Planning delays for major housing schemes rise by over 75% in a decade, new research finds
New national analysis of UK planning data has revealed that decision times for major housing developments have increased by more than 75% over the past decade, highlighting a growing bottleneck at the heart of the planning system.
The data, compiled by land and planning intelligence platform, Searchland, shows that average decision times for major applications have risen from 181 days in 2011 to over 318 days in 2025.
Despite widespread concerns around planning refusals, the dataset shows that approval rates have remained broadly stable over the same period, at around 80% for all applications, which Searchland says suggests that delays, rather than rejections, are now the primary constraint on development.
At the same time, overall planning application volumes have declined since their post-pandemic peak, falling from over 900,000 in 2021 to under 700,000 in 2025, indicating a slowdown in development activity.
Searchland research shows that major schemes, which are responsible for delivering a significant proportion of new homes, are being disproportionately affected. While smaller applications continue to be processed relatively quickly, large-scale developments are now taking over five times longer than the average application.
This has led to what the data suggests is an emerging “two-speed” planning system, where minor developments progress efficiently, but the large, strategic sites needed to meet housing targets face increasing delays and uncertainty.
Searchland says that the findings raise important questions around the capacity and efficiency of the planning system at a time when housing delivery remains a key national priority.
Hugh Gibbs, co-founder of Searchland, said: “There’s a common perception that the planning system is holding back development because too many applications are being refused – but the data shows that’s not the case. Approval rates have remained broadly consistent for over a decade.”
“What has changed significantly is the time it takes to get a decision, particularly for major housing schemes. These are the sites that deliver the majority of new homes, yet they’re now taking over 300 days on average to progress.”
“If we’re serious about increasing housing delivery, the focus needs to shift from simply granting permission to improve the speed and capacity of the system.”
Source: Showhouse
