Official Statistics

Planning Inspectorate statistical release 22 February 2024

Published 22 February 2024

Applies to England

1. Introduction

This statistical release provides summary information on appeals, which represent the highest volume (in terms of number of cases) of the Planning Inspectorate’s work. These statistics are produced each month and the focus is on timeliness of decision-making, an area of particular interest for stakeholders. 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 February 2023 to January 2024
• The time taken to reach decisions
• Number of open cases
• Number of Inspectors

The Planning Inspectorate

The Planning Inspectorate makes decisions and provides recommendations and advice on a range of land use and planning-related issues across England.

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.

1.1 Summary

Time to decide cases

The median decision time for cases decided in January was 30 weeks.

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

Procedure type	Last 12 months	January 2024
Written Representations	30 weeks	30 weeks
Hearings	36 weeks	39 weeks
Inquiries	50 weeks	40 weeks
All Cases	31 weeks	30 weeks

The median time for planning cases was 29 weeks in January 2024. The 12 month median was 29 weeks.

Enforcement decisions made in January 2024 had a median decision time of 49 weeks, with the 12 month median being 54 weeks.

The median time for planning appeals decided by inquiry under the Rosewell Process in January was 35 weeks and over the 12 months to January 2024 was 30 weeks.

Decisions

The Planning Inspectorate made 18,342 appeal decisions in the last 12 months, an average of 1,529 per month. The number of decisions in January 2024 was 1,517.

There were 1,414 written representations decisions in January 2024 and 17,053 in the last 12 months.

There were 803 decisions made on hearings during the last 12 months, and during January 2024, 68 decisions were issued.

There were 486 decisions made on inquiries during the last 12 months, with 35 in January 2024.

Planning Inspectors

There were 424 Planning Inspectors employed by the Inspectorate at the end of January 2024.

2. Decisions, Events & Open Cases

The number of decisions issued in January 2024 was 1,517, with a monthly average of 1,529 over the past 12 months.

The number of events recorded for January 2024 was 1,953, the average over the past 12 months was 1,535.

The median valid to decision time was 30 weeks in January 2024, as seen in Figure 1 and Table 1 below. The median valid to decision time has risen slightly (0.7 weeks higher than December).

There are no clear trends for the number of events and decisions per month. However, the Christmas and Easter breaks do impact on the number of events arranged for December and April.

Figure 1: Number of events held , decisions issued and median time between valid date & decision date; February 2023 to January 2024

Source: Horizon

Table 1: Number of events held, decisions issued and median time between valid date & decision date; February 2023 to January 2024.

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

Month	Feb-23	Mar-23	Apr-23	May-23	Jun-23	Jul-23	Aug-23	Sep-23	Oct-23	Nov-23	Dec-23	Jan-24	Total
Events Held	1,643	1,391	1,191	1,548	1,585	1,433	1,611	1,499	1,813	1,626	1,132	1,953	18,425
Decisions	1,618	1,677	1,305	1,436	1,488	1,517	1,484	1,621	1,651	1,609	1,419	1,517	18,342
Median	28.4	29.3	28.9	30.0	31.6	33.3	31.0	31.4	30.4	31.9	29.4	30.1	30.6

Source: Horizon

Figure 2 below shows the number of cases received, closed and open for each of the last 12 months. The number of cases closed has exceeded the number of cases received for each of the past seven months.

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.

Figure 2: Number of cases received, closed and open; February 2023 to January 2024.

Source: Horizon

Note: 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.

Table 2: Number of cases received, closed and open; February 2023 to January 2024.

