Council performance · official statistics · Yorkshire and the Humber
Sheffield approved 86.8% of the 1,716 planning applications it decided in 2025 Q3 – 2026 Q2, against a national figure of 87.1% — ranked 189 of 310 councils on approval rate.
Approval rate
86.8%
-0.3 pts vs national 87.1%
Decided on time
90.3%
+0.4 pts vs national 89.9%
Decisions
1,716
2025 Q3 – 2026 Q2
Rank on approval
#189
of 310 councils · top 61%
MHCLG planning statistics (PS2), release 202606 · 2025 Q3 – 2026 Q2. Approval rate = granted ÷ decisions. “Decided on time” = within the statutory period (8 weeks minor, 13 weeks major) or an agreed extension, the same definition MHCLG publishes.
A council that waves through extensions can still refuse most major schemes. The split is where the useful number usually lives.
| Type | Decisions | Approved | On time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Major developments | 76 | 93.4% | 89.5% |
| Minor developments | 345 | 82.0% | 87.0% |
| Other (incl. householder, changes of use, adverts) | 1,295 | 87.6% | 91.2% |
| Householder (extensions, lofts, garages) | 0 | – | – |
Approval rate and share decided on time, by calendar year, against the national figure.
By calendar year · 2014–2026 (2026 partial: 2 of 4 quarters)
Hover or use the arrow keys for a year; every value is also in the table below. “On time” is blank for years before timeliness reporting began.
Calendar years, newest first. A year with fewer than four quarters reported is marked partial — compare its rates, not its volume.
| Year | Decisions | Volume | Approved | On time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026partial · 2 of 4 quarters | 812 | 86.2% | 89.8% | |
| 2025 | 1,765 | 87.2% | 88.6% | |
| 2024 | 1,916 | 87.5% | 82.1% | |
| 2023 | 2,107 | 88.9% | 80.3% | |
| 2022 | 2,313 | 88.2% | 78.1% | |
| 2021 | 2,726 | 90.4% | 81.6% | |
| 2020 | 2,258 | 89.6% | 82.8% | |
| 2019 | 2,481 | 92.8% | 81.2% | |
| 2018 | 2,564 | 94.8% | 84.9% | |
| 2017 | 2,550 | 93.9% | 86.1% | |
| 2016 | 2,481 | 94.9% | 91.4% | |
| 2015 | 2,391 | 94.2% | 82.2% | |
| 2014 | 2,396 | 95.0% | 81.6% |
Every council ranked
Approval rate, share decided on time and volume for every English council.
Quarterly trends, the decision outlook by application type, the full development-pressure map with each cell's approval record, the agents filing and winning here, appeals, market and MEES exposure are on the council scorecard in every paid plan.