South West

Planning permission in Wiltshire

95.6% of householder applications here were approved. Real figures from the council's own statutory returns, so you can design for what actually gets through.

95.6%Householder applications approved
1,779Decisions in the year
97.3%Decided within eight weeks
48Article 4 directions published

Figures cover 2025 Q2 to 2026 Q1 and come from the MHCLG district planning application statistics, the returns every English planning authority is required to file. Article 4 and conservation area counts come from the government Planning Data platform. Last refreshed 2026-08-16.

What the numbers actually say

Householder planning in Wiltshire is far more predictable than most people assume. Over 2025 Q2 to 2026 Q1 the council decided 1,779 householder applications and approved 95.6%. 79 were refused. That puts it 7 of 26 in South West on approval rate.

Speed is the other half of the story. 97.3% of those decisions landed inside the eight week statutory target, comfortably ahead of the national picture.

Permitted development here

Wiltshire has 48 Article 4 directions published on the government Planning Data platform. Inside those boundaries permitted development is withdrawn, so work that would be automatic elsewhere needs a full application.

245 conservation areas are mapped in Wiltshire. Inside one you lose roof extensions under Class B entirely, and you lose the larger rear extension route.

The route most people miss

35 larger householder extension applications were made here in the year. That is the prior approval route which lets a terraced or semi detached house go beyond three metres without a full application, and 94.3% of them got through. It is a genuinely usable route and most homeowners have never heard of it.

Project Calculator

What can you build in Wiltshire?

The rules above are the council's. The Project Calculator applies them to your house: pick the type, drag the extension, and get a verdict and a cost for your postcode.

Open the Project Calculator 60 seconds

What it costs

Extnd estimates, not council data. Regional labour rates move these but the shape holds.

Cost guide

Single storey rear extension

Typically £42,000 to £95,000, most landing near £62,000.

See the breakdown →Cost guide

Loft conversion

Typically £38,000 to £90,000, most landing near £58,000.

See the breakdown →Cost guide

Side return infill extension

Typically £45,000 to £98,000, most landing near £66,000.

See the breakdown →

Other councils in South West

Rules and approval rates change at the boundary.

Forest of Dean · 98.2%North Devon · 97.7%Torridge · 97.6%Cheltenham · 97.5%Bath and North East Somerset · 97.2%Cornwall · 97.2%Dorset · 95.1%Mid Devon · 94.7%Somerset · 94.2%Plymouth · 93.9%East Devon · 93.7%West Devon · 93.1%North Somerset · 92.9%Tewkesbury · 92.9%South Hams · 92.5%Stroud · 91.8%Bristol, City of · 91.7%Cotswold · 91.6%Swindon · 91.3%Torbay · 89.8%Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole · 88.1%Exeter · 86.4%South Gloucestershire · 82.6%Teignbridge · 82.2%Gloucester · 78.5%
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