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

Month	Feb-23	Mar-23	Apr-23	May-23	Jun-23	Jul-23	Aug-23	Sep-23	Oct-23	Nov-23	Dec-23	Jan-24	Total
Received	1,571	1,906	1,445	1,787	1,616	1,726	1,608	1,618	1,676	1,704	1,459	1,491	19,607
Closed	1,787	1,863	1,445	1,611	1,777	1,745	1,692	1,833	1,870	1,826	1,622	1,776	20,847
Open	14,497	14,502	14,493	14,645	14,473	14,455	14,427	14,210	14,063	13,820	13,693	13,570

Source: Horizon

3. Number of Decisions

The Planning Inspectorate has made 18,342 appeal decisions in the last 12 months. There were 1,517 cases decided in January 2024.

Table 3 below shows the monthly breakdown with fewer decisions for the month of April 2023 and September, October and November being among the highest.

Table 3: Appeal Decisions; February 2023 to January 2024.

Month	Feb-23	Mar-23	Apr-23	May-23	Jun-23	Jul-23	Aug-23	Sep-23	Oct-23	Nov-23	Dec-23	Jan-24	Total
Decisions	1,618	1,677	1,305	1,436	1,488	1,517	1,484	1,621	1,651	1,609	1,419	1,517	18,342

Source: Horizon

Figure 3 – Appeal Decisions; February 2023 to January 2024.

Source: Horizon

3.1 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 over the past 12 months (17,053) were made on written representations. This is 93% of all appeal decisions made. Table 4 shows that written representation decisions have varied from around 1,220 to around 1,560 per month over the past 12 months. There were 1,414 decisions in January 2024.

There were 803 decisions made on hearings during the last 12 months, the monthly average being 67. During January 2024 68 decisions were issued. In January 2024 35 decisions were made for inquiries. Decisions for inquiries per month over the last year have ranged between 28 and 67.

Table 4: Appeal Decisions by Procedure and Casework Category; February 2023 to January 2024.

Month	Feb-23	Mar-23	Apr-23	May-23	Jun-23	Jul-23	Aug-23	Sep-23	Oct-23	Nov-23	Dec-23	Jan-24	Total
Written Representations	1,495	1,529	1,220	1,307	1,400	1,418	1,392	1,516	1,557	1,493	1,312	1,414	17,053
Hearings	77	81	57	89	59	65	63	59	54	67	64	68	803
Inquiries	46	67	28	40	29	34	29	46	40	49	43	35	486
Total	1,618	1,677	1,305	1,436	1,488	1,517	1,484	1,621	1,651	1,609	1,419	1,517	18,342
Month	Feb-23	Mar-23	Apr-23	May-23	Jun-23	Jul-23	Aug-23	Sep-23	Oct-23	Nov-23	Dec-23	Jan-24	Total
Planning	1,397	1,389	1,110	1,188	1,257	1,257	1,259	1,339	1,402	1,339	1,210	1,252	15,399
Enforcement	169	235	138	149	169	208	192	225	187	228	151	207	2,258
Specialist	52	53	57	99	62	52	33	57	62	42	58	58	685
Total	1,618	1,677	1,305	1,436	1,488	1,517	1,484	1,621	1,651	1,609	1,419	1,517	18,342

Source: Horizon

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 served by a local planning authority for alleged breaches of planning control), enforcement listed building notice appeals and lawful development certificate appeals.

What are Specialist cases? Specialist casework includes Common Land, Rights of Way orders (including Schedule 14 cases), Purchase orders, Tree Preservation Orders, High Hedges appeals, Hedgerow appeals, Wayleave, Compulsory Purchase Orders, Secretary of State, Transport, Environmental Permitting Appeals and Coastal Access. Additional casework types have been added to this category over time.

The large majority of cases over the past 12 months were planning (15,399). This is about 84% of all appeal decisions made. There were 2,258 enforcement decisions and 685 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 188. Specialist casework figures continue to vary each month, from a high of 99 in May 2023 to a low of 33 in August 2023.

Figure 4 – Appeal Decisions by Procedure and Casework Category; February 2023 to January 2024.

Source: Horizon

4. Decision timeliness

It is important for people to know how long an appeal is going to take, so that they can make informed plans and decisions. 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 31 weeks; and 30 weeks for January 2024. Figure 5 shows the median has ranged from 28 to 33 weeks for each of the last 12 months.

