Planning performance statistics 2019/2020: annual

Summary statistics on planning decision-making and timescales for April 2019 to March 2020 with historic data going back to 2012/13. It is based on data collected by the Scottish Government from Local and Planning Authorities as part of the Planning Performance Framework (introduced in 2012).


12. Stopping the Clock

Stopping the clock is used where there has been a lengthy delay caused by the applicant or external consultees, outwith the planning authority's control. This helps produce more accurate performance statistics that would otherwise have been skewed by extreme cases of delay outwith the planning authority's control.

For 2019/20 there were 2,256 applications where the clock was stopped for an average of 12.6 weeks. This compares to 1,921 applications stopped for an average of 13.7 weeks in the previous year.

Table 9: Clock stops by planning authority 1,2
Planning Authority Total applications decided in 2019/20 Number of applications with clock stopped Percentage of applications with clock stopped Average time clock stopped (weeks)
Aberdeen City 818 25 3.1% 14.9
Aberdeenshire 1,773 26 1.5% 4.2
Angus 617 0 0% -
Argyll and Bute 1,387 148 10.7% 14.7
Cairngorms National Park 9 0 0% -
Clackmannanshire 268 20 7.5% 32.1
Dumfries and Galloway 1,009 27 2.7% 4.0
Dundee City 619 9 1.5% 10.7
East Ayrshire 490 32 6.5% 16.4
East Dunbartonshire 699 40 5.7% 13.3
East Lothian 981 225 22.9% 5.8
East Renfrewshire 708 130 18.4% 12.1
City of Edinburgh 3,654 8 0.2% 17.6
Falkirk 574 20 3.5% 21.8
Fife 1,669 7 0.4% 14.7
Glasgow City 2,361 526 22.3% 12.7
Highland 2,796 118 4.2% 21.7
Inverclyde 363 58 16.0% 12.0
Loch Lomond and The Trossachs NP 235 71 30.2% 14.6
Midlothian 555 50 9.0% 15.6
Moray 670 183 27.3% 7.9
Na h-Eileanan Siar 463 15 3.2% 15.9
North Ayrshire 556 30 5.4% 8.0
North Lanarkshire 793 31 3.9% 9.3
Orkney Islands 318 89 28.0% 8.5
Perth and Kinross 1,507 80 5.3% 15.8
Renfrewshire 671 103 15.4% 15.2
Scottish Borders 750 0 0 -
Shetland Islands 352 37 10.5% 8.5
South Ayrshire 802 6 0.7% 6.7
South Lanarkshire2 1,519 24 1.6% 23.7
Stirling 702 1 0.1% 6.7
West Dunbartonshire 214 87 40.7% 12.7
West Lothian 849 30 3.5% 26.2
Scotland1,2 31,751 2,256 7.1% 12.6
Table 10: Clock stops by development type
Development Type Total applications decided in 2019/20 Number of applications with clock stops Percentage of applications with clock stops Average length of time clock stopped (weeks)
Local developments        
Householder 12,436 581 4.7% 5.0
Other developments 6,016 503 8.4% 12.8
Housing 4,123 540 13.1% 19.7
Business and industry 1,275 170 13.3% 11.0
AMSCs (under 2 months) 310 39 12.6% 14.0
Telecommunications 261 20 7.7% 7.8
Electricity generation 94 16 17.0% 17.8
Minerals 36 7 19.4% 13.4
Marine finfish farming 20 8 40.0% 16.1
Marine shellfish farming 17 3 17.6% 12.0
Waste management 16 3 18.8% 9.0
Total 24,604 1,890 7.7% 12.2
Major developments        
Housing 116 45 38.8% 37.3
Other developments 53 18 34.0% 21.6
Business and industry 13 3 23.1% 18.6
Electricity generation 12 1 8.3% 11.0
Minerals 8 1 12.5% 71.6
Waste management 1 0 0% -
Marine shellfish farming 1 0 0% -
Total 204 68 33.3% 32.4
Other Consents        
Listed building and conservation area consent 3,307 198 6.0% 10.3
Advertisements 1,844 77 4.2% 8.9
Other consents and certificates 1,760 11 0.6% 7.5
Hazardous substances 8 2 25.0% 7.4
Total 6,919 288 4.2% 9.8
Applications with EIA        
Local applications with EIA 12 4 33.3% 18.3
AMSCs (under 4 months) 7 6 85.7% 49.1
Total 19 10 52.6% 36.8

For 2019/20, householder applications had the most clock stops (581), with 5.0 weeks on average removed from decision times.

There are a variety of reasons why the clock is stopped but stops are often due to delays in concluding legal agreements and waiting for the applicant to sign a planning obligation. Other reasons include site surveys required in relation to European protected species that must await a particular season, external consultants delay or awaiting advert fees to be paid.

Contact

Email: planstats@gov.scot

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