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Stafford

West Midlands · E07000197 · 189 quarters held (1979 Q2 – 2026 Q2)

Decisions
508
2025 Q3 – 2026 Q2
Refusal rate
19.3%
higher than 87% of authorities
Majors in time
50.0%
threshold 60%
Minors in time
35.3%
threshold 70%
Householder in time
51.9%
no formal threshold
Delegated
95.3%
decisions not to committee
Appellant win rate
40.0%
60 allowed of 150 decided
Decisions overturned
1.8%
quality threshold 10%

Refusal rate trend — last 40 quarters

2016 Q3 → 2026 Q2 · peak 22.7%

Official statistics — is development moving through the system?

MHCLG quarterly planning returns (PS1/PS2), last 4 quarters 2025 Q3 to 2026 Q2, and the government's latest Housing Delivery Test. These are the authority's own statutory returns, not our scrape.

Applications received
495
in the window
Applications decided
508
in the window
Approval rate
80.7%
410 granted, 98 refused · national median refusal 11.6%
Refusal rate rank 148 of 164 district councils (1 = fewest refusals) · peer median 11.4%
Decided within time
41.1%
rank 306 of 307 reporting authorities · national median 91.4%
Rank 163 of 164 district councils · peer median 91.9%

Peer ranks compare only district councils with more than 50 decisions in the window, the same floor as the national rank. A rank among peers is the fairer read: types of authority carry very different caseloads.

Performance by development type
TypeDecisionsApprovedIn time
Major2491.7%50.0%
Minor16869.6%35.3%
Other31685.8%—
of which householder23289.2%51.9%
"In time" = within the statutory period or an agreed extension, excluding prior approvals. "Other" covers everything that is neither major nor minor; householder figures are measured against the 8-week period.
Applications through the system
Last 8 quarters held
0901792024 Q3: 147 received2024 Q3: 140 decided2024 Q32024 Q4: 136 received2024 Q4: 159 decided2025 Q1: 130 received2025 Q1: 107 decided2025 Q2: 179 received2025 Q2: 152 decided2025 Q3: 145 received2025 Q3: 128 decided2025 Q4: 106 received2025 Q4: 100 decided2026 Q1: 112 received2026 Q1: 132 decided2026 Q2: 132 received2026 Q2: 148 decided2026 Q2
▬ received   ▬ decided
Housing Delivery Test
HDT 2025 measurement, homes delivered against requirement over 2022/23 to 2024/25
149%
No consequence

Delivery at or above 95%: no HDT consequence.

Where these figures come from. Each dataset below is the publisher's own file, loaded unchanged; rows are matched to this authority by its ONS code (E07000197). Missing values are shown as "—" and are never estimated or filled from another period.
DatasetPublisherCovers this authorityLoadedOfficial source
Planning application decisions (PS2)MHCLG1979 Q2 to 2026 Q2 (189 quarters)18 Oct 2026 · 68,583 rows nationallyLive tables
Planning application flow (PS1)MHCLG1979 Q2 to 2026 Q2 (189 quarters)18 Oct 2026 · 42,861 rows nationallyLive tables
Housing Delivery Test 2025MHCLG2022/23 to 2024/2518 Aug 2026Measurement
Open Government Licence v3.0. The MHCLG tables are reloaded every Sunday; the loaded date is the last successful run.