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. This means that any delay in ‘validating’ the appeal is included in the time to make a decision.

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 appeals submitted, or deemed ‘valid’ in that month, will take.

Table 5 also shows the mean decision time for the last 12 months is 36 weeks. Each month the median is less than the mean, due to the impact of very long cases. Also included in the table is the standard deviation of decision timeliness, which is a measure of variation.

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; February 2023 to January 2024.

Month	Feb-23	Mar-23	Apr-23	May-23	Jun-23	Jul-23	Aug-23	Sep-23	Oct-23	Nov-23	Dec-23	Jan-24	Total
Valid to Decision (median weeks)	28.4	29.3	28.9	30.0	31.6	33.3	31.0	31.4	30.4	31.9	29.4	30.1	30.6
Valid to Decision (mean weeks)	34.1	39.5	35.3	37.7	35.7	38.0	35.8	36.6	34.4	36.6	33.7	34.5	36.0
Standard Deviation (weeks)	22.8	35.2	22.5	27.8	20.3	21.9	20.8	21.5	18.8	20.7	19.8	20.3	23.3

Source: Horizon

Figure 5: Median and mean Time to Decision; February 2023 to January 2024.

Note: Specialist casework timeliness measures exclude Tree Preservation Order cases

Source: Horizon

4.1 Procedure Type

Table 6 below shows decision timeliness broken down by the procedure type. Hearings and inquires have typically taken longer than written representations , however, for the past seven months written representations and hearings have had similar median decision times. 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 a small number of large values than mean times, so are the focus of this commentary. The median time for written representations over the 12 months to January 2024 is 30 weeks. The median time for hearings over the 12 months to January 2024 is 36 weeks. The median time to decide for inquiries over the 12 months to January 2024 was 50 weeks.

Table 6: Mean and Median Time to Decision, with Standard Deviation, by Procedure; February 2023 to January 2024.

Note 1: where the number of decisions issued is fewer than 20, the measures mean, median and standard deviation are less meaningful.

Key: WR= Written Representations; HRG= Hearings; INQ= Inquiries; All= All Cases

Measure	Procedure	Feb-23	Mar-23	Apr-23	May-23	Jun-23	Jul-23	Aug-23	Sep-23	Oct-23	Nov-23	Dec-23	Jan-24	Total
Valid to Decision (median weeks)	WR	27.6	28.1	28.1	29.6	31.4	33.3	31.0	31.2	30.4	31.7	29.3	30.0	30.1
Valid to Decision (median weeks)	HRG	38.3	45.1	35.1	56.6	33.6	32.9	29.6	33.0	28.1	32.0	33.6	39.0	35.6
Valid to Decision (median weeks)	INQ	58.0	204.6	79.1	38.4	33.7	43.6	28.4	61.9	39.4	41.0	53.0	40.4	49.8
Valid to Decision (median weeks)	All	28.4	29.3	28.9	30.0	31.6	33.3	31.0	31.4	30.4	31.9	29.4	30.1	30.6
Valid to Decision (mean weeks)	WR	31.9	34.1	33.6	34.3	34.9	36.9	34.8	35.3	34.0	35.7	32.3	33.2	34.3
Valid to Decision (mean weeks)	HRG	52.6	57.9	49.4	70.6	44.4	52.1	49.0	48.0	43.0	42.9	45.4	51.4	51.6
Valid to Decision (mean weeks)	INQ	76.0	139.5	79.6	71.2	56.2	56.4	55.0	63.6	39.3	56.4	59.6	55.6	71.6
Valid to Decision (mean weeks)	All	34.1	39.5	35.3	37.7	35.7	38.0	35.8	36.6	34.4	36.6	33.7	34.5	36.0
Standard Deviation (weeks)	WR	17.9	20.6	20.1	20.5	18.9	20.0	18.0	19.5	18.1	19.1	17.2	17.7	19.0
Standard Deviation (weeks)	HRG	39.0	42.4	30.2	53.2	29.4	37.2	40.1	36.8	34.2	27.0	30.4	39.7	39.0
Standard Deviation (weeks)	INQ	54.6	88.7	40.7	57.2	40.1	35.6	47.2	32.9	15.5	37.7	40.7	34.5	58.1
Standard Deviation (weeks)	All	22.8	35.2	22.5	27.8	20.3	21.9	20.8	21.5	18.8	20.7	19.8	20.3	23.3
Decisions	WR	1,495	1,529	1,220	1,307	1,400	1,418	1,392	1,516	1,557	1,493	1,312	1,414	17,053
Decisions	HRG	77	81	57	89	59	65	63	59	54	67	64	68	803
Decisions	INQ	46	67	28	40	29	34	29	46	40	49	43	35	486
Decisions	All	1,618	1,677	1,305	1,436	1,488	1,517	1,484	1,621	1,651	1,609	1,419	1,517	18,342

