Planning Applications
What Happens if Planning Permission is Refused? Your Options Explained (2025)
A planning refusal isn’t necessarily the end of the road. You can appeal, reapply with a revised scheme, or explore permitted development alternatives. Here’s exactly what to do.
⏱ 7 min read
📅 Updated June 2025
🏠 England only
First: Read the Decision Notice Carefully
When planning permission is refused, the council must provide a written decision notice setting out the reasons for refusal. This document is critical — it tells you exactly what the council objected to, which determines your best route forward.
Reasons for refusal typically fall into categories:
- Design: The proposal is out of keeping with the area, uses inappropriate materials, or would harm the character of the street
- Neighbour amenity: Overlooking, overshadowing, loss of light, or overbearing impact on adjacent properties
- Highway safety: Impact on parking, sight lines, or traffic
- Policy: The proposal conflicts with a specific local or national planning policy
- Technical/procedural: Missing information, incorrect drawings, or an application that can’t be processed as submitted
✅ Reasons for refusal guide your response
If the refusal is about design, a revised scheme with different materials or a reduced scale might succeed. If it’s a fundamental policy objection, you may need to consider an appeal or a completely different approach.
Your Four Options After a Refusal
After a planning refusal you have four main routes, each with different timescales, costs, and success rates:
- Appeal to the Planning Inspectorate
- Reapply with a revised scheme
- Check whether the works could be done under permitted development
- Abandon the proposal
Option 1: Appeal to the Planning Inspectorate
You can appeal a planning refusal (or a failure to decide within the statutory period) to the Planning Inspectorate — an independent government body. The appeal is free and is assessed by an independent inspector.
Key facts about householder appeals
- Deadline: You must appeal within 12 weeks of the decision date for a householder application
- Process: Most householder appeals are decided by written representations — you submit your statement, the council submits theirs, and an inspector decides
- Timescale: Typically 12–20 weeks from appeal submission to decision
- Success rate: Around 30–40% of householder appeals succeed nationally
- Cost: Free to submit. You may choose to use a planning consultant or architect, which adds cost
⚠️ When an appeal is worth pursuing
An appeal is most likely to succeed where the council’s decision was inconsistent with their own policies, where similar development has been approved nearby, or where the reasons for refusal are weak or can be directly addressed. It’s less likely to succeed where there’s a clear and strong policy objection.
How to submit an appeal
Appeals are submitted online through the Planning Inspectorate’s Appeals Casework Portal at appeals.planninginspectorate.gov.uk. You’ll need your application reference number and the decision notice.
Option 2: Reapply with a Revised Scheme
If the refusal reasons are design-related or concern specific features that can be changed, reapplying with a revised scheme is often the most effective route. You can address the reasons for refusal directly and resubmit.
Free resubmission right
In England, if your application was refused (or withdrawn before decision), you have the right to resubmit once without paying the planning fee again — provided you resubmit within 12 months of the original validation date and the new application is for the same or substantially the same development.
This makes a revised reapplication relatively low cost if you can address the objections. Use pre-application advice from the council (see below) to test whether your revisions are likely to succeed before spending money on new drawings.
Pre-application advice
Most councils offer a pre-application advice service — a paid-for consultation with a planning officer before you submit a formal application. This is valuable after a refusal because it allows you to test a revised design and get officer feedback before committing to another application. Costs typically range from £100–£500 depending on the council and the scale of the project.
Option 3: Check if Permitted Development Applies
If you needed planning permission because your proposal exceeded permitted development limits, it’s worth asking: could a scaled-back version of the works be done under permitted development?
For example:
- A rear extension refused for being too large: could a smaller extension be built under PD without permission?
- A loft conversion refused due to a front dormer: could a rear dormer or Velux conversion be done under PD?
- A side extension refused in a conservation area: could the works be repositioned to the rear where PD applies?
If so, you may be able to carry out a version of your original plans without needing to go back to the council at all. Consider getting a Lawful Development Certificate to confirm the revised works are lawful before starting.
Option 4: Abandon the Proposal
Sometimes the planning system gives a clear answer: this development is not acceptable here. If the refusal reasons are robust, based on strong policy, and an appeal is unlikely to succeed, it may be most practical to accept the decision and look at alternative ways of meeting your needs — whether that’s a different design, a different type of development, or accepting the property as it is.
Costs and Timescales Summary
Option 1
Planning Appeal
Free to submit. Decision typically 12–20 weeks. Consultant fees optional (£500–£3,000+ depending on complexity). ~30–40% success rate for householder appeals.
Option 2
Reapplication
Free within 12 months (one resubmission right). New architect/design fees apply. Pre-application advice: £100–£500. Decision typically 8 weeks. Higher success rate if reasons for refusal are clearly addressed.
Option 3
Permitted Development Route
No planning fee. LDC application: ~£206. Architect fees for revised drawings. Fastest route if PD applies. No council approval needed beyond LDC.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long do I have to appeal a planning refusal?
For a householder planning application (extensions, loft conversions, etc.), you have 12 weeks from the date of the decision notice to submit an appeal to the Planning Inspectorate. For other types of planning application, the deadline is 6 months. Missing the deadline means you lose the right to appeal and would need to reapply instead.
Can I build while waiting for a planning appeal decision?
No. Submitting an appeal does not grant permission to start work. You must wait for the appeal decision before beginning any development that requires planning permission. Starting work before the appeal is decided would be an unauthorised development and could be subject to enforcement action regardless of the eventual appeal outcome.
Does planning refusal stay on record and affect future applications?
Yes — planning history, including refusals, is permanently on the public planning register. Future applications on the same property will be considered in the context of that history. However, a past refusal doesn’t automatically mean a future application will fail. If the policy context has changed, if a new scheme addresses the reasons for refusal, or if the officer’s assessment is different, approval is possible despite a previous refusal.
What if planning permission is refused because of neighbour objections?
Neighbour objections alone don’t determine the outcome — planners must assess applications against planning policies, not just local opposition. If you believe the refusal was driven by objections rather than genuine planning grounds, this can be a strong basis for an appeal. The inspector will look at whether the reasons for refusal are soundly based in planning law and policy, not just how many people objected.
Could Permitted Development Be the Answer?
Many homeowners avoid the planning system entirely by using permitted development rights. Find out what you can build without planning permission.
Read the Complete PD Guide →
