Official Statistics

Planning Inspectorate statistical release 21 April 2022

Published 21 April 2022

Applies to England

Introduction

This statistical release provides summary information on appeals, which represent the highest volume (in terms of number of cases) of the work of the Planning Inspectorate.

The Inspectorate is transitioning to a new system for scheduling casework and changing the way that specialist casework records are kept, bringing them in line with other casetype records. As we migrate records from one system to another some discrepancies have been identified which are now being investigated. For this reason, the publication of some statistics has been delayed while we reconcile records and assure data quality. Information on the number of open cases has been withheld (from Table 2 and figure 2; and Table 10 has been removed in its entirety)

Some other statistics are being published as expected but marked as provisional where we have further validation work planned. We believe that the data discrepancies that we have observed are confined to specialist casework so have included numbers for open cases of other casework types on a provisional basis for this release as we anticipate that this may be helpful while totals are unavailable. We will seek to publish all withheld statistics as soon as possible.

These statistics are produced each month and the focus is on timeliness, as that is an area in which stakeholders have an interest. Information on the decisions that have been made is also included; and on the number of Inspectors available to make those decisions.

These statistics have been published to ensure everyone has equal access to the information and to support the Planning Inspectorate’s commitment to release information where possible.

This statistical bulletin provides:

• appeals decisions and events held from April 2021 to March 2022
• the time taken to reach decisions
• number of open cases
• number of Inspectors

Also included within this bulletin are brief comments on additional tables published today which give quarterly data on low-volume casework and detail on high-volume areas – including the percentage of appeals allowed. These quarterly tables, and some Annual tables, are published alongside this Release to ensure an orderly release of the information.

The Planning Inspectorate

The Planning Inspectorate makes decisions and provides recommendations and advice on a range of land use planning-related issues across England. We do this in a fair, open, and timely way.

The Planning Inspectorate deals with planning appeals, national infrastructure planning applications, examinations of local plans and other planning-related and specialist casework in England. The Planning Inspectorate is an executive agency, sponsored by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, previously known as the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government.

Summary

Time to decide cases

Note: Decision time statistics for March and 12 month totals are provisional

The median time to decide a case in March 2022 was 25 weeks. The median time to decide was around 22 weeks during April 2021, and has increased to 24 weeks and over for the last 8 months.

Median timeliness by procedure type is shown in the summary table below.

Procedure type	Last 12 months	March 2022
Written Representations	23 weeks	24 weeks
Hearings	51 weeks	53 weeks
Inquiries	62 weeks	42 weeks
All Cases	24 weeks	25 weeks

The median time for planning cases was above 20 weeks for the last 12 months; and around 25 weeks for the last 4 months. Across the whole year, the median time to decision is 23 weeks.

Enforcement decisions made in the last 12 months had a median decision time of 36 weeks.

Since February 2021 Specialist cases have been decided quicker than Enforcement.

The median time for planning appeals decided by inquiry under the Rosewell Process over the 12 months to February 2022 is 32 weeks. This is quicker than other types of casework decided by inquiry.

Decisions

Note: Decisions statistics for March and 12 month totals are provisional

The Planning Inspectorate has made 17,396 appeal decisions in the last 12 months, an average of 1,450 per month. The number of decisions in March 2022 was higher than average, 1,910 decisions were issued.

There were 1,814 written representations decisions in March 2022 (the highest in the last 12 months); and 16,262 in the last 12 months. Pre-pandemic levels were approximately between 1,600 and 2,000 decisions per month.

There were 628 decisions made on hearings during the last 12 months, and during March 2022 51 decisions were issued. Pre-pandemic levels for hearing decisions were between 50 and 100 decisions per month.

There were 506 decisions made on inquiries during the last 12 months, with 45 in March 2022. Decisions for inquiries since March 2021 have ranged between approximately 20 and 60. Pre-pandemic levels for inquiry decisions were between 15 and 90 decisions per month.

Planning Inspectors

There were 357 Planning Inspectors employed by the Inspectorate in March 2022 with a full-time equivalent of 319.

Decisions, Events and Open Cases

Note: Statistics covering the number of open cases for February and March and the number and timeliness of decisions for each of the 12 months presented here are provisional

The number of decisions issued in March 2022 was 1,910; an increase 242 decisions compared to February 2022. This follows an increase in the number of events held over the past 3 months: for the period April 2021 to December 2021 the average number of events per month was 1,408 compared to 1,736 for January 2022 to March 2022. The increase is in part due to an increase in the number of decisions made by Non-Salaried Inspectors.

The number of events held in March 2022 was 1826, as previously stated his is a substantial increase, the average number of events arranged for the period April 2021 to December 2021 was 1,408.

The median time to decide a case during March 2022 was 24.7 weeks, the same median time to decide as February 2022. The median time to decide was around 22 weeks at the start of the reporting period, and has increased to 24 – 27 weeks over the past 8 months.

Figure 1: Number of events held , decisions issued and median time between valid date & decision date; April 2021 to March 2022.

Source: Horizon, Picaso, Inspector Scheduling System

Table 1: Number of events held, decisions issued and median time between valid date & decision date; April 2021 to March 2022

Note 1: This table includes revisions to previously published data. Please see Annex E for further information

Note 2: Decision statistics are provisional

Month	Apr 21	May 21	Jun 21	Jul 21	Aug 21	Sep 21	Oct 21	Nov 21	Dec 21	Jan 22	Feb 22	Mar 22	Total
Events Held	1,355	1,558	1,661	1,312	1,239	1,535	1,278	1,706	1,025	1,584	1,799	1,826	17,878
Decisions	1,083	1,506	1,530	1,303	1,212	1,545	1,236	1,554	1,484	1,365	1,668	1,910	17,396
Median	21.9	22.0	21.9	21.3	23.9	24.3	26.4	25.4	25.4	26.9	24.7	24.7	23.6

Source: Horizon, Picaso, Inspector Scheduling System.

Note – The number of cases closed is higher than the number of decisions, as it includes cases where an appeal is withdrawn, notice is withdrawn, or the appeal is turned away.

It is not possible to say accurately the number of open cases for February and March due to changes in the way cases are recorded. The impact of these changes appears to be limited to specialist casework, so Figure 2 and Table 2 below present a total for open cases excluding specialist casework, in order to allow analysis of the trend in these cases. Once recording issues have been resolved and data quality assured we will present this information as we did before.

Figure 2: Number of cases received, closed and open; April 2021 to March 2022

Note 1: The total number of open cases for February and March 2022 are withheld due to data quality issues.