Source: Horizon

Note: Tree Preservation Order cases are not included in timeliness measures

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 inquiries have experienced considerable month to month changes in the spread of decision times.

4.2 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 has been 26 weeks and above for each of the last twelve months.

Table 7: Decisions, Mean, Median and Standard Deviation of Time to Decision – Planning, Enforcement, Specialist Cases; February 2023 to January 2024.

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

Casework Category	Measure	Feb-23	Mar-23	Apr-23	May-23	Jun-23	Jul-23	Aug-23	Sep-23	Oct-23	Nov-23	Dec-23	Jan-24	Total
Planning Cases	Valid to Decision (median weeks)	26.1	26.0	26.6	28.7	29.9	31.6	29.0	29.9	29.3	29.9	27.9	29.0	28.7
	Valid to Decision (mean weeks)	30.7	31.5	32.1	33.3	32.5	34.9	32.7	33.3	32.0	32.4	30.2	30.5	32.2
	St. dev. of decision (weeks)	17.8	18.6	20.0	22.3	17.5	19.8	17.4	18.7	16.7	16.5	15.6	14.6	18.1
Enforcement Cases	Valid to Decision (median weeks)	54.1	67.6	57.9	58.4	53.1	53.1	49.9	50.0	48.3	57.7	56.3	48.6	54.1
	Valid to Decision (mean weeks)	60.1	86.1	60.5	68.8	56.0	53.4	54.4	55.2	51.7	57.6	57.7	54.5	59.9
	St. dev. of decision (weeks)	36.1	62.3	26.4	41.0	21.1	22.3	26.5	24.8	23.0	22.6	25.3	30.0	34.2
Specialist Cases	Valid to Decision (median weeks)	45.4	27.4	34.6	44.9	34.3	50.4	34.6	36.4	35.1	51.7	44.9	49.1	38.9
	Valid to Decision (mean weeks)	52.8	42.9	36.7	49.7	48.1	56.2	45.0	43.3	41.9	57.9	50.8	53.3	48.4
	St. dev. of decision (weeks)	36.9	40.7	20.0	32.4	35.1	36.9	37.5	32.7	26.9	42.3	33.4	32.0	35.0

Source: Horizon

Note: Specialist casework timeliness measures exclude Tree Preservation Order cases

Annex A 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 past 12 months had a median decision time of 54 weeks. There are considerably fewer specialist cases which means results are more liable to be distorted by extreme values.

Figure 6 – Median Time to Decision by Casework Category: February 2023 to January 2024p.

Source: Horizon

Note: Specialist casework timeliness measures exclude Tree Preservation Order cases

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 B for further details.

4.3 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 under Rosewell process over the 12 months to January 2024 is 30 weeks and the median time to decision for January 2024 was 35 weeks.

Table 8: Decisions, Mean and Median Time to Decision, Planning Inquiry Cases under Rosewell Process; February 2023 to January 2024.

