Yes. If your local planning authority has refused your application, imposed conditions you object to, or failed to decide within the statutory period, you can appeal to the Planning Inspectorate. There's no fee to lodge an appeal, though preparing evidence has its own costs. Speak to your local planning authority first, then submit online if that goes nowhere.
TL;DR:
- Appeals against planning decisions are possible for refusals, conditions, non-determination, and enforcement notices, with specific time limits for each category.
- Register and upload all supporting documents via the Planning Inspectorate's online portal, ensuring files are properly labeled and within size limits to avoid delays.
- Most home owner appeals are decided based on written representations, which focus on policy compliance and avoid the need for hearings or inquiries.
- The typical duration for householder written appeals is about 13 weeks, with about a 31% chance of success based on recent statistics.
- Engaging professional support to review refusal notices and prepare precise, policy-backed objections can often prevent the need for an appeal altogether.
Table of Contents
- Is a planning permission appeal possible, and when should you consider one?
- How do you make a planning permission appeal? Steps and documents
- What happens during written representations, hearings and inquiries?
- How long do planning appeals take, and what are your chances?
- How do you prepare a strong planning objection appeal?
- How do you use the Planning Inspectorate's online appeal service?
- A brief view from the West Midlands
- How Extension Kings supports your planning journey
- Official guidance and statistics used
- Sources
- FAQ
Is a planning permission appeal possible, and when should you consider one?
Not every decision qualifies, and not every situation calls for an appeal. You can appeal against:
- A full refusal of planning permission
- Conditions attached to an approval that you believe are unreasonable
- Non-determination (the council simply hasn't decided within the deadline)
- Refusal of listed building consent or advertisement consent
- Enforcement notices served against existing work
- Householder-specific refusals, which follow a faster, simplified route
Time limits vary sharply by category. For a householder refusal, you generally have 12 weeks from the decision date to lodge an appeal. For most other appeals, including non-determination cases, the window extends to 6 months, and the same 6 month limit applies where permission was granted but you're objecting to the conditions attached, according to the procedural guide. Councils generally aim to decide most applications within about two months and take longer on major developments, so non-determination appeals only arise after those decision periods pass.
Before you appeal, ask whether a revised application would be quicker. GOV.UK's guidance is blunt about this: appealing should be a last resort, not a first reaction, because amending drawings and resubmitting often resolves the objection faster than a formal appeal ever could.
How do you make a planning permission appeal? Steps and documents
Once you've decided an appeal is genuinely the right route, the mechanics matter. Get them wrong and you risk delays before the Inspectorate even looks at your case.
- Check your deadline against the decision notice date, not the date you received the letter.
- Gather the LPA's decision notice, your application reference number, and the original submitted plans.
- Register through the Planning Inspectorate's online appeal service.
- Upload every supporting document in one sitting where possible, so nothing gets missed.
Your document checklist should include the completed application form, the decision notice itself, scaled drawings and a site plan, an ownership certificate confirming your interest in the land, and a planning statement setting out your case. If your scheme required an Environmental Statement at application stage, that needs to go in too.
The Inspectorate accepts DOC, DOCX, JPG, JPEG, PDF, PNG and TIF files, and documents need to stay within reasonable size limits and remain fully readable and unredacted, per the official submission guidance. Scanned drawings that are too dark, rotated, or compressed into an unreadable blur are a common reason registration gets held up.
Pro Tip: Name your files clearly before you upload them. "Site_Plan_Rev_B.pdf" gets processed far faster than "scan0043.pdf", and it saves the case officer chasing you for clarification.
What happens during written representations, hearings and inquiries?
Most homeowner appeals never involve a room full of people arguing over a fence line. For applications dated on or after 1 April 2026, the Planning Inspectorate's procedural guide makes the part 1 written representations procedure the default for most appeals, meaning your case is decided on paperwork alone: your statement, the council's response, and any third-party comments.
Hearings and inquiries exist for more contested or complex cases:
- Hearings involve a round-table discussion with the Inspector, you, and council officers, open to the public but far less formal than a courtroom.
- Inquiries are the most adversarial route, with expert witnesses, cross-examination, and legal representation common on larger schemes.
Whichever procedure applies, the Inspector weighs your case against the development plan, national planning policy, and other material considerations, not personal preference on either side.
How long do planning appeals take, and what are your chances?
