Planning Performance Statistics 2021/2022: Annual and Quarterly (October 2021 to March 2022)

Statistics on planning application decision-making timescales for 2021-2022. Data are collected as part of the Planning Performance Framework from local and planning authorities. Quarters 3 and 4 statistics are also published. Historic annual statistics back to 2017-2018 are presented.


6. Major Developments

Major developments include applications for developments of housing (50 or more homes or large sites where the main use is for housing), as well as other applications covering areas of development such as minerals, business & industry, waste management, electricity generation, freshwater fish farming, marine finfish farming, marine shellfish farming and other developments.

Classification between local and major developments depends on the particular development type. For example, housing developments are classed as major when the application is for 50 or more dwellings or for a site that exceeds two hectares, whereas electricity generation is classed as major when the capacity of the generating station is or exceeds 20 megawatts.

6.1. All Major Developments

There were 285 major development applications determined in 2021/22, a slight rise on 2020/21. The longer term trend is declining numbers of major applications. Those not subject to processing agreements had an average decision time of 44.6 weeks. Average decision times have been longer in the years affected by pandemic-related pressures.

It is common for major applications to take a long time to be decided. This will depend on the details of the development. Very long decision times affect the average (mean). The middle value (median) of decision times for major applications was much lower than the average (44.6 wks) at 27.7 weeks.

Chart 11: All Major Developments
A stacked column chart showing number of major applications decided since 2017/18. Also a line chart of average decision times for major applications without processing agreements. Numbers of applications increased slightly in 2021/22, but the longer term trend is declining numbers. Average decision times rose in 2020/21 and again in 2021/22 to 44.6 weeks, 11 weeks longer than 2019/20.

In 2021/22 there were 98 major development applications with processing agreements, 59% of these met agreed timescales that had been set between developers and local authorities. The percentage meeting timescales has been lower during the last two years than in prior years. Again, this is likely to be due to the unpredictable impacts of the pandemic. Processing agreements are typically used for about a third of all major development applications. This is a higher rate than for local applications.

Chart 12: Applications for Major Developments with processing agreements
A line chart showing the number of major applications with processing agreements and the percentage processed within agreed timescales since 2017/18. The number of processing agreements is fairly steady at around 100 making up about a third of applications. The percentage within agreed timescales has fallen since 2018/19 by over 14 percentage points to 59%.

6.2. Major Housing Developments

Major housing developments are those with 50 or more dwellings or with a site area of 2 hectares or more where the main use is for housing.

There were 123 major housing development applications determined in 2021/22. Applications have been relatively low in the past two years, falling by about a quarter from 2019/20. Those not subject to processing agreements had an average decision time of 54.3 weeks. This is markedly longer than in 2019/20 (37.5 wks).

Again, very long decision times affect the average (mean) for these developments. The middle value (median) of decision times for major applications was much lower than the average (54.3 wks) at 32.6 weeks.

There were 45 Major Housing development applications with processing agreements, under half (49%) of these met agreed timescales that had been set between developers and local authorities.

Chart 13: Major Housing Developments
A stacked column chart showing number of major housing applications decided since 2017/18. Also a line chart of average decision times for major housing applications without processing agreements. Numbers of applications dipped in 2020/21 and 2021/22. Average decision times were much higher in 2020/21 and 2021/22 and were almost 17 weeks longer than 2019/20.

6.3. Major Business and Industry Developments

These include construction of a building or structure for any of the following: use as an office, for research and development of products or processes, for any industrial process or for use for storage or as a distribution centre. To be classed as major the gross floor space must exceed 10,000 square metres or the site must exceed 2 hectares.

There were 29 major business and industry development applications determined in 2021/22, eight more than in the previous year. Those not subject to processing agreements had an average decision time of 21.7 weeks. Unlike the pattern for other types of development this was shorter than prior years.

There were six major business and industry development applications with processing agreements, 83.3% of these met agreed timescales that had been set between developers and local authorities.

Chart 14: Major Business and Industry Developments
A stacked column chart showing number of major business and industry applications decided since 2017/18. Also a line chart of average decision times for major business and industry applications without processing agreements. Numbers of applications vary, but 2021/22 has the largest number in this time period (29). Average decision times have been gradually falling since 2017/18 to 21.7 weeks in 2021/22.

6.4. Major Applications by Development Type

The shortest average decision time of 21.7 weeks was for business and industry developments (10% of all major developments). The longest average decision time was for housing applications (54.3 weeks, 43% of all major developments).

Chart 15: Major Developments by Development Type: Number of decisions
Bar chart showing the breakdown of major developments by development type. Housing the largest type, Other Developments is second largest and Electricity Generation is third largest.
Chart 16: Major Developments by Development Type: Average decision time (weeks)
Bar chart showing the average decision time for major developments by development type. Business and industry applications had the shortest average time at 21.7 weeks, Housing had the longest at 54.3 weeks.

6.5. Major Applications by Planning Authority

Numbers of decisions made for major developments are very small compared to those for local developments. Chart 17 shows the numbers by Planning Authority. Average decision times will vary widely and a single application can have a large effect on the average.

Chart 17: Major Developments by Planning Authority: Number of decisions
Bar chart showing the number of major applications for each planning authority. Edinburgh had the largest (29), followed by Glasgow then Fife. Cairngorms and Loch Lomond National Parks had none.

Contact

Email: Planning_Stats@gov.scot

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