Note 1: where there are fewer than 20 decisions, the measures mean, median and standard deviation are less meaningful

Measure	Feb-23	Mar-23	Apr-23	May-23	Jun-23	Jul-23	Aug-23	Sep-23	Oct-23	Nov-23	Dec-23	Jan-24	Total
Decisions	15	17	9	20	17	15	21	32	16	24	21	15	222
Median (weeks)	31.7	31.1	24.9	28.6	30.0	24.9	25.3	61.9	37.1	26.2	29.1	35.0	30.0
Mean (weeks)	40.2	33.8	34.9	30.5	34.3	30.0	33.5	47.1	35.2	31.6	44.2	36.0	36.6
St. Dev. (weeks)	29.2	13.7	20.2	8.9	25.8	12.2	16.8	16.2	9.0	11.7	23.0	9.3	18.2

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; February 2023 to January 2024.

Month	Feb-23	Mar-23	Apr-23	May-23	Jun-23	Jul-23	Aug-23	Sep-23	Oct-23	Nov-23	Dec-23	Jan-24	Total
Decisions	5	3	3	0	0	2	0	1	0	2	3	0	19

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

Figure 7: Mean and Median Time to Decision, Rosewell Inquiry Process; February 2023 to January 2024.

Source: Horizon

5. Open Cases

At the end of January 2024, the Planning Inspectorate had 13,514 cases open. More information on the number of open cases, and how it has changed over the past 12 months, is in Table 2 and Figure 2 above.

The open cases comprised of 12,173 cases being handled through written representations; 797 through hearings; and 544 through inquiries, as well as 56 not currently allocated a procedure type. This is not the number of ‘live’ hearings and inquiries since it includes cases where the event (hearing or inquiry) has yet to start, as well as those where the event has finished but the decision has yet to be issued.

Table 10: Open cases by procedure and stage, as of end of January 2024

Stage	WR	HRG	INQ	Total
Case received but yet to be deemed valid	1,370	28	3	1,401
Case deemed valid but yet to “start” [Note 1]	3,203	218	109	3,530
Case started but event (site visit/ hearing/ inquiry) has not yet happened	5,672	443	341	6,456
Event has happened/ started [Note 2] but decision not yet issued	1,928	108	91	2,127
Total	12,173	797	544	13,514

Source: Horizon

Note 1 - there are 53 cases that have no procedure type recorded (see Background Quality Report for more detail) These are included in the total but excluded from the breakdown by procedure.

Note 2 – 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.

6. Inspectors

Table 11 below shows the number of inspectors in the Planning Inspectorate in each month from February 2023 to January 2024 . 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 424 Planning Inspectors employed by the Inspectorate in January 2024 – with a full-time equivalent of 382.

Table 11: Planning Inspectors – Headcount and FTE; February 2023 to January 2024. (at end of month)

Month	Feb-23	Mar-23	Apr-23	May-23	Jun-23	Jul-23	Aug-23	Sep-23	Oct-23	Nov-23	Dec-23	Jan-24
Headcount	412	424	422	422	428	439	437	432	430	428	426	424
FTE	368.1	380.2	378.3	378.6	383.7	394.2	393.2	388.3	386.4	385.2	383.6	381.6

Source: SAP HR

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

7. Annex A – Mean and median time to decision, 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 April, June, July and October 2023 for inquiries decisions.