Note 2: The number of receipts and closures are provisional

Source: Horizon and Picaso

Data note 1 – there is a known anomaly that means that the number of open cases does not exactly follow the volumes of cases closed or received (for example the number of open cases can increase between months even though the number closed exceeded the number received). The main reasons for this have been identified and are detailed in the Background Quality Report. The inspectorate are Investigating how to introduce new processes to improve the quality of this data which once complete may result in revisions to the number of open cases.

Table 2: Number of cases received, closed and open; April 2021 to March 2022

Note 1: This table includes revisions to previously published data. Please see Annex E for further information

Note 2: The number of planning and enforcement open cases for February and March 2022 and all case receipts and closures are provisional

Month	Apr 21	May 21	Jun 21	Jul 21	Aug 21	Sep 21	Oct 21	Nov 21	Dec 21	Jan 22	Feb 22	Mar 22	Total
Received	1,729	1,679	1,803	1,770	1,784	1,822	1,767	1,946	1,754	1,709	1,714	1,820	21,297
Closed	1,242	1,662	1,733	1,495	1,360	1,734	1,429	1,790	1,699	1,550	1,887	2,168	19,749
Open excluding specialist  casework	10,823	10,855	10,888	11,125	11,549	11,569	11,875	11,991	12,052	12,171	11,990	11,665
Open All Cases	11,717	11,723	11,761	11,975	12,510	12,557	12,857	12,997	13,131	13,328

Number of Decisions

Note: Decisions statistics for specialist casework and all casework combined are provisional

The Planning Inspectorate has made 17,396 appeal decisions in the last 12 months, an average of 1,450 decisions per month. 1910 cases were decided in March 2022, in part due to an increase in the number of decisions made by Non-Salaried Inspectors. Table 3 below shows the monthly breakdown with fewer decisions for the months of April, July, August, and October 2021. This is thought to be due, in part, to the impact of staff taking more leave in 2021 than in 2020; and to an annual training event that took place in October 2021.

Table 3: Appeal Decisions; April 2021 to March 2022

Note 1: The number of decisions are provisional

Month	Apr 21	May 21	Jun 21	Jul 21	Aug 21	Sep 21	Oct 21	Nov 21	Dec 21	Jan 22	Feb 22	Mar 22	Total
Decisions	1,083	1,506	1,530	1,303	1,212	1,545	1,236	1,554	1,484	1,365	1,668	1,910	17,396

Source: Horizon and Picaso

Figure 3 – Appeal Decisions; April 2021 to March 2022

Note 1: The number of decisions are provisional

Source: Horizon and Picaso

Decisions by procedure and case type

Planning Inspectors work on a broader range of work than the appeals featured in this Release. For example, they also work on examining Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project applications, Local Plans , Compulsory Purchase Order applications and many other specialist licencing/application types.

Table 4 below gives the numbers of appeal decisions made broken down by whether the case was dealt with by written representations, hearings, or inquiries.

The large majority of decisions (16,262) were made on written representations. This is ninety three percent of all appeal decisions made. Table 4 shows that written representation decisions varied from around 1,000 to over 1,500 per month through 2021. (Pre-pandemic levels being between approximately 1,600 and 2,000 decisions per month). There were 1,814 decisions in March 2022 which is back to pre-pandemic levels.

There were 628 decisions made on hearings during the last 12 months and during March 2022 51 decisions were issued, which is around the average of 52 decisions per month over the past year. Pre-pandemic levels for hearing decisions were between 50 and 100 decisions per month. Decisions for inquiries since March 2021 have ranged between 18 and 60. Pre-pandemic levels for inquiry decisions were between 15 and 90 decisions per month.

Table 4: Appeal Decisions by Procedure and Casework Category; April 2021 to March 2022

Note: The figures for specialist casework are provisional

Month	Apr 21	May 21	Jun 21	Jul 21	Aug 21	Sep 21	Oct 21	Nov 21	Dec 21	Jan 22	Feb 22	Mar 22	Total
Written Representations	996	1,390	1,394	1,201	1,105	1,475	1,186	1,457	1,398	1,250	1,596	1,814	16,262
Hearings	52	64	80	65	51	40	32	47	54	55	37	51	628
Inquiries	35	52	56	37	56	30	18	50	32	60	35	45	506
Total	1,083	1,506	1,530	1,303	1,212	1,545	1,236	1,554	1,484	1,365	1,668	1,910	17,396
Month	Apr 21	May 21	Jun 21	Jul 21	Aug 21	Sep 21	Oct 21	Nov 21	Dec 21	Jan 22	Feb 22	Mar 22	Total
Planning	938	1,285	1,269	1,077	970	1,365	1,033	1,330	1,263	1,109	1,414	1,613	14,666
Enforcement	100	161	200	179	187	148	153	193	160	208	222	251	2,162
Specialist	45	60	61	47	55	32	50	31	61	48	32	46	568
Total	1,083	1,506	1,530	1,303	1,212	1,545	1,236	1,554	1,484	1,365	1,668	1,910	17,396

Source: Horizon and Picaso.

What are Planning cases? The Planning category includes s78 planning appeals, householder appeals, commercial appeals, listed building consent appeals, advertisement appeals, s106 planning obligation appeals and Called In Planning Applications.

What are Enforcement cases? Enforcement covers enforcement appeals (i.e., appeals against the issue of an enforcement notice by a local planning authority), enforcement listed building notice appeals and lawful development certificate appeals.

What are Specialist cases? This category covers a wide range of different types of casework including Common Land, Environment, Purchase Notice, Rights of Way orders (including Schedule 14 cases), Tree Preservation Orders, Hedgerows and High Hedges cases.

The large majority of cases were planning (14,666). This is about eighty-four per cent of all appeal decisions made. There were 2,162 enforcement decisions and 568 specialist decisions. These totals are also shown in Table 4 above and Figure 4 below.

Trends for planning decisions show similar patterns to written representations. The average number of enforcement decisions over the past 12 months was 180, the number of decisions issued over the past 3 months has been higher than average. March 22 had the most enforcement decisions of the last 12 months. June’s total (200) was double that of April (100). Specialist casework figures continue to vary each month, from a low of 30 (September 2021) to a high of 61 (June 2021 and December 2021).

Figure 4 – Appeal Decisions by Procedure and Casework Category; April 2021 to March 2022

Appeals Decisions by Procedure

Appeals Decisions by Casework Category

Decision timeliness

Note: Timeliness statistics are provisional

It is important for people to know how long an appeal is going to take, so that they can make plans and decisions based on this information. This section covers the timeliness of decisions (i.e., how long it takes to make a decision) across appeal casework. In addition to an overall measure, timeliness is analysed by procedure type and casework category, as timeliness varies a great deal depending on these characteristics.

