Environment Agency's planning consultation response timeliness: 2024 to 2025
Updated 22 August 2025
Applies to England
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This report shows our performance as a consultee in the spatial planning system in England. We are required to report annually to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.
The report measures our performance against our statutory duty to respond within 21 days or such other period as may be agreed in writing, to:
- planning application consultations from local planning authorities (LPAs)
- pre-application enquiries from developers
Responding to local authorities within 21 days is one of Defra’s measures of success for excellent delivery. It remains one of our corporate priorities.
The Environment Agency believes protecting the environment and delivering sustainable development can go hand in hand. Nature is in decline and our economy is not growing – something must change, and we are ready to play a part in improving both.
The government has a clear growth mission which is essential to driving the economy forward, securing our public services and funding improvements to the natural environment. As part of its ‘Plan for Change’, the government has pledged to deliver 1.5 million homes and fast track 150 major infrastructure projects in this Parliament.
Responding in a timely way to pre-application enquiries and planning consultations is one of the ways in which we help to support sustainable growth. We also do this through:
- the quality and reliability of our responses
- having strategic discussions with local authorities and developers early in the development process
- identifying opportunities and providing solutions
- working in partnership with local authorities, strategic groups and developers to produce local plans
We aim to provide a good level of service to our customers by prioritising planning proposals that:
- may cause the greatest risk to the environment
- offer the greatest opportunities to enhance the environment
We offer a chargeable planning advice service for developers who want more detailed planning advice. This service has meant that we can work with developers at a much earlier stage to resolve any problems we identify in their proposals.
This has resulted in:
- planning authorities receiving better quality planning applications
- developers having greater certainty about our position on a proposal
- reducing the amount of time needed for discussions at the statutory stages – helping to speed up the consultation process for developers and ourselves
- saving developers time and money
1. Findings of this report
In 2024 to 2025 we responded to consultations and pre-application enquiries on 9,635 proposed developments – a decrease of 600 (6%) from 10,235 in 2023 to 2024.
We made a total of 12,324 consultation responses during 2024 to 2025 because sometimes we are consulted more than once on a development proposal. However, we only report one pre-application or application consultation response per development.
We took an average of 18 days to respond to consultation requests – the same as in 2023 to 2024.
Of our consultation responses:
- 9,117 (94.6%) were on planning applications
- 518 (5.4%) were on pre-application enquiries
We responded to 7,514 (78.0%) of all planning application consultations and pre-application enquiries within 21 days.
We agreed with LPAs an extension beyond 21 days on 952 (9.88%) occasions. The average length of extensions was 9 days, 3 fewer than last year.
Including those where we agreed an extension, we responded to 88.3% of planning application consultations and pre-application enquiries within 21 days or such other period agreed in writing (down from 91.7% in 2023 to 2024).
We also screened out around 11,253 consultations that we should not have received. This helped us focus our limited resources on responding more quickly to planning consultations and strategic plans for growth.
In 2024 to 2025 we agreed 836 charging arrangements with developers who wanted to use our chargeable planning advice service and recovered £672,000 of our costs. These applications are not included in the 21 day figures for this report as different response times are agreed as part of each charging agreement.
2. Excluded responses
Some consultations that we respond to are not included in these 21 day statistics because we are required to respond within different time limits.
We are a statutory consultee for environmental impact assessment developments. In 2024 to 2025 we responded to 499 land-use planning applications (570 consultation responses) and 350 scoping opinions.
We also responded to 438 consultations about nationally significant infrastructure projects.
We are also a primary advisor to the Marine Management Organisation. They are responsible for most planning and development control at sea, including in estuarine and coastal waters. We responded to 299 marine licence consultations in 2024 to 2025.
3. Planned improvements for 2025 to 2026
In our letter to the Prime Minister and Chancellor in January 2025, we outlined how we contribute to growth. This included commitments to improving our land use planning services and supporting the government’s approach to strategic spatial planning.
As part of that process, we have committed to responding to 95% of relevant planning consultations within 21 days from September 2025 onwards. To meet this commitment, we are undertaking a systematic review of our processes, which includes:
- clarifying and streamlining existing processes
- reviewing response approaches, including the potential for more standing advice and standard comments in responses
- reviewing and updating online guidance to ensure it meets the needs of customers
- working with developers and local planning authorities to better understand how they can more effectively engage with the Environment Agency in its role as a statutory consultee
To support improved performance, we are investing in a replacement for our legacy IT planning system, which currently undermines our capacity to meet statutory deadlines. We are also supporting wider priority infrastructure development, through our newly created National Infrastructure team, which will provide dedicated senior input to unlock some of the most challenging issues.
We have already seen notable improvements, including a significant improvement in our quarterly performance.
Application stage responses
Number of consultation requests: 9,117.
Number of substantive responses made within 21 days or otherwise agreed date: 8,026.
Percentage of substantive responses made within 21 days or otherwise agreed date: 88.0%.
Breakdown of the reasons for failure to meet 21 day or otherwise agreed timescale:
| Reason | Number | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Further information needs to be provided (from LPA and developer) | 12 | 1.0% |
| Complex proposal (such as need for site visits and meetings, ongoing negotiations, specialist input) | 76 | 6.7% |
| Environment Agency resourcing (such as workload issues, staff absences, availability of specialist expertise) | 847 | 75.0% |
| Internal process error (such as incorrectly assigned deadlines, IT issues) | 195 | 17.3% |
Number of cases where extension to 21 day timescale is agreed: 933.
Percentage of cases where extension to 21 day timescale is agreed: 10%.
Average number of days of agreed extension to 21 day timescale: 9.
Breakdown of the reasons why extensions to the 21 day timescale have been agreed
| Reason | Number | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Further information needs to be provided (from LPA and developer) | 216 | 23.2% |
| Complex proposal (such as need for site visits and meetings, ongoing negotiations, specialist input) | 233 | 25.0% |
| Environment Agency resourcing (such as workload issues, staff absences, availability of specialist expertise) | 408 | 43.7% |
| Internal process error (such as incorrectly assigned deadlines, IT issues) | 76 | 8.1% |
Average number of days to provide a substantive response to all consultation requests: 18.
Number of pre-application stage responses
Number of consultation requests: 518.
Number of substantive responses made within 21 days or otherwise agreed date: 479.
Percentage of substantive responses made within 21 days or otherwise agreed date: 92.5%.
Breakdown of reasons for failure to meet 21 day or otherwise agreed timescale
| Reason | Number | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Further information needs to be provided (from LPA and developer) | 0 | 0% |
| Complex proposal (such as need for site visits and meetings, ongoing negotiations, specialist input) | 3 | 7.7% |
| Environment Agency resourcing (such as workload issues, staff absences, availability of specialist expertise) | 15 | 38.5% |
| Internal process error (such as incorrectly assigned deadlines, IT issues) | 21 | 53.8% |