Procedure	Measure	Feb-23	Mar-23	Apr-23	May-23	Jun-23	Jul-23	Aug-23	Sep-23	Oct-23	Nov-23	Dec-23	Jan-24	Total
Written Representations	Decisions	1,323	1,310	1,059	1,106	1,188	1,191	1,188	1,264	1,344	1,268	1,140	1,197	14,578
Written Representations	Median Average Weeks	26.0	25.9	26.6	28.3	29.9	31.9	29.1	29.7	29.3	30.0	27.9	28.9	28.7
Written Representations	Mean Average Weeks	29.8	30.6	31.4	31.8	32.0	34.2	32.2	32.7	31.7	32.5	29.5	30.2	31.5
Written Representations	Standard Deviation	15.9	17.0	18.7	18.2	16.5	18.1	15.7	17.8	15.8	16.4	14.4	13.7	16.6
Hearings	Decisions	54	59	39	62	52	49	50	42	42	45	46	40	580
Hearings	Median Average Weeks	25.4	40.3	27.0	40.2	31.5	25.4	26.3	25.1	25.0	25.1	24.0	29.0	27.6
Hearings	Mean Average Weeks	41.9	47.6	42.7	61.4	42.9	50.7	43.4	38.0	39.5	31.2	38.2	39.5	43.8
Hearings	Standard Deviation	31.5	32.8	30.6	52.9	29.5	40.5	39.3	31.7	35.0	15.7	28.6	29.2	35.7
Inquiries	Decisions	20	20	12	20	17	17	21	33	16	26	24	15	241
Inquiries	Median Average Weeks	32.5	33.4	28.8	28.6	30.0	27.7	25.3	61.9	37.1	26.2	31.1	35.0	30.9
Inquiries	Mean Average Weeks	55.5	42.7	56.6	30.5	34.3	36.1	33.5	50.2	35.2	34.4	45.4	36.0	41.1
Inquiries	Standard Deviation	41.4	31.5	43.9	8.9	25.8	20.4	16.8	23.7	9.0	19.9	24.0	9.3	26.2
All Planning Cases	Decisions	1,397	1,389	1,110	1,188	1,257	1,257	1,259	1,339	1,402	1,339	1,210	1,252	15,399
All Planning Cases	Median Average Weeks	26.1	26.0	26.6	28.7	29.9	31.6	29.0	29.9	29.3	29.9	27.9	29.0	28.7
All Planning Cases	Mean Average Weeks	30.7	31.5	32.1	33.3	32.5	34.9	32.7	33.3	32.0	32.4	30.2	30.5	32.2
All Planning Cases	Standard Deviation	17.8	18.6	20.0	22.3	17.5	19.8	17.4	18.7	16.7	16.5	15.6	14.6	18.1

Enforcement

Note: where there are fewer than 20 decisions, the measures mean, median and standard deviation are less meaningful. This applies to all months for hearing other than March, May and November 2023 and all months for inquiry decisions other than January, February, March and October 2023.

Procedure	Measure	Feb-23	Mar-23	Apr-23	May-23	Jun-23	Jul-23	Aug-23	Sep-23	Oct-23	Nov-23	Dec-23	Jan-24	Total
Written Representations	Decisions	130	174	112	112	156	185	180	203	156	189	124	167	1,888
Written Representations	Median Average Weeks	48.2	58.1	53.6	56.7	52.9	51.9	48.2	47.6	49.4	55.3	54.5	45.6	51.7
Written Representations	Mean Average Weeks	51.6	60.8	54.1	56.6	54.1	51.9	51.9	51.0	52.8	55.2	54.5	51.3	53.7
Written Representations	Standard Deviation	22.6	24.8	21.9	24.5	17.5	21.3	22.3	19.7	22.9	19.9	19.0	24.5	22.0
Hearings	Decisions	17	20	12	23	6	11	9	13	11	22	15	23	182
Hearings	Median Average Weeks	73.6	67.4	69.9	78.9	50.5	34.0	58.3	75.3	61.0	63.8	62.3	69.7	67.4
Hearings	Mean Average Weeks	87.9	84.1	70.5	96.5	56.6	50.4	74.8	81.9	56.6	66.7	66.3	71.7	74.8
Hearings	Standard Deviation	40.8	51.4	17.8	48.9	25.1	24.8	40.6	34.7	27.0	29.5	26.2	48.1	40.8
Inquiries	Decisions	22	41	14	14	7	12	3	9	20	17	12	17	188
Inquiries	Median Average Weeks	72.6	224.3	114.2	149.3	101.3	80.1	146.1	94.6	46.3	72.7	69.4	81.0	90.9
Inquiries	Mean Average Weeks	89.0	194.1	103.3	120.8	98.2	78.6	146.1	110.2	40.3	73.3	80.5	63.0	107.5
Inquiries	Standard Deviation	61.9	62.9	23.2	63.3	39.2	19.8	0.0	20.2	17.0	29.9	52.6	37.1	68.9
All Enforcement Cases	Decisions	169	235	138	149	169	208	192	225	187	228	151	207	2,258
All Enforcement Cases	Median Average Weeks	54.1	67.6	57.9	58.4	53.1	53.1	49.9	50.0	48.3	57.7	56.3	48.6	54.1
All Enforcement Cases	Mean Average Weeks	60.1	86.1	60.5	68.8	56.0	53.4	54.4	55.2	51.7	57.6	57.7	54.5	59.9
All Enforcement Cases	Standard Deviation	36.1	62.3	26.4	41.0	21.1	22.3	26.5	24.8	23.0	22.6	25.3	30.0	34.2