Table 5 below shows that the median time to make a decision, across all cases in the last 12 months, was 24 weeks. Figure 5 shows the median has been above 21 weeks for the last 12 months; and has generally been higher since August 21.

How is timeliness measured?

The time to make a decision is measured from the time the Inspectorate have enough information for the case to proceed (it is deemed ‘valid’) to the time a decision letter is issued. A large majority of cases are ‘validated’ (the difference between the date the appeal is received, and the validation process being completed) in a week or less.

The decisions made in a given month will include those that started many months before, and thus do not give an accurate indication of how long decisions submitted, or deemed ‘valid’ in that month, will take.

Table 5 also shows the mean time for the last 12 months is 29 weeks. Each month the median is less than the mean, due to the relatively small number of very long cases. Also included in the table is the standard deviation of decision timeliness. The standard deviation – a measure of variation – is comparable to performance seen over the last 12 months.

What are mean, median and standard deviation?

Measure	Definition
Mean	The total time taken divided by the number of cases. Also referred to as the ‘average’. A measure of how long each case would take, if the total time taken was spread evenly across all cases.
Median	This is the time taken by the ‘middle’ case if all cases were sorted from quickest to longest
Standard deviation	This is a measure of variability or spread. It is calculated by examining how much each value differs from the mean. A higher standard deviation means the individual decision times vary more widely around the mean. A lower standard deviation would demonstrate greater consistency in the Planning Inspectorate’s decision timeliness.

Table 5: Median, mean and Standard Deviation of Time to Decision; April 2021 to March 2022

Note 1: Statistics are provisional

Month	Apr 21	May 21	Jun 21	Jul 21	Aug 21	Sep 21	Oct 21	Nov 21	Dec 21	Jan 22	Feb 22	Mar 22	Total
Valid to Decision (median weeks)	21.9	22.0	21.9	21.3	23.9	24.3	26.4	25.4	25.4	26.9	24.7	24.7	23.6
Valid to Decision (mean weeks)	27.3	26.2	28.3	27.2	31.0	28.6	31.0	30.5	29.4	31.8	28.3	30.3	28.7
Standard Deviation (weeks)	18.7	16.7	19.7	18.5	23.3	16.7	19.0	21.0	17.8	22.0	17.6	23.5	19.5

Source: Horizon and Picaso

Figure 5: Median and mean Time to Decision; April 2021 to March 2022

Note 1: Data presented are provisional

Source: Horizon and Picaso

Procedure Type

Table 6 below shows decision timeliness broken down by the procedure type. Hearings and inquires take longer than written representations – both types take more than twice as long on average across the last 12 months. Because 19 of every 20 cases are by written representation, the timeliness measures for written representations are similar to the measure across all cases.

Where a small number of cases has been decided, the average timeliness (whether mean or median) is less meaningful as a measure than where there are many cases. Those noted in the table caption below should be treated with caution as there are fewer than 20 cases decided.

Median times are less affected by large values than mean times, so are the focus of this commentary. The median time for written representations over the 12 months to March 2022 is 23 weeks; the last seven months have longer median time to decision than the previous five months. The median time for inquiries over the 12 months to March 2022 is over a year - 62 weeks. The median time for hearings is less at 51 weeks.

Table 6: Mean and Median Time to Decision, with Standard Deviation, by Procedure; April 2021 to March 2022

Note 1: where the number of decisions issued is fewer than 20, the measures mean, median and standard deviation are less meaningful. This applies to the number of inquiries in October 2021.

Measure	Procedure	Apr 21	May 21	Jun 21	Jul 21	Aug 21	Sep 21	Oct 21	Nov 21	Dec 21	Jan 22	Feb 22	Mar 22	Total
Valid to decision (median weeks)	Written Representations	20.9	21.1	20.7	20.4	23.0	23.6	25.9	24.4	24.9	25.4	24.1	24.1	22.7
Valid to decision (median weeks)	Hearings	62.0	39.6	61.3	43.6	43.9	50.4	53.6	47.9	54.4	64.1	45.7	52.9	51.3
Valid to decision (median weeks)	Inquiries	62.4	66.0	64.6	79.0	95.0	35.6	50.4	80.9	40.6	90.9	57.3	42.1	61.7
Valid to decision (median weeks)	All Cases	21.9	22.0	21.9	21.3	23.9	24.3	26.4	25.4	25.4	26.9	24.7	24.7	23.6
Valid to decision (mean weeks)	Written Representations	24.1	24.1	25.0	24.5	27.2	27.3	29.6	27.9	27.8	28.1	27.0	28.7	26.4
Valid to decision (mean weeks)	Hearings	63.8	42.9	57.0	50.0	49.8	57.1	57.2	60.8	61.2	75.7	57.5	60.6	57.4
Valid to decision (mean weeks)	Inquiries	64.4	61.7	70.9	77.5	87.7	56.5	77.6	80.3	47.3	69.4	60.7	58.0	68.0
Valid to decision (mean weeks)	All Cases	27.3	26.2	28.3	27.2	31.0	28.6	31.0	30.5	29.4	31.8	28.3	30.3	28.7
Standard Deviation (weeks)	Written Representations	13.6	14.0	13.9	13.3	16.0	14.0	16.4	15.5	15.0	15.3	15.0	21.7	15.6
Standard Deviation (weeks)	Hearings	26.9	18.4	21.7	19.8	27.5	27.5	22.9	38.6	31.7	43.8	33.1	27.3	29.6
Standard Deviation (weeks)	Inquiries	27.8	26.1	42.8	43.8	47.1	40.8	50.9	41.8	30.0	30.5	35.4	42.6	39.7
Standard Deviation (weeks)	All Cases	18.7	16.7	19.7	18.5	23.3	16.7	19.0	21.0	17.8	22.0	17.6	23.5	19.5
Decisions	Written Representations	996	1,390	1,394	1,201	1,105	1,475	1,186	1,457	1,398	1,250	1,596	1,814	16,262
Decisions	Hearings	52	64	80	65	51	40	32	47	54	55	37	51	628
Decisions	Inquiries	35	52	56	37	56	30	18	50	32	60	35	45	506
Decisions	Total	1,083	1,506	1,530	1,303	1,212	1,545	1,236	1,554	1,484	1,365	1,668	1,910	17,396

Source: Horizon and Picaso.

The standard deviation information indicates that for all three procedures, there is considerable variation, meaning times are widely spread about the mean. For written representations, the amount of variation has been quite stable over recent months, whereas hearings and enquiries have experienced considerable month to month changes in the spread of decision times.

Casework Category

The nature of the cases the Planning Inspectorate deal with varies widely and several factors play a part in determining how long it takes to make a decision. One such factor is the type of casework. Table 7 below shows the time taken to decide, in planning cases, in enforcement cases, and in specialist cases, as does Figure 6.