Quarterly history

QuarterDecisions GrantedRefused Refusal %Majors in time Minors in timeReceived
2026 Q2 148 117 31 20.9% — 25.0% 132
2026 Q1 132 102 30 22.7% — 18.2% 112
2025 Q4 100 82 18 18.0% 50.0% 46.7% 106
2025 Q3 128 109 19 14.8% — 41.2% 145
2025 Q2 152 135 17 11.2% 0.0% 73.3% 179
2025 Q1 107 99 8 7.5% 100.0% 57.1% 130
2024 Q4 159 138 21 13.2% 100.0% 22.2% 136
2024 Q3 140 119 21 15.0% 100.0% 69.2% 147
2024 Q2 154 129 25 16.2% 0.0% 71.4% 180
2024 Q1 187 149 38 20.3% 100.0% 45.8% 169
2023 Q4 211 172 39 18.5% 50.0% 45.8% 163
2023 Q3 187 148 39 20.9% — 40.9% 172
2023 Q2 294 241 53 18.0% — 40.6% 173
2023 Q1 257 222 35 13.6% 75.0% 48.3% 180
2022 Q4 144 131 13 9.0% 50.0% 36.8% 211
2022 Q3 126 114 12 9.5% — 60.0% 232
2022 Q2 142 130 12 8.5% 0.0% 100.0% 210
2022 Q1 145 131 14 9.7% — 16.7% 130
2021 Q4 150 140 10 6.7% — 71.4% 204
2021 Q3 128 105 23 18.0% 100.0% 42.9% 189
2021 Q2 149 139 10 6.7% 0.0% 44.4% 157
2021 Q1 166 150 16 9.6% — 69.2% 231
2020 Q4 155 139 16 10.3% 50.0% 75.0% 250
2020 Q3 136 126 10 7.4% — 100.0% 319
2020 Q2 138 126 12 8.7% 50.0% 87.5% 259
2020 Q1 183 161 22 12.0% — 100.0% 295
2019 Q4 179 155 24 13.4% 100.0% 96.6% 262
2019 Q3 190 178 12 6.3% — 92.0% 279
2019 Q2 216 200 16 7.4% 100.0% 91.7% 292
2019 Q1 208 194 14 6.7% 100.0% 93.8% 323
2018 Q4 249 221 28 11.2% 100.0% 97.4% 308
2018 Q3 213 193 20 9.4% 100.0% 93.9% 331
2018 Q2 217 195 22 10.1% 100.0% 89.7% 333
2018 Q1 248 215 33 13.3% 100.0% 88.6% 337
2017 Q4 300 271 29 9.7% 100.0% 90.7% 335
2017 Q3 289 253 36 12.5% 85.7% 90.5% 393
2017 Q2 218 192 26 11.9% 75.0% 81.8% 391
2017 Q1 243 223 20 8.2% 85.7% 79.7% 372
2016 Q4 226 197 29 12.8% 44.4% 71.4% 235
2016 Q3 279 247 32 11.5% 56.3% 77.0% 268
2016 Q2 262 229 33 12.6% 45.0% 53.5% 271
2016 Q1 226 196 30 13.3% 60.0% 64.3% 270
2015 Q4 278 232 46 16.5% 56.5% 61.9% 255
2015 Q3 268 223 45 16.8% 41.7% 60.3% 202
2015 Q2 250 223 27 10.8% 52.6% 66.1% 298
2015 Q1 221 188 33 14.9% 62.5% 62.0% 289
2014 Q4 263 228 35 13.3% 61.5% 56.4% 242
2014 Q3 264 243 21 8.0% 82.4% 58.2% 289
2014 Q2 217 195 22 10.1% 75.0% 58.5% 282
2014 Q1 217 169 35 16.1% 70.6% 60.3% 267
2013 Q4 252 222 26 10.3% 71.4% 62.2% 228
2013 Q3 264 236 15 5.7% 75.0% 72.2% 276
2013 Q2 230 195 26 11.3% 53.8% 69.0% 282
2013 Q1 218 191 18 8.3% 60.0% 58.2% 232
2012 Q4 233 196 26 11.2% 42.9% 65.9% 256
2012 Q3 254 213 29 11.4% 33.3% 64.2% 234
2012 Q2 298 260 32 10.7% 20.0% 53.8% 272
2012 Q1 273 233 33 12.1% 37.5% 55.6% 273
2011 Q4 304 277 16 5.3% 63.6% 50.5% 255
2011 Q3 285 245 28 9.8% 25.0% 35.8% 298
2011 Q2 249 204 39 15.7% 16.7% 35.2% 236
2011 Q1 276 217 47 17.0% 30.0% 51.0% 294
2010 Q4 269 206 51 19.0% 14.3% 62.5% 250
2010 Q3 303 246 54 17.8% 83.3% 67.9% 291
2010 Q2 269 219 48 17.8% 50.0% 70.8% 311