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.

Procedure	Measure	Feb-23	Mar-23	Apr-23	May-23	Jun-23	Jul-23	Aug-23	Sep-23	Oct-23	Nov-23	Dec-23	Jan-24	Total
Written Representations	Decisions	42	45	49	89	56	42	24	49	57	36	48	50	587
Written Representations	Median Average Weeks	35.6	23.1	31.9	37.9	31.6	48.6	23.6	28.1	34.0	43.6	40.7	42.4	34.3
Written Representations	Mean Average Weeks	40.1	31.5	34.0	42.1	45.3	50.9	31.6	40.4	40.5	49.0	45.7	48.9	42.2
Written Representations	Standard Deviation	26.1	23.9	18.9	28.7	35.2	33.3	20.7	33.5	27.6	35.0	29.2	29.4	30.1
Hearings	Decisions	6	2	6	4	1	5	4	4	1	0	3	5	41
Hearings	Median Average Weeks	30.3	99.1	37.6	71.5	-	70.9	63.8	37.2	-	-	65.6	57.1	63.8
Hearings	Mean Average Weeks	30.3	99.1	52.6	64.4	-	70.0	61.9	37.2	-	-	65.6	57.1	62.3
Hearings	Standard Deviation	0.0	55.9	24.3	26.4	-	12.2	16.4	1.1	-	-	0.0	7.8	27.7
Inquiries	Decisions	4	6	2	6	5	5	5	4	4	6	7	3	57
Inquiries	Median Average Weeks	111.6	69.9	51.9	97.5	68.3	42.7	65.9	59.9	47.1	93.6	78.4	113.6	70.0
Inquiries	Mean Average Weeks	106.1	88.7	51.9	91.3	71.7	71.9	90.6	68.9	50.2	103.9	72.3	111.8	82.8
Inquiries	Standard Deviation	26.3	58.3	3.0	23.6	23.9	58.4	59.4	21.9	20.7	46.6	43.1	16.6	44.3
All Specialist Cases	Decisions	52	53	57	99	62	52	33	57	62	42	58	58	685
All Specialist Cases	Median Average Weeks	45.4	27.4	34.6	44.9	34.3	50.4	34.6	36.4	35.1	51.7	44.9	49.1	38.9
All Specialist Cases	Mean Average Weeks	52.8	42.9	36.7	49.7	48.1	56.2	45.0	43.3	41.9	57.9	50.8	53.3	48.4
All Specialist Cases	Standard Deviation	36.9	40.7	20.0	32.4	35.1	36.9	37.5	32.7	26.9	42.3	33.4	32.0	35.0

Tree Preservation order decisions have been removed from the average time calculations in this table due to problems with recorded validation dates, which mean that we are currently unable to accurately calculate their decision times.