The median time to decision for planning cases (there are many more of these decisions than in the other categories) is lower than for enforcement cases; and less variable than the times for specialist cases. Table 7 and Figure 6 show the median time for planning cases was above 20 weeks for the last 12 months; and above 23 weeks for the last seven months. Across the 12 month period, the median time to decision is 23 weeks for these cases.

Table 7: Decisions, Mean, Median and Standard Deviation of Time to Decision – Planning, Enforcement, Specialist Cases; April 2021 to March 2022

Note: This table includes revisions to previously published data. Please see Annex E for further information

Note 2: The figures for specialist casework are provisional due to cases being migrated from one system to another.

Appeal Type	Measure	Apr 21	May 21	Jun 21	Jul 21	Aug 21	Sep 21	Oct 21	Nov 21	Dec 21	Jan 22	Feb 22	Mar 22	Total
Planning Cases	Valid to decision (median wks)	20.9	21.6	20.7	20.4	23.0	23.6	25.3	24.6	24.6	25.3	24.2	23.6	22.6
Planning Cases	Valid to decision (mean wks)	24.7	24.4	25.2	24.4	26.2	26.9	28.3	27.2	26.9	28.1	26.3	25.8	25.8
Planning Cases	Standard deviation of decision (weeks)	14.6	13.0	15.2	13.7	14.7	13.5	13.6	14.1	13.7	16.2	13.9	15.1	14.2
Enforcement Cases	Valid to decision (median wks)	35.2	28.3	38.9	32.3	41.6	33.2	34.0	39.9	39.1	37.5	31.3	44.3	35.9
Enforcement Cases	Valid to decision (mean wks)	47.6	40.6	45.7	42.7	54.5	40.7	43.6	53.5	45.0	49.5	40.2	57.3	46.9
Enforcement Cases	Standard deviation of decision (weeks)	29.4	28.9	29.7	29.4	38.3	26.3	30.2	37.6	26.4	32.4	26.7	40.0	32.3
Specialist Cases	Valid to decision (median wks)	21.9	15.9	28.0	22.4	17.7	27.7	32.1	19.6	27.1	29.3	23.9	26.9	23.4
Specialist Cases	Valid to decision (mean wks)	35.6	24.7	36.6	33.6	34.4	46.8	48.9	31.6	40.8	41.8	38.5	41.3	36.8
Specialist Cases	Standard deviation of decision (weeks)	30.1	21.6	27.7	27.1	29.6	35.7	36.6	31.5	32.5	37.3	37.1	38.7	32.3

Annex B gives information on median and mean time to decision, with standard deviation, for the three procedure types, split by planning, enforcement, and specialist casework categories.

Enforcement decisions made in the last 12 months had a median decision time of 36 weeks.

There are considerably fewer specialist cases which means results are more liable to be distorted by extreme values. Looking at the annual measures, the median time to decision for specialist decisions have been shorter than enforcement decisions, and longer than the median for planning decisions. Since April 2021 Specialist cases have been decided quicker than Enforcement.

Figure 6 – Median Time to Decision by Casework Category: April 2021 to March 2022

Note: Decision time statistics for Specialist casework are provisional

Source: Horizon and Picaso

Note that the Inspectorate publishes each month, information on the mean and median times from valid to decision, for selected appeal types. The information published also breaks down the time for each stage of the process. See Annex C for further details.

Planning Inquiry Decisions

For planning appeals decided by the inquiry process, The Planning Inspectorate has been implementing recommendations from the Rosewell review.

The median time for inquiries over the 12 months to March 2022 is 32 weeks, with the monthly median having ranged from 25 to 52 over that time. The median time to decision for March 2022 was 42 weeks.

Table 8: Decisions, Mean and Median Time to Decision, Planning Inquiry Cases under Rosewell Process; April 2021 to March 2022

Note 1: where there are fewer than 20 decisions, the measures mean, median and standard deviation are less meaningful. This applies to all months except June 2021.

Measure	Apr 21	May 21	Jun 21	Jul 21	Aug 21	Sep 21	Oct 21	Nov 21	Dec 21	Jan 22	Feb 22	Mar 22	Total
Decisions	17	16	30	11	13	19	8	19	14	21	23	22	213
Median (weeks)	53.5	34.3	40.7	32.0	39.6	30.5	40.0	36.8	29.2	37.8	47.0	35.5	38.4
Mean (weeks)	51.9	30.1	33.9	29.1	25.1	26.9	43.2	28.6	27.4	31.9	42.1	30.0	31.6
St. Dev. (weeks)	31.1	9.9	22.1	12.0	44.5	10.7	13.5	18.7	8.5	19.6	19.7	14.2	21.4

Most inquiry decisions now being issued are under the revised ‘Rosewell’ process but some inquiries, for example those that are linked together with associated enforcement cases, do not follow the Rosewell process.

Table 9: Decisions, Planning Inquiry Cases under non-Rosewell Process; April 2021 to March 2022

Month	Apr 21	May 21	Jun 21	Jul 21	Aug 21	Sep 21	Oct 21	Nov 21	Dec 21	Jan 22	Feb 22	Mar 22	Total
Decisions	1	4	7	2	3	1	0	0	3	2	0	3	26

Source: Horizon

Figure 7 below shows the mean and median time to decision for planning inquiry cases under the Rosewell process.

Figure 7: Mean, Median Time to Decision, Rosewell Inquiry Process; April 2021 to March 2022

Source: Horizon

Inspectors

Table 11 below shows the number of inspectors in the Planning Inspectorate in each month from April 2021 to March 2022 . This includes headcount (i.e. the number of different individuals) and full-time equivalents (FTE) where those working part time are counted in proportion with their contracted hours. There were 357 Planning Inspectors employed by the Inspectorate in February 2022 – with a full-time equivalent of 319.

Table 11: Planning Inspectors – Headcount and FTE; April 2021 to March 2022 (at end of month)

Source: SAP HR

As above, Planning Inspectors work on a broader range of work than the appeals featured in this Release. They also work on applications and examinations. Please note that data on Planning Inspectors is only applicable to salaried employees (it does not include fixed term contract Inspectors or non-salaried Inspectors).

Revisions to previous release

Data in the previous statistical release may have changed between being published last month and what is shown this month. Where changes have occurred (the volume numbers have changed by more than five, or the timeliness measures have changed by greater than 0.5 weeks) the tables in this release give the most recent figures. Information about which tables this applies to, can be found in Annex E and the separate Background Quality Report.