2010 Q1 259 211 46 17.8% 15.4% 60.6% 274
2009 Q4 253 186 58 22.9% 40.0% 50.0% 239
2009 Q3 290 226 60 20.7% 0.0% 36.7% 263
2009 Q2 268 222 44 16.4% 100.0% 57.0% 319
2009 Q1 252 201 48 19.0% 66.7% 57.4% 341
2008 Q4 363 280 83 22.9% 54.5% 34.8% 254
2008 Q3 412 323 82 19.9% 70.0% 28.5% 360
2008 Q2 379 291 86 22.7% 68.8% 33.0% 372
2008 Q1 301 227 73 24.3% 62.5% 40.0% 455
2007 Q4 372 286 82 22.0% 52.9% 51.3% 389
2007 Q3 420 324 92 21.9% 50.0% 63.4% 421
2007 Q2 462 371 87 18.8% 69.2% 54.3% 459
2007 Q1 412 316 93 22.6% 52.9% 58.0% 508
2006 Q4 392 300 90 23.0% 20.0% 65.4% 385
2006 Q3 396 317 75 18.9% 46.7% 71.1% 407
2006 Q2 442 346 93 21.0% 15.4% 79.3% 457
2006 Q1 360 287 73 20.3% 44.4% 71.4% 451
2005 Q4 407 311 93 22.9% 50.0% 73.9% 368
2005 Q3 398 301 91 22.9% 66.7% 68.4% 449
2005 Q2 472 378 87 18.4% 73.3% 71.2% 459
2005 Q1 403 315 81 20.1% 73.3% 76.3% 461
2004 Q4 437 334 102 23.3% 46.7% 62.7% 425
2004 Q3 524 393 123 23.5% 46.7% 59.7% 462
2004 Q2 472 403 69 14.6% 60.0% 54.3% 498
2004 Q1 404 359 44 10.9% 41.2% 39.8% 450
2003 Q4 421 371 44 10.5% 53.3% 45.0% 406
2003 Q3 514 449 56 10.9% 27.3% 24.4% 425
2003 Q2 381 335 41 10.8% 0.0% 37.4% 482
2003 Q1 362 296 54 14.9% 37.5% 30.5% 430
2002 Q4 313 261 47 15.0% 42.9% 54.3% 403
2002 Q3 410 333 69 16.8% 50.0% 56.0% 405
2002 Q2 431 374 45 10.4% 100.0% 56.8% 440
2002 Q1 343 280 52 15.2% — 54.5% 473
2001 Q4 369 296 62 16.8% — 41.7% 326
2001 Q3 399 345 42 10.5% 0.0% 26.8% 403
2001 Q2 392 316 69 17.6% 0.0% 33.3% 407
2001 Q1 360 282 63 17.5% 0.0% 35.7% 441
2000 Q4 335 253 59 17.6% 0.0% 40.4% 357
2000 Q3 380 297 69 18.2% 0.0% 46.9% 405
2000 Q2 357 288 62 17.4% — 52.0% 389
2000 Q1 360 296 63 17.5% 0.0% 51.9% 402
1999 Q4 319 265 54 16.9% 0.0% 30.3% 323
1999 Q3 337 278 54 16.0% 50.0% 33.6% 359
1999 Q2 320 264 54 16.9% 22.2% 29.7% 359
1999 Q1 295 244 47 15.9% 33.3% 34.9% 366
1998 Q4 321 259 59 18.4% 25.0% 44.4% 295
1998 Q3 349 266 78 22.3% 71.4% 49.2% 347
1998 Q2 367 294 65 17.7% 38.5% 52.8% 429
1998 Q1 288 217 67 23.3% 25.0% 39.0% 351
1997 Q4 362 299 61 16.9% 44.4% 52.0% 314
1997 Q3 301 249 43 14.3% 71.4% 55.9% 355
1997 Q2 427 351 74 17.3% 100.0% 44.4% 381
1997 Q1 235 178 51 21.7% 33.3% 42.7% 379
1996 Q4 403 337 56 13.9% 85.7% 43.6% 326
1996 Q3 247 195 43 17.4% 81.8% 47.5% 348
1996 Q2 379 312 50 13.2% 81.8% 46.4% 358
1996 Q1 194 182 12 6.2% 71.4% 48.8% —
1995 Q4 284 261 23 8.1% 30.8% 35.4% —
1995 Q3 284 261 23 8.1% 30.8% 35.4% —
1995 Q2 323 301 22 6.8% 55.6% 24.1% —
1995 Q1 176 163 13 7.4% 37.5% 34.9% —
1994 Q4 213 189 24 11.3% 58.3% 52.2% —
1994 Q3 337 307 30 8.9% 61.5% 45.9% —
1994 Q2 298 266 32 10.7% 40.0% 53.3% —
1994 Q1 265 238 27 10.2% 38.5% 40.3% —
1993 Q4 328 286 42 12.8% 63.6% 33.3% —