Timescales depend heavily on procedure. Written representations for householder appeals typically resolve in around 13 weeks, while Section 78 written representations appeals run closer to 16 weeks on median, according to Planning Inspectorate timescale guidance. Hearings take longer, and inquiries longest of all, often stretching to several months once you factor in scheduling and evidence exchange.
The Planning Inspectorate's statistical release recorded a 31% allowed rate for Section 78 appeals in April to June 2026, down slightly from 32% the previous quarter.
That roughly one-in-three success rate has held fairly steady, and it's a useful reality check before you commit time and money to an appeal.
On costs:
- There's no fee to lodge an appeal.
- You'll still likely pay for planning consultants, drawings, or legal advice.
- Awards of costs against the other party are possible, but generally reserved for cases involving unreasonable behaviour, not simply losing the argument.
How do you prepare a strong planning objection appeal?
The strongest appeals stay disciplined. Anchor your argument in policy, specifically how the development plan and national planning policy actually apply to your scheme, rather than arguing that the refusal simply feels unfair.
Under the new written representations default, this discipline matters more than ever. The procedural guide makes clear that Inspectors can exclude material that wasn't before the council when it made its original decision, so an appeal is not the moment to introduce a brand-new argument or a revised drawing you never submitted first time round.
Before you submit, work through this checklist:
- Labelled, scaled drawings that match exactly what was refused
- A signed ownership certificate
- A planning statement that references specific policy numbers, not vague objections to "over-development"
- Contact with relevant consultees (highways, conservation, drainage) where their objection triggered the refusal
Pro Tip: If your refusal cited a specific policy clause, quote that clause back in your statement and explain precisely why your scheme complies. Inspectors respond to precision, not volume.
Accurate site data helps too. A proper measured survey from a firm like SGS Surveys can settle boundary or level disputes that otherwise drag an appeal out.
How do you use the Planning Inspectorate's online appeal service?
You start every appeal through the same online portal, where you register, enter your application details, and upload your documents in one submission.
The service also lets third parties search for live appeals and submit comments, useful if you're following a neighbour's case or want visibility on similar schemes nearby. Published decisions appear on the same portal once an Inspector has ruled, giving you a searchable record of precedent for future arguments.
If an Inspector requests further information mid-appeal, respond within the deadline stated in that request. Missing it can see your appeal decided on the evidence already submitted, gaps and all.
A brief view from the West Midlands
We see the same pattern repeatedly: homeowners appealing extension refusals over minor design points that a revised drawing would have fixed at application stage. Managed planning support, catching the objection early and adjusting before refusal, usually saves more time and money than any appeal does.
— Raja
How Extension Kings supports your planning journey
Extension Kings manages the design, documentation, and council liaison that stop a refusal happening in the first place. Our team drafts drawings and planning statements that anticipate the objections your local authority is likely to raise, rather than leaving you to fight them after the fact at appeal.
If you're already facing a refusal on a rear extension, a double-storey addition, or a wrap-around scheme, we can review the decision notice and advise whether amending and resubmitting beats appealing outright. Homeowners in Halesowen can see how this works on our House Extensions Halesowen page, and readers elsewhere across the region can check coverage on our areas we cover page. Get in touch for a review of your decision notice before your appeal deadline runs out.
Official guidance and statistics used
For full procedural detail, consult the planning appeals procedural guide, the main appeal guidance page, the online appeal submission service, and the Planning Inspectorate's statistical release. These are the primary sources behind every figure and time limit in this guide.
FAQ
How can I appeal a planning decision in the UK?
Register through the Planning Inspectorate's online service, upload your decision notice, application form, drawings, and a planning statement, within the applicable time limit for your appeal type.
How much does it cost to appeal a planning decision in the UK?
Lodging an appeal is free. You'll only pay for professional help, such as planning consultants or drawings, if you choose to use it.
How successful are planning appeals?
The Planning Inspectorate's Q2 2026 statistics show that roughly one in three Section 78 appeals are allowed, consistent with the previous quarter's similar rate.
How long are planning appeals currently taking?
Householder written representations appeals typically take around 13 weeks, while Section 78 written representations appeals run closer to 16 weeks; hearings and inquiries take considerably longer.
What's the deadline for a householder extension appeal?
You have 12 weeks from the decision notice date to lodge a householder appeal, compared with 6 months for most other appeal types.