Quarterly Volume Statistics

The Inspectorate has also published a series of tables of quarterly data. The quarterly statistics differ from the monthly statistical release. Some of the data published is on casework types that The Planning Inspectorate deals with, that are larger in scale but smaller in volume. The best examples of this are Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects and Local Plans, where volumes never go into the hundreds, and the time between submission to report issue can be over a year. Other data breaks appeals down into more detail than in the monthly totals. This data has been published on a quarterly basis for many years as management information.

Section 78 Planning appeals16

Appeals received compared decisions

In the last twelve months, April 2021 to March 2022, there have been 10,680 Section 78 planning appeals (s78) received, compared to 10,895 for the period April 2020 to March 2021.

In the last five complete financial years (April 2017 to March 2022) the highest level of quarterly receipts (3,684) occurred in October to December 2017 and the highest number of decisions (3,705) was in July to September 2019. Over the past year the average number of receipts per quarter was 2,670 and the average number of decisions per quarter was 2,244.

The number of appeals received in the last quarter of 2021/22 (2,677) was 5.5% lower than the same period in 2020/21. Appeal receipts since the pandemic started average around 2,700 per quarter (April 20 to March 22).

Figure 8: Number of s78 Planning appeals receipts and decision, 2015/16 to 2021/22, by quarter

Source: Horizon & Picaso. Full published data in Tables 2.1 and Table 2.4.

See Annex F, Table A, for full data table.

The number of decisions being issued in the latest quarter of 2021/22, January to March, was 4% more than the October to December quarter but 6% less than the corresponding quarter last year.

Appeals Allowed

The percentage of Section 78 planning appeals that were allowed in the latest quarter was 29%. This is the up from 28% in the previous quarter and is the second highest percentage allowed since the start of 2019/20.

The overall percentage allowed is heavily influenced by the number of written representations appeals allowed, as this procedure type contributes by far the greatest number of decisions each year. There has been slightly more variation in the percentage allowed for hearings and inquiries. See Figure 11 below for further details.

Figure 9: S78 planning appeals, percentage allowed, 2015/16 to 2021/22, by quarter

Source: Horizon & Picaso. Full published data in Table 2.4 s78 planning appeals decided.

See Annex F, Table B, for full data table

Figure 10: S78 planning appeals, percentage allowed by procedure type, 2015/16 to 2021/22, by quarter

Source: Horizon & Picaso. Full published data in Table 2.4 s78 planning appeals decided.

See Annex F, Table B, for full data table

Figure 11: S78 planning appeals, number of appeals allowed, 2015/16 to 2021/22, by quarter

Source: Horizon & Picaso. Full published data in Table 2.4 s78 planning appeals decided.

See Annex F, Table C, for full data table

Annex A - Content of ad-hoc Statistical Releases, 2020 -21

Date	Mar-20	Apr-20	Jul-20	Sep-20	Oct-20
Content	Appeals receipts and decisions in the last 12 and 24 months (1st March 2018 – 29th February 2020)	Appeals receipts and decisions between 17th March 2020 and 22nd April 2020	Appeals decisions between 17th March 2020 and 22nd June 2020	Appeals decisions between 17th March 2020 and 21st September 2020	Appeals decisions from October 2019 to September 2020
Content	Number of section 78 Planning Appeals received / decided / within target that used the written representation method in the last 12 months (1st March 2019 – 29th February 2020)	Live appeals in the system as at 23rd April 2020	Number of open cases	Number of open cases	Number of open cases
Content	Number of dwellings decided, and number of dwellings allowed by appeal decisions between 1st January 2017 and 31st December 2019.	Number of appeals involving housing within the system as at 23rd April 2020	Number of virtual events	Number of virtual events	Number of virtual events
Content	Number of Planning Inspectors employed by the Planning Inspectorate at the end of each quarter between 31st March 2017 and 31st December 2019.	Virtual site visits	Number of appeals
Content			involving housing within the system as at 12th June 2020
Scope	England only	England only	England only	England only	England only
Scope	Planning cases, Enforcement cases and Rights of Way orders

Annex B: Mean and median time to decisions, with standard deviation, for planning, enforcement and specialist casework.

Planning

Note: where there are fewer than 20 decisions, the measures mean, median and standard deviation are less meaningful. This applies to inquiry decisions in all months of 2021 except for May, June and September.

Planning	Measure	Apr 21	May 21	Jun 21	Jul 21	Aug 21	Sep 21	Oct 21	Nov 21	Dec 21	Jan 22	Feb 22	Mar 22	Total
Written Representations	Decisions	886	1,214	1,193	1,021	917	1,323	1,000	1,274	1,204	1,053	1,361	1,552	13,998
Written Representations	Median Average Weeks	20.1	21.0	20.0	19.7	22.4	23.1	25.0	24.1	24.3	24.7	23.9	23.1	22.0
Written Representations	Mean Average Weeks	22.9	23.4	23.5	23.3	25.2	26.2	27.5	26.3	25.8	26.5	25.4	25.0	24.7
Written Representations	Standard Deviation Weeks	11.2	11.7	11.9	11.3	12.0	12.3	12.7	12.0	11.5	12.4	12.5	14.3	12.3
Hearings	Decisions	34	51	39	43	37	22	25	37	42	33	30	36	429
Hearings	Median Average Weeks	56.9	37.4	45.4	42.0	37.4	50.4	54.3	45.9	50.0	55.9	43.6	48.8	45.4
Hearings	Mean Average Weeks	56.1	40.7	49.2	42.7	41.3	54.7	54.7	54.3	56.8	70.7	51.5	52.8	51.1
Hearings	Standard Deviation Weeks	23.6	18.9	20.7	16.5	18.6	24.0	20.6	34.1	29.3	39.0	27.0	20.0	26.1
Inquiries	Decisions	18	20	37	13	16	20	8	19	17	23	23	25	239
Inquiries	Median Average Weeks	52.4	32.9	36.9	30.9	30.0	27.9	43.2	28.6	23.9	31.9	42.1	28.0	32.9
Inquiries	Mean Average Weeks	54.9	44.8	53.5	53.5	50.3	36.6	40.0	36.8	29.1	41.0	47.0	35.6	43.5
Inquiries	Standard Deviation Weeks	30.7	23.5	37.3	51.6	53.9	28.8	13.5	18.7	10.5	25.4	19.7	15.1	30.4
All Cases	Decisions	938	1,285	1,269	1,077	970	1,365	1,033	1,330	1,263	1,109	1,414	1,613	14,666
All Cases	Median Average Weeks	24.7	24.4	25.2	24.4	26.2	26.9	28.3	27.2	26.9	28.1	26.3	25.8	25.8
All Cases	Mean Average Weeks	20.9	21.6	20.7	20.4	23.0	23.6	25.3	24.6	24.6	25.3	24.2	23.6	22.6
All Cases	Standard Deviation Weeks	14.6	13.0	15.2	13.7	14.7	13.5	13.6	14.1	13.7	16.2	13.9	15.1	14.2

