Planning decisions in South Oxfordshire
How long South Oxfordshire takes to decide a planning application and how many it approves, from the 3,044 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.
48 daysmedian from validation to decision (UK 54); 53 from receipt
72%decided within eight weeks (UK 66%), 90% within thirteen
94%approved (UK 90%): 2,622 approved, 154 refused, 80 withdrawn
64 of 388UK rank for speed, down 59 places on last year; 102 of 388 for approvals
By kind of application
| Kind | Median days | Within 8 weeks | Approved | Decisions | UK rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tree works | 17 | 99% | 99% | 681 | 18 of 324 |
| Householder applications | 55 | 67% | 98% | 666 | 90 of 200 |
| Discharge of conditions | 48 | 67% | 91% | 573 | 93 of 310 |
| Full applications | 75 | 33% | 86% | 252 | 292 of 359 |
| Amendments | 45 | 69% | 91% | 210 | 153 of 356 |
| Listed building consent | 55 | 59% | 93% | 162 | 71 of 307 |
| Other | 53 | 75% | 99% | 154 | 21 of 35 |
| Lawful development certificates | 53 | 69% | 90% | 153 | 197 of 348 |
| Prior approvals | 36 | 89% | 93% | 118 | 170 of 340 |
| Outline applications | 66 | 33% | 67% | 28 | 52 of 110 |
| Advertisement consent * | 56 | 57% | 100% | 22 | 228 of 320 |
Delegated or committee
| Route | Share | Median days | Approved | Decisions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Delegated to officers | 99% | 54 | 93% | 2,274 |
| Planning committee | 1% | 152 | 95% | 22 |
Where the register states how the decision was made. 748 decisions did not say.
Appeals
71 appeals against South Oxfordshire decisions were decided by the Planning Inspectorate in the window, 46 for every 100 refusals; 51% were allowed. Every appeal in South Oxfordshire.
By year
| Year decided | Median days | Within 8 weeks | Approved | Decisions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 * | 57 | 47% | 100% | 31 |
| 2017 * | 57 | 46% | 90% | 40 |
| 2018 * | 20 | 100% | 100% | 36 |
| 2019 * | 16 | 96% | 100% | 25 |
| 2020 * | 58 | 48% | 94% | 33 |
| 2021 * | 7 | 100% | 100% | 39 |
| 2022 * | 59 | 38% | 96% | 26 |
| 2023 * | 56 | 55% | 94% | 32 |
| 2024 * | 56 | 56% | 93% | 28 |
| 2025 * | 14 | 100% | 98% | 55 |
| 2026 so far | 55 | 55% | 95% | 2,287 |
* 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
- The Woodman, Highmoor Cross, RG9 5DTUse of land as garden/domestic use.due 26 Aug 2025
- The Manor, 16 The Green, Garsington, OX44 9DFRetention of existing marquee and teepee (for occasional event use), for a period of 1 year, retention of timber play equipment, and associadue 21 Oct 2025
- Land at Town Farm Cottage, Brook Street, Kingston Blount, OX39 4RZWithout planning permission, the formation of an access onto a classified road in the approximate location shown between points A and B on tdue 28 Nov 2025
- Parsonage Farm, The Green, Marsh Baldon, OX44 9LJInternal and external alterations including dormer window to rear roof slope. (As amplified by additional information received 02 February 2due 12 Dec 2025
- Slade End House, Slade End, Brightwell-cum-Sotwell, OX10 0RDDischarge of conditions 3 (Sample materials), 4 (Contaminated land), 5 (Surface water drainage), 6 (Foul water drainage), 7(Archaeological Wdue 22 Dec 2025
- The Queens Head, 26 Church Road, Horspath, OX33 1RUErection of two 2-bed self-build apartments adjacent to and within existing car park of a public house to provide separate on-site accommodadue 5 Jan 2026
- 27 Upper High Street, Thame, OX9 3EXVariation of condition 2 (opening hours) on application ref. P18/S2564/FUL - for the extension of opening hours from 7:30am - 6:00pm Mondaydue 8 Jan 2026
- Orchard Cottage, The Hamlet, Gallowstree Common, RG4 9BUReplacement of existing dwelling with three new dwellings, using existing access, including landscaping and hardstanding.due 9 Jan 2026
Decided in the last three weeks
- Grove Barn, Grove Farm, Beckley, Oxford, OX3 9UST1- Horse chestnut. Reduce and reshape the tree by up to 3m of existing height and spread. The tree is situated in the corner of the gardenApproved26 Oct 2026
- Land West of Hale Road, Benson, OxonDischarge of condition 6(planting plan) on application ref. P25/S4046/FUL Installation of a SUDS pond with associated drainage works and lanRefused26 Oct 2026
- Bloomsbury Lodge, Little Croft Road, Goring, Reading, RG8 9ERT1 (Beech) - Crown lift to 5mApproved26 Oct 2026
- Fourways, 4 Station Road, Chinnor, OX39 4QBFenestration and minor internal alterations to the 2000's extension of a listed buildingApproved26 Oct 2026
- 48 Bridle Path, Woodcote, Reading, RG8 0SET1 reduce lateral spread on 3 ash trees by 3 metres that overhangs 48 bridal pathwoodcote. T2 reduce lateral spread on 2 oak trees by 3 metrApproved26 Oct 2026
- Sphinx Hill, Ferry Lane, Moulsford, Wallingford, OX10 9JFDischarge of Condition 3 (Schedule of Materials) of Planning ref. P26/S0006/HH Proposal for a double garage and accommodation, including a lApproved26 Oct 2026
- Emerton House, 64 High Street, Tetsworth, Thame, OX9 7ABReplacement of four rear windows.Approved26 Oct 2026
- 1 Townsend Cottages, South Stoke, Reading, RG8 0HUSingle storey extension and enclosure of existing porchApproved26 Oct 2026
Built nightly from South Oxfordshire's planning register. Ranks are among the 388 published councils. See planning applications in South Oxfordshire, appeals, or get alerts for South Oxfordshire.
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.