figures are made.
50 daysmedian from validation to decision (UK 54); 51 from receipt
76%decided within eight weeks (UK 66%), 90% within thirteen
91%approved (UK 90%): 2,805 approved, 287 refused, 185 withdrawn
102 of 388UK rank for speed, up 97 places on last year; 209 of 388 for approvals
By kind of application
| Kind | Median days | Within 8 weeks | Approved | Decisions | UK rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full applications | 56 | 57% | 89% | 1,122 | 129 of 359 |
| Discharge of conditions | 38 | 91% | 87% | 678 | 32 of 310 |
| Tree works | 37 | 96% | 98% | 334 | 134 of 324 |
| Amendments | 52 | 71% | 92% | 309 | 236 of 356 |
| Listed building consent | 56 | 62% | 92% | 221 | 86 of 307 |
| Prior approvals | 30 | 88% | 90% | 219 | 114 of 340 |
| Lawful development certificates | 51 | 86% | 83% | 120 | 152 of 348 |
| Advertisement consent | 56 | 71% | 84% | 53 | 202 of 320 |
| Other * | 34 | 80% | 100% | 25 | 13 of 35 |
| Reserved matters * | 91 | 30% | 100% | 10 | 25 of 44 |
Delegated or committee
| Route | Share | Median days | Approved | Decisions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Delegated to officers | over 99% | 50 | 91% | 3,344 |
| Planning committee | under 1% | 151 | 67% | 12 |
Where the register states how the decision was made. 118 decisions did not say.
Appeals
79 appeals against Northumberland County decisions were decided by the Planning Inspectorate in the window, 28 for every 100 refusals; 22% were allowed. Every appeal in Northumberland County.
By year
| Year decided | Median days | Within 8 weeks | Approved | Decisions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 * | 56 | 62% | 97% | 98 |
| 2017 * | 56 | 51% | 94% | 135 |
| 2018 * | 66 | 27% | 82% | 79 |
| 2019 * | 37 | 69% | 96% | 212 |
| 2020 * | 34 | 83% | 93% | 122 |
| 2021 * | 68 | 41% | 88% | 254 |
| 2022 * | 74 | 11% | 92% | 75 |
| 2023 * | 92 | 10% | 90% | 174 |
| 2024 * | 59 | 50% | 93% | 31 |
| 2025 | 52 | 64% | 90% | 1,115 |
| 2026 so far | 52 | 67% | 90% | 2,949 |
* Years from our archive, which carries no validation date: timed from receipt, so a few days longer than the live years above them.
Past their target date now
- Land East Of Burnt House Netherton Road Bedlington NorthumberlandInstallation of a Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) and associated infrastructure at Burnt House Solar Farm (amended proposal)due 1 Jul 2025
- 174 Main Street North Sunderland Seahouses Northumberland NE68 7UASubdivision of existing dwelling into two dwellings, with associated internal only worksdue 26 Sept 2025
- Land South Of Carr Hill Plantation Fourstones NorthumberlandDevelopment of a ground mounted solar park, battery energy storage system (BESS), associated infrastructure, access, landscaping and biodivedue 21 Nov 2025
- Applesteads Bowsden Berwick-Upon-Tweed Northumberland TD15 2TWCertificate of Proposed Lawful Development - Removal and replacement of utility extension, internal repairs to include rewiring, new plumbindue 5 Jan 2026
- Middleton Hall Middleton Belford Northumberland NE70 7LFErection of 5no. holiday lodges (as amended)due 30 Jan 2026
- Longhoughton Quarry Longhoughton Northumberland NE66 3AENorth-eastern extension to Longhoughton Quarry to provide an additional 510,000 tonnes of whinstone and limestone.due 31 Jan 2026
- Land North West Of Ivy Cottage Whittonstall NorthumberlandProposed construction of self-build dwelling with associated access, parking and landscapingdue 17 Mar 2026
- Mill Race South East Farm Rennington Alnwick Northumberland NE66 3SLCertificate of Lawful Development for existing works to site access, garage, roof lights, 2nd floor and additional land (amended 11.03.26)due 31 Mar 2026
Decided in the last three weeks
- Land West Of Moorlaws Farm Cottage Alnwick NorthumberlandNotification of Prior Approval for access road to maintain and harvest the woodlandApproved26 Oct 2026
- Hartford Hall Estate Bedlington NE22 6HDTree Preservation Order Application: T2, T3, T4, T5 x4 Cherrys- Crown lift to 2.5m and formative prune by no more than 0.5m. T6, T7, T8 x3 lApproved26 Oct 2026
- Low Warden Farm House Low Warden Hexham Northumberland NE46 4SNListed Building Consent - Provision of EV point to house wall, removal of two firewood stores, provision of garden shed and slight relocatioApproved26 Oct 2026
- 6 Briery Hill Lane Stannington Northumberland NE61 6PPTree Preservation Order Application to T1-T16 Lawson Cypress / Golden Leylandii Fell, replace with Laurel, mixed hedging and 4no native treeApproved26 Oct 2026
- 12 Market Place Bedlington Northumberland NE22 5TNAdvertisement consent for the erection of Halo lit, illuminated facia lettersRefused26 Oct 2026
- Milburn Court Ashington Northumberland NE63 0PPTree Preservation Order Application to T1 - T2 Sorbus crown reduce by 1m (northern tree) and 1.5m (southern tree)Approved26 Oct 2026
- Land West Of Lancaster Park Pinewood Drive Lancaster Park Morpeth Northumberland NE61 3SXTree Preservation Order Application : T1, T3, T4 and T5 - No works to Trees, directional drill beneath root ballApproved26 Oct 2026
- Land East Of Southgate Mews Southgate Mews Morpeth Northumberland NE61 2BWTree Preservation Order Application to T1-T2 Western Hemlock reduce over hanging branches back to boundary line, T3-T4 Maple reduce back toApproved26 Oct 2026
Built nightly from Northumberland County's planning register. Ranks are among the 388 published councils. See planning applications in Northumberland County, appeals, or get alerts for Northumberland County.
About these figures
How are decision times measured?
Days from the date the council validated the application to the date it decided it, for applications approved or refused in the window. That is the clock councils report against and the official statistics use. Each council’s page also shows the count from receipt, which is what the applicant actually waited. Withdrawn and undecided applications are not timed.
Why do these figures differ from the council’s own?
Councils count an agreed extension of time as decided on time; we treat the calendar as the calendar. Our figures are also live and rolling, where official statistics are quarterly and annual. So a council’s own within-eight-weeks figure will usually sit a little above ours.
What counts as approved?
Approval rate is approvals divided by approvals plus refusals. Withdrawals, and decisions whose outcome the register does not state, are counted in the totals but not in the rate.
Why is a council missing?
A council is published when it has at least 25 timed decisions in the window and its register’s decision data passes our consistency checks. Councils that fail are listed with the reason rather than shown with a number that would mislead.
How often is this updated?
Nightly, from the decisions we collect from every council register we monitor. The window is the twelve months to the last complete month.