• The median time to decision for planning written representations rose between April 2021 to January 2022, for the past two months the median has fallen, as has the mean.
• The standard deviation of time to decision for planning written representations has generally been slightly increasing since April 2021, indicating more variability in the time to decision.
• The median for planning hearings during March 2022 increased by 6.2 weeks compared to February 2022
• The median for planning inquiries during March 2022 reduced by 14.1 weeks compared to February 2022

Enforcement

Note: where there are fewer than 20 decisions, the measures mean, median and standard deviation are less meaningful. This applies to hearing decisions in all months other than June and July 2021; and to inquiry decisions in all months other than May, July, August and November 2021, and January 2022

Enforcement	Measure	Apr 21	May 21	Jun 21	Jul 21	Aug 21	Sep 21	Oct 21	Nov 21	Dec 21	Jan 22	Feb 22	Mar 22	Total
Written Representations	Decisions	68	118	142	137	139	122	139	156	137	155	205	223	1,741
Written Representations	Median Average Weeks	29.6	24.9	29.1	26.0	35.4	28.1	32.7	31.6	37.4	31.7	28.7	42.3	30.1
Written Representations	Mean Average Weeks	34.4	31.5	33.1	32.2	40.0	33.8	38.7	42.1	41.5	37.2	36.9	54.8	38.7
Written Representations	Standard Deviation Weeks	20.9	25.6	17.8	19.6	25.8	16.8	22.4	28.2	23.9	22.1	22.1	39.1	25.8
Hearings	Decisions	16	12	39	22	11	18	7	9	10	19	6	11	180
Hearings	Median Average Weeks	71.3	45.2	61.6	67.3	56.0	50.8	53.0	55.3	60.5	66.7	55.7	63.0	62.9
Hearings	Mean Average Weeks	77.9	50.9	62.6	64.1	70.7	60.0	66.1	82.7	71.6	81.8	72.3	64.9	68.4
Hearings	Standard Deviation Weeks	28.0	13.6	18.5	17.9	34.2	31.1	27.9	46.6	33.7	47.4	36.3	22.5	30.2
Inquiries	Decisions	16	31	19	20	37	8	7	28	13	34	11	17	241
Inquiries	Median Average Weeks	73.8	71.3	104.9	90.6	104.1	101.6	117.6	107.6	60.9	87.3	84.0	86.0	90.1
Inquiries	Mean Average Weeks	62.4	66.0	108.0	92.9	122.3	94.5	147.4	118.3	48.0	90.9	71.9	58.3	90.6
Inquiries	Standard Deviation Weeks	20.3	21.4	30.7	35.0	34.9	32.0	52.2	26.8	27.1	15.4	44.0	48.0	34.2
All Cases	Decisions	100	161	200	179	187	148	153	193	160	208	222	251	2,162
All Cases	Median Average Weeks	35.2	28.3	38.9	32.3	41.6	33.2	34.0	39.9	39.1	37.5	31.3	44.3	35.9
All Cases	Mean Average Weeks	47.6	40.6	45.7	42.7	54.5	40.7	43.6	53.5	45.0	49.5	40.2	57.3	46.9
All Cases	Standard Deviation Weeks	29.4	28.9	29.7	29.4	38.3	26.3	30.2	37.6	26.4	32.4	26.7	40.0	32.3

• The mean and median measures for enforcement written representation decisions show considerable variation month to month but no clear trend. The median for March 2022 was higher than any of the previous 11 months.
• The time to decision for enforcement hearings and inquiries is generally more than twice the time for written representation decisions.
• Enforcement hearings show variable trends for all three measures; mean, median and standard deviation. There are smaller numbers of decisions for this casework / procedure group that can influence these measures.
• Enforcement inquiries are generally taking longer than they were a year ago. As with planning hearings, the effect of the pandemic is evident in these measures. Also, this grouping can be disproportionately affected by cases that involve multiple linked appeals (for example multiple people served an enforcement notice by a local authority appeal to The Planning Inspectorate, each person appealing is treated as a separate appeal, but all appeals are decided in one decision letter by one Inspector).

Specialist

Note: where there are fewer than 20 decisions, the measures mean, median and standard deviation are less meaningful. This applies to all months’ hearings decisions; and all months inquiries decisions.

Note 2: This table includes revisions to previously published data. Please see Annex E for further information

Note 3: Number of decisions and decision times for specialist casework are provisional

Specialist	Measure	Apr 21	May 21	Jun 21	Jul 21	Aug 21	Sep 21	Oct 21	Nov 21	Dec 21	Jan 22	Feb 22	Mar 22	Total
Written Representations	Decisions	42	58	59	43	49	30	47	27	57	42	30	39	523
Written Representations	Median Average Weeks	21.7	15.4	26.9	21.0	17.3	24.3	30.4	17.3	24.9	28.5	21.6	22.9	21.9
Written Representations	Mean Average Weeks	32.2	22.8	34.5	28.3	28.6	44.9	46.6	21.3	36.1	35.1	31.9	29.3	32.1
Written Representations	Standard Deviation Weeks	28.2	18.9	25.4	21.7	24.7	36.1	35.5	14.7	27.5	30.5	28.0	23.4	27.6
Hearings	Decisions	2	1	2	0	3	0	0	1	2	3	1	4	19
Hearings	Median Average Weeks	82.1	60.0	100.8	-	95.0	-	-	101.9	101.9	130.1	149.1	127.9	96.3
Hearings	Mean Average Weeks	82.1	60.0	100.8	-	78.3	-	-	101.9	101.9	93.2	149.1	118.7	96.7
Hearings	Standard Deviation Weeks	12.9	0.0	7.1	-	31.5	-	-	0.0	26.2	58.0	0.0	22.9	35.0
Inquiries	Decisions	1	1	0	4	3	2	3	3	2	3	1	3	26
Inquiries	Median Average Weeks	85.1	100.0	-	94.3	88.4	75.2	105.3	84.9	113.9	95.1	119.7	59.0	90.6
Inquiries	Mean Average Weeks	85.1	100.0	-	90.2	84.6	75.2	84.7	101.2	113.9	84.0	119.7	86.3	88.3
Inquiries	Standard Deviation Weeks	0.0	0.0	-	9.6	11.5	8.2	33.7	28.9	15.6	29.6	0.0	52.5	31.4
All Cases	Decisions	45	60	61	47	55	32	50	31	61	48	32	46	568
All Cases	Median Average Weeks	21.9	15.9	28.0	22.4	17.7	27.7	32.1	19.6	27.1	29.3	23.9	26.9	23.4
All Cases	Mean Average Weeks	35.6	24.7	36.6	33.6	34.4	46.8	48.9	31.6	40.8	41.8	38.5	41.3	36.8
All Cases	Standard Deviation Weeks	30.1	21.6	27.7	27.1	29.6	35.7	36.6	31.5	32.5	37.3	37.1	38.7	32.3

• The number of decisions for Specialist cases is low (see Table 4), and this makes it less easy to identify trends for Specialist cases decided by hearings and inquiries.
• The highest volume of decisions is against Written Representations, and over the last 12 months the volume and time measures see variable trends.
• The time to decision for specialist hearings and inquiries is generally more than twice the time for written representation decisions.
• The median for time to specialist written representation decision varies between 15 weeks (May 21) and 30 weeks (October 21).