8. Annex B – Detailed Information on timeliness (January 2024)

The information below is published today on the number and length of decisions made in January 2024 :

Note 1: when there are fewer than 20 decisions the measures mean, median and standard deviation are less meaningful.

Casework Type	Procedure Type	Median (weeks)	Mean (weeks)	Decisions
s78 planning appeals	Written Representations	31.7	33.8	817
s78 planning appeals	Hearings	28.1	39.5	39
s78 planning appeals	Inquiries	35.0	36.0	15
Householder appeals	Written Representations	18.1	20.8	301
Enforcement appeals	Written Representations	45.6	51.3	167
Enforcement appeals	Hearings	69.7	71.7	23
Enforcement appeals	Inquiries	81.0	63.0	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:

Measure	s78 Written Representations	s78 Hearings	s78 Inquiries	Householder appeals
Weeks between valid date & start date
Median (average)	11.4	3.8	3.4	6.4
Mean (average)	10.8	4.5	2.8	7.1
Cases that started in January 2024	931	42	19	333
Weeks between start date & event date
Median (average)	12.1	14.6	16.0	8.0
Mean (average)	14.9	13.7	30.1	9.8
Cases where an event occurred during January 2024	1023	52	26	433
Weeks between event date & decision date
Median (average)	5.0	6.4	15.0	3.3
Mean (average)	6.3	10.1	15.2	4.5
Cases that have been decided in January 2024	817	39	15	301

Note: Only cases with both dates recorded appear in this table, meaning that numbers for cases decided and events recorded may be lower than those presented elsewhere.

Explanation of date terminology

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 here - https://www.gov.uk/appeal-planning-decision/after-you-appeal

9. Annex D – Revisions to the data tables

This Annex lists all revisions made to the data since the last statistical release.

Note: Classed as a revision are any values which have changed by more than five (when measuring number of decisions/ cases) or more than 0.5 weeks (for mean, median or standard deviation of weeks).

Timeliness measures for all 12 months have been reproduced without Tree Preservation Order cases in this publication. This is due to problems with recorded validation dates, which mean that we are currently unable to accurately calculate their decision times.

Table	Revisions
Table 1	Events held: August - December 2023
Table 1	Decisions: December 2023
Table 2	Received: October - December 2023
Table 2	Closed: December 2023
Table 2	Open Cases: November and December 2023
Table 3	Decisions: December 2023
Table 4	Enforcement Decisions: December 2023
Table 4	Total Decisions: December 2023
Table 6	Valid to decision median weeks: inquiries December 2023
Table 6	Valid to decision mean weeks: hearings September 2023
Table 6	Valid to decision mean weeks: inquiries December 2023
Table 6	Standard Deviation: hearings September 2023
Table 6	Standard Deviation: inquiries December 2023
Table 7	Enforcement cases: Valid to decision median weeks: December 2023
Table 7	Enforcement cases: Valid to decision mean weeks: December 2023
Table 7	Specialist cases: Valid to decision median weeks: December 2023
Table 7	Specialist cases: Valid to decision mean weeks December 2023
Annex A Planning	Mean weeks: Hearings September 2023
Annex A Planning	Standard Deviation: Hearings September 2023
Annex A Enforcement	Median weeks: Written Representations December 2023
Annex A Enforcement	Mean weeks: Hearings December 2023
Annex A Enforcement	Standard Deviation: Hearings December 2023
Annex A Enforcement	Decisions: inquiries December 2023
Annex A Enforcement	Median weeks: Inquiries December 2023
Annex A Enforcement	Mean weeks: Inquiries December 2023
Annex A Enforcement	Standard Deviation: Inquiries December 2023
Annex A Specialist	Median weeks: Written Representations December 2023
Annex A Specialist	Mean weeks: Written Representations June 2023 & December 2023

10. 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.

10.1 Technical Notes

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

	Definition
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.

11. 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.

12. 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. For more information, see: https://www.gov.uk/make-a-freedom-of-information-request/the-freedom-of-information-act