1993 Q3 305 273 32 10.5% 41.2% 30.7% —
1993 Q2 354 315 39 11.0% 57.9% 36.4% —
1993 Q1 284 245 39 13.7% 44.4% 14.5% —
1992 Q4 292 250 42 14.4% 33.3% 26.0% —
1992 Q3 345 297 48 13.9% 16.7% 18.1% —
1992 Q2 337 320 17 5.0% 60.0% 24.6% —
1992 Q1 290 252 38 13.1% 6.3% 14.3% —
1991 Q4 380 334 46 12.1% 23.1% 8.3% —
1991 Q3 412 368 44 10.7% 30.0% 17.0% —
1991 Q2 377 346 31 8.2% 50.0% 9.3% —
1991 Q1 318 253 65 20.4% 35.3% 6.0% —
1990 Q4 410 362 48 11.7% 23.1% 8.6% —
1990 Q3 318 282 36 11.3% 11.1% 4.7% —
1990 Q2 409 364 45 11.0% 33.3% 13.5% —
1990 Q1 326 273 53 16.3% 60.0% 15.6% —
1989 Q4 379 320 59 15.6% 40.9% 23.3% —
1989 Q3 418 360 58 13.9% 50.0% 28.7% —
1989 Q2 348 309 39 11.2% 50.0% 41.0% —
1989 Q1 335 284 51 15.2% 64.7% 54.1% —
1988 Q4 318 275 43 13.5% 59.1% 43.5% —
1988 Q3 341 295 46 13.5% 35.7% 27.4% —
1988 Q2 297 255 42 14.1% 100.0% 54.5% —
1988 Q1 270 238 32 11.9% 80.0% 50.7% —
1987 Q4 308 281 27 8.8% 72.2% 69.1% —
1987 Q3 326 304 22 6.7% 75.0% 53.9% —
1987 Q2 256 241 15 5.9% 66.7% 41.2% —
1987 Q1 195 175 20 10.3% 100.0% 46.5% —
1986 Q4 249 213 36 14.5% 33.3% 50.6% —
1986 Q3 320 292 28 8.8% 33.3% 38.7% —
1986 Q2 287 256 31 10.8% 66.7% 40.3% —
1986 Q1 229 208 21 9.2% 57.1% 19.2% —
1985 Q4 240 209 31 12.9% 0.0% 34.2% —
1985 Q3 238 212 26 10.9% 100.0% 64.9% —
1985 Q2 317 287 30 9.5% 87.5% 36.1% —
1985 Q1 192 167 25 13.0% 83.3% 62.9% —
1984 Q4 208 180 28 13.5% 85.7% 62.7% —
1984 Q3 238 212 26 10.9% 100.0% 64.9% —
1984 Q2 345 311 34 9.9% 87.5% 35.8% —
1984 Q1 215 190 25 11.6% 71.4% 63.9% —
1983 Q4 223 196 27 12.1% 100.0% 62.3% —
1983 Q3 245 218 27 11.0% 85.7% 60.3% —
1983 Q2 256 230 26 10.2% 83.3% 59.1% —
1983 Q1 151 140 11 7.3% 100.0% 58.5% —
1982 Q4 304 268 36 11.8% — 57.7% —
1982 Q3 296 261 35 11.8% 33.3% 55.2% —
1982 Q2 203 189 14 6.9% — 70.8% —
1982 Q1 105 97 8 7.6% — 48.9% —
1981 Q4 278 236 42 15.1% — 62.2% —
1981 Q3 325 298 27 8.3% — 46.1% —
1981 Q2 403 366 37 9.2% 100.0% 53.0% —
1981 Q1 305 268 37 12.1% 100.0% 76.2% —
1980 Q4 348 308 40 11.5% 100.0% 88.6% —
1980 Q3 329 280 49 14.9% 100.0% 84.8% —
1980 Q2 548 486 62 11.3% 100.0% 82.2% —
1980 Q1 486 424 62 12.8% 66.7% 69.4% —
1979 Q4 438 395 43 9.8% 69.2% 75.7% —
1979 Q3 508 456 52 10.2% 87.5% 74.2% —
1979 Q2 611 553 58 9.5% 80.0% 77.3% —

Decisions and speed: MHCLG planning application statistics (PS1/PS2), Open Government Licence v3.0, 2025 Q3 – 2026 Q2. Speed figures exclude prior approvals and are measured against the statutory period or agreed extension. Appeal figures: our aggregation of published Planning Inspectorate decisions, 2021–2026 — a different period from the decision figures above. Designation thresholds shown are indicative, not official.

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