Annex C - Detailed Information on timeliness (March 2022)

The information below is published today on the number and length of decisions made in March 2022 :

Note: when there are fewer than 20 decisions the measures mean, median and standard deviation are less meaningful. This applies to the 11 enforcement appeals managed through hearings and 17 managed through inquiries.

Casework Type	Procedure Type	Median (weeks)	Mean (weeks)	Decisions
s78 planning appeals	Written Representations	29.9	28.0	846
s78 planning appeals	Hearings	52.8	48.8	36
s78 planning appeals	Inquiries	35.6	28.0	25
Householder appeals	Written Representations	17.7	15.1	589
Enforcement appeals	Written Representations	54.8	42.3	223
Enforcement appeals	Hearings	64.9	63.0	11
Enforcement appeals	Inquiries	86.0	58.3	17

Cells shaded grey had fewer than 20 decisions

The smaller the number of decisions, the less helpful the mean and median are as measures for summarising performance. Particular care should be taken when there are fewer than twenty decisions. These are shaded grey in the table but have been provided for completeness and transparency.

The information published below shows the time taken for different stages of the appeals process:

Note: when there are fewer than 20 decisions the measures mean, median and standard deviation are less meaningful.

Measure	s78 Written Representations [Note 1]	s78 Hearings	s78 Inquiries	Householder appeals
Weeks between valid date & start date
Median (average)	13.9	17.7	2.1	2.3
Mean (average)	13.1	19.2	4.7	4.3
Cases that started in December 2021	1094	66	25	515
Weeks between start date & event date
Median (average)	9.7	22.7	16.0	7.7
Mean (average)	13.1	36.4	24.9	9.4
Cases where an event occurred during December 2021	817	57	30	495
Weeks between event date & decision date
Median (average)	3.1	4.9	8.3	2.4
Mean (average)	4.8	8.4	12.4	3.3
Cases that have been decided in December 2021	844	36	25	585

Explanation of date terminology

Dates	Description
Valid date	When a case is deemed to have been validly received.  Note – this is not always the date the case was validated. If a case is validated after the date it was validly received, it is the date it was validly received that is the valid date.
Start date	When a timetable, on how the appeal will progress, is issued to both the appellant and local authority. This timetable tells the appellant when to submit the information the Inspectors need to determine the appeal. It also tells the local authority when to notify interested parties about the appeal.
Event date	When the site visit, hearing, or inquiry occurred.
Decision date	When the decision was issued by The Planning Inspectorate.

Find out more about the process

Annex D - Casework types included in this release

Planning covers s78 planning appeals, Householder appeals, Commercial appeals, s20 Listed Building appeals, Advertisement appeals, s106 Planning Obligation appeals and Called In Planning Applications.

Enforcement covers s174 Enforcement appeals, s39 Enforcement Listed Building appeals and Lawful Development Certificate appeals.

Specialist casework includes Common Land, Rights of Way orders (including Schedule 14 cases), Purchase orders, Tree Preservation Orders, High Hedges appeals and Hedgerow appeals. (Note that the data on Open Cases in previous publications excluded Tree Preservation Orders and High Hedges and Hedgerow appeals.)

Annex E - Revisions to the data tables

Table	Revisions
Table 1	Events held: September 2021 and February 2022
Table 2	Received: September, October 2021 and February 2022
Table 2	Open cases: February 2022
Table 6	Valid to decision mean weeks, Hearings February 2022
Table 6	Standard deviation, Hearing February 2022
Table 7	Specialist casework, median, mean and standard deviation February 2022

Annex F - Quarterly data tables

Year	Quarter	received	decided
2017/18	Apr - Jun	3,108	2,600
2017/18	Jul - Sep	3,131	2,680
2017/18	Oct - Dec	3,684	2,727
2017/18	Jan - Mar	3,436	2,731
2018/19	Apr - Jun	3,104	2,428
2018/19	Jul - Sep	3,192	2,431
2018/19	Oct - Dec	3,074	2,740
2018/19	Jan - Mar	2,867	2,665
2019/20	Apr - Jun	3,203	3,540
2019/20	Jul - Sep	2,849	3,705
2019/20	Oct - Dec	2,772	3,350
2019/20	Jan - Mar	2,900	2,759
2020/21	Apr - Jun	2,632	1,514
2020/21	Jul - Sep	2,647	2,253
2020/21	Oct - Dec	2,783	2,879
2020/21	Jan - Mar	2,833	2,467
2021/22	Apr - Jun	2,581	2,325
2021/22	Jul - Sep	2,693	2,127
2021/22	Oct - Dec	2,729	2,214
2021/22	Jan - Mar	2,677	2,309

Table B S78 planning appeals, percentage allowed by procedure type

Year	Quarter	Written Representations	Hearings	Inquiries	All
2017/18	Apr - Jun	29%	41%	51%	30%
2017/18	Jul - Sep	30%	41%	52%	31%
2017/18	Oct - Dec	31%	46%	43%	32%
2017/18	Jan - Mar	32%	48%	36%	33%
2018/19	Apr - Jun	30%	48%	51%	32%
2018/19	Jul - Sep	30%	48%	45%	32%
2018/19	Oct - Dec	26%	33%	51%	27%
2018/19	Jan - Mar	28%	36%	38%	29%
2019/20	Apr - Jun	26%	51%	52%	27%
2019/20	Jul - Sep	23%	37%	42%	24%
2019/20	Oct - Dec	22%	42%	43%	23%
2019/20	Jan - Mar	21%	45%	48%	23%
2020/21	Apr - Jun	21%	37%	25%	21%
2020/21	Jul - Sep	24%	41%	55%	25%
2020/21	Oct - Dec	25%	37%	58%	26%
2020/21	Jan - Mar	25%	35%	53%	26%
2021/22	Apr - Jun	30%	34%	55%	31%
2021/22	Jul - Sep	27%	42%	58%	28%
2021/22	Oct - Dec	27%	41%	59%	28%
2021/22	Jan - Mar	28%	32%	51%	29%

