Cornwall Developer Left Waiting Over 3 Years for Planning Permission

FOI reveals major delays at Cornwall Council, with one application taking 1,114 days

A developer in Cornwall was left waiting more than three years for planning permission, new data has revealed.

A Freedom of Information request submitted by Travis Perkins uncovered that one outline application took 1,114 days to receive a decision from Cornwall Council — the longest recorded delay in the county over the past three years.

Thousands of applications, long waits for major developments

Between 2022 and 2024, Cornwall Council received a total of 24,392 planning applications. These covered everything from major and minor developments to household and other types of applications.

The full breakdown of applications submitted during that period is:

• Major developments: 527

• Minor developments: 8,168

• Householder developments: 7,756

• Other: 7,941

The average decision time for major applications was as high as 45.5 weeks in 2022. By comparison, minor applications took between 14 and 18 weeks, householder applications between 10.2 and 11.5 weeks, and other types between 8.7 and 10.9 weeks.

Decisions and refusals

Nearly 13,000 applications were approved between 2022 and 2024, with most granted subject to conditions. Refusals were lower across all categories.

For major developments, approvals and refusals were as follows:

• 2022: 143 approved, 24 refused

• 2023: 101 approved, 19 refused

• 2024: 72 approved, 4 refused

Penzance leads planning activity

The most active area for planning submissions during the three-year period was Penzance, which saw 832 applications — more than any other area in Cornwall.

Call for better support for councils

Lee Jackson, Technical Director at Travis Perkins, said:

“Timely planning decisions play an important role in enabling the delivery of developments that support housing, infrastructure, and community needs.

“With demand continuing across many areas, it’s important that councils are supported to process applications efficiently and keep pace with local requirements.”

The findings come alongside the HBF’s State of Play report, supported by Travis Perkins, which highlights how planning delays are affecting small and medium-sized housebuilders across the country.