Table C s78 planning appeals, number allowed by procedure type

Year	Quarter	Written Representations	Hearings	Inquiries	All
2017/18	Apr - Jun	701	56	35	792
2017/18	Jul - Sep	732	61	41	834
2017/18	Oct - Dec	768	72	23	863
2017/18	Jan - Mar	811	65	33	909
2018/19	Apr - Jun	679	62	29	770
2018/19	Jul - Sep	683	63	23	769
2018/19	Oct - Dec	666	44	24	734
2018/19	Jan - Mar	702	38	21	761
2019/20	Apr - Jun	877	62	31	970
2019/20	Jul - Sep	805	55	24	884
2019/20	Oct - Dec	683	67	27	777
2019/20	Jan - Mar	532	84	32	648
2020/21	Apr - Jun	304	19	2	325
2020/21	Jul - Sep	537	17	6	560
2020/21	Oct - Dec	695	38	22	755
2020/21	Jan - Mar	588	39	16	643
2021/22	Apr - Jun	635	40	39	714
2021/22	Jul - Sep	537	40	29	606
2021/22	Oct - Dec	553	41	23	617
2021/22	Jan - Mar	602	31	35	668

Background notes

Data sources

Horizon / Picaso – The main casework management systems used for processing appeals casework (note that Picaso is no longer a live system).

SAP HR – The Human Resources system database used to store all information regarding members of staff.

Compliance with the Code of Practice for Statistics

These statistics have been published in accordance with the Code of Practice for Statistics, which cover trustworthiness, quality, and value. They have been pre-announced, and publication is overseen by the Head of Profession.

Technical Notes

A Background Quality Report is published alongside this Statistical Release. It provides more detail on the quality of statistics in this publication.

Term	Explanation
Data quality	Data on cases is taken from a live casework system, and details of cases can change for a number of reasons even after a decision has been made. We are seeking to get a better understanding of the nature and volume of these changes and will provide further information as it is available.
Data quality	We carry out regular checks on the quality of our data and may undertake ad hoc data cleansing exercises.  Therefore, all the data for the last 12 rolling months is published in provisional form.
Data quality	We have indicated in this publication any data where a number of cases has changed by more than five cases in a month; or where a measure (mean, median or standard deviation) has changed by more than 0.5 weeks.
Measuring weeks	Data are measured in days and then converted to weeks.
Measuring weeks	Note that not all decimal values are possible where converting days to weeks. 1 day is 1/7 of a week, or 0.14 weeks (to two decimal places). 2 days = 0.29; 3 days = 0.43; 4 days = 0.57; 5 days = 0.71; 6 days = 0.86.
Measuring weeks	When these are used to calculate averages, or displayed to one decimal place, the result will not equate to a full day which can be misleading: it may appear that we are measuring part days (e.g. 19.8 weeks) but we only measure in whole days.

Glossary

Term	Explanation
Appeals	The right to appeal a planning decision made by a local authority is a key feature of the planning system, as is appealing when an authority is taking too long.
Appeals decided	Number of appeals by the date the appeal was decided by The Planning Inspectorate.
Appeals received	Number of appeals by the date the appeal was received by The Planning Inspectorate.
Applications	Planning Inspectorate manage the application process for proposed Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs) within England and Wales in line with the 2008 Planning Act.
Closed	The total number of appeals decided, withdrawn, or turned away.
Decision	The outcome of the case e.g. appeal allowed or rejected. The date of the decision is taken as the date a decision letter is sent to the appellant.
Event	A site visit, hearing, or inquiry (may be virtual)
Event Type	The different options of how an Inspector visits a site for a written representations appeal.
Examinations	The process of examining local plans is dealt with by the Planning Inspectorate. Every Local Planning Authority is required to have a local plan.  This includes a vision for the future and plan to address housing needs in the area.
Examinations	When a Local Planning Authority has finished preparing and consulting on a local plan it must be submitted to the Secretary of State who appoints an Inspector to carry out an independent examination.
FTE	Full Time Equivalent – a count of employees where those working part time are counted in proportion with their contracted hours.
Headcount	Total number of staff employed regardless of how many hours they work (i.e. the number of different individuals).
Hearings	A hearing involves the submission of written evidence by the main parties and a hearing once all the written submissions have been received.
Hearings	This takes the form of a round-the-table discussion (in person or virtually) that will be led by the planning inspector. It allows for all parties to respond to any questions that the inspector might have, and to let everyone make their case known.
Hearings	Source: Planning Portal
Inquiries	An inquiry is usually used for complex cases where legal issues may need to be considered. The main parties will usually have legal representatives to present their case and to cross-examine any witnesses. Prior to the inquiry date, the Planning Inspectorate will expect to have received various documents from all parties that will be taking part in the appeal. These may include statements of case and proofs of evidence from expert witnesses. Third parties may also take part. The inquiry will be led by the inspector and will follow a formal procedure.
Inquiries	At some point during or on conclusion of the inquiry the inspector and the main parties will undertake a site visit.
Inquiries	Source: Planning Portal
Live appeals	Number of live appeals in that have an appeal valid date but no end date (either decision date or a closed date, e.g. for appeals that have been withdrawn).
Mean	The total time taken divided by the number of cases. Also referred to as the ‘average’. A measure of how long each case would take, if the total time taken was spread evenly across all cases.
Median	This is the time taken by the ‘middle’ case if all cases were sorted from quickest to longest
Open Cases	Number of cases that have been received but on which a decision has not yet been made/ issued. Will differ from Live Appeals as it includes those received but not yet verified.
Procedure Type	The method by which The Planning Inspectorate processes and decides appeals.
Standard deviation	This is a measure of variability or spread. It is calculated by examining how much each value differs from the mean. A higher standard deviation means the individual decision times vary more widely around the mean.
Written Representations	Most planning appeals are decided by the written representations’ procedure. With this procedure the Inspector considers written evidence from the appellant, the LPA and anyone else who has an interest in the appeal. The site is also likely to be visited.

Contact Us

The Planning Inspectorate welcome feedback on our statistical products. If you have any comments or questions about this publication or about our statistics in general, you can contact us as follows:

Media enquiries 0303 444 5004 email press.office@planninginspectorate.gov.uk

Public enquiries email statistics@planninginspectorate.gov.uk

Please note we are currently reviewing our statistics with a view to making them as clear and helpful as possible for users. We would be delighted if you could contact us via the address below with any views on this approach; particularly on what content would be most useful and why.

email statistics@planninginspectorate.gov.uk

If you require information which is not available within this or other available publications, you may wish to submit a Request for Information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 to the Planning Inspectorate.