Bexley planning: 95.3% of householder cases approved and a new design SPD to read first
Bexley planning decisions covered 939 householder applications in 2025-26, and the council granted 895 of them. That is an approval rate of 95.3%, the second highest of 32 London boroughs and well above the London figure of 85.6%. The council also decided 99.2% of standard cases within eight weeks. Its Design Guide SPD Part 2, on building alterations and extensions, is the document an officer will measure your drawings against.
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How does Bexley Council decide householder applications?
Bexley approves a higher share of householder applications than any London borough except Hammersmith and Fulham, and decides almost all standard cases inside eight weeks.
Measure
Bexley
London
England
Householder applications decided, 2025-26
939
24,758
151,867
Householder approval rate
95.3%
85.6%
90.3%
Decided within 8 weeks (standard cases)
99.2%
—
—
Large extension prior approvals decided
96
—
—
Large extension prior approvals refused
8.3%
—
—
Householder appeals allowed, five years
32.7%
39.9%
34.4%
Approval, speed and prior approvals: MHCLG district planning application statistics (PS1/PS2), financial year 2025-26; the eight-week figure is 839 of 846 decisions excluding planning performance agreements and extensions of time. Appeals: Planning Inspectorate casework, five years to 30 June 2026, 50 of 153 determined householder appeals allowed. Derived in scripts/aggregate/.
Does a 95.3% approval rate make a Bexley extension easy?
Not automatically. Bexley refused 44 of 939 householder cases, which puts it 2nd of the 32 boroughs with a published rate. A rate is an average across every applicant, and it says nothing about your design. Schemes that fit the council's published tests have the best odds, and the tests below are where to start.
Speed is the other half. In 2025-26, 839 of 846 standard decisions came within eight weeks, 99.2% and 2nd of 32. A further 93 decisions fell under planning performance agreements or agreed extensions of time, and 91 of those were made within the agreed time. The council also decided 96 large home extension prior approvals and refused 8, or 8.3%.
On appeal, the Planning Inspectorate allowed 50 of 153 householder appeals against Bexley over five years, 32.7%, which is 1.7 points below the national rate. Bexley sits 27th of 32 on that measure, so appellants win less often than in most London boroughs.
What does Bexley's Design Guide SPD Part 2 say about extensions?
The council's page lists Design Guide SPD Part 2, Building Alterations and Extensions, as adopted on 29 June 2026. The PDF cover says June 2026, but its body still says once adopted and cites the 1995 General Permitted Development Order, so read the council's page for the current status. The guidance expects a single-storey rear extension to be typically 3.5m deep, with eaves of 3.1m and a highest point of 4m. For a detached house it applies a 45 degree rule, or 3.5m, whichever is greater. It also limits depth to no more than half the garden length and says cumulative extensions should leave at least half the garden.
3.5m Typical rear depth
3.1m / 4m Eaves / highest point
29 Jun 2026 SPD page date
What else does the Bexley SPD expect for lofts, side extensions and outbuildings?
The Design Guide SPD Part 2 is a set of tests an officer applies when an application is needed, not a list of permitted development limits.
Project
What the SPD says
Where national limits sit
Side extension
Less than half the original width of the house, not beyond the front elevation. Two-storey side extensions are generally resisted where gaps between houses are consistent.
Class A also limits side extensions to half the original width
Loft: front dormer
Front dormers are not typically acceptable.
Class B does not allow a dormer on a roof slope forming the principal elevation that fronts a highway
Loft: hip-to-gable
Supported only where symmetry is restored, or a semi has limited scope to extend to the side.
Class B volume limits of 40 or 50 cubic metres apply
Garage conversion
Generally acceptable if parking remains.
Internal work is usually not development; check for a parking condition
Outbuilding
Leave 50% of the garden open; one storey, 3.1m eaves and 4m overall within 2m of the boundary.
Class E allows outbuildings within its own limits
Sources: London Borough of Bexley, Design Guide SPD Part 2 Building Alterations and Extensions (PDF, June 2026 cover; council page gives 29 June 2026 as adoption date), read 13 October 2026; GPDO 2015 Schedule 2 Part 1. The SPD is guidance, and a planning application is judged against the development plan as well.
How many conservation areas and Article 4 directions does Bexley have?
The council's conservation pages say there are 23 conservation areas, a figure repeated in its Local Plan and Design Guide SPD. The national planning data register records 31 for Bexley. We have not reconciled the two, so the council's list is the one to check your address against. The council lists Sidcup with 8 areas, Red House Lane in Bexleyheath and Old Bexley, and it does not list Welling, Blackfen, Danson or Lamorbey as conservation areas.
The council's pages describe four Article 4(2) directions in conservation areas, for Brook Street, Old Bexley, Old Forge Way and Red House Lane. The Brook Street, Old Bexley and Red House Lane directions name individual properties, while the Old Forge Way direction covers every property, the roadway and footway within that conservation area. The controls differ by direction and by property, and include alterations and enlargements, attic rooms, windows, roofing materials, rendering, porches, painting and front boundary walls and fences. Class E to C3 directions (the Class MA right) cover 13 town centres, in force 10 December 2025, and industrial areas, in force 8 January 2025, applying to selected buildings shown on maps. The council says its small HMO Article 4 direction covers the whole borough and came into force on 24 September 2017.
What does the Green Belt mean for Bexley planning?
The council says Green Belt makes up 18% of the borough, about 1,110 hectares. Its Local Plan Policy SP8 protects Metropolitan Green Belt and Metropolitan Open Land from inappropriate development. The council's Local Development Scheme of March 2025 includes a government-mandated Green Belt review in its March 2025 to March 2027 work programme. If your home sits near the edge of the built area, check the policies map for your address before you assume a standard suburban extension test applies.
What does Bexley ask for in a householder application?
The council's application requirements PDF lists a short set of drawings for a householder application, and it says it was reviewed and updated on 17 October 2018.
Location plan at 1:1250 or 1:2500. For the block plan the requirements document gives 1:500 or 1:200 in its general guidance but 1:100 or 1:200 in its householder checklist, so confirm with the council
Floor plans and elevations at 1:50 or 1:100
Roof plans and sections only where necessary and requested by the validation officer
A design and access statement where the property is in a conservation area and the new floorspace is 100 square metres or more
Pre-application advice is available for householders in the council's Category G, with a written response within 15 working days and a fee
What housing stock do Bexley extensions and lofts start from?
More than four in ten Bexley homes were built between the wars, the third highest share in London, a stock that typically suits side and rear extensions and loft work.
Build period
Share of homes
What usually follows
Before 1919
10.9%
A small share of the stock, 29th of 33 boroughs
1919 to 1939
41.0%
Interwar semis and terraces; the usual starting point for rear extensions and hip-to-gable lofts
1945 to 1972
22.1%
Post-war housing, including flats, which do not have the householder permitted development rights that houses have
Shares of the 101,280 Bexley dwellings with a recorded build period. Source: Valuation Office Agency, council tax stock of properties (CTSOP4.1), as at 31 March 2025. The published bands have a genuine gap over 1940 to 1944, so the rows do not sum to 100%. Rank across the 33 London boroughs is computed from the same data.
What should you check first for Bexley planning?
Start with three checks. Does the address fall in one of the 23 conservation areas or on a property covered by an Article 4(2) direction? Does the scheme sit inside the SPD's depth, width and garden tests? Is any of the site in Green Belt? Bexley planning decisions turn on those points before the detailed design is reached, and the council's Local Plan, adopted on 26 April 2023, sits alongside the London Plan as the development plan.
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How do we prepare a Bexley planning application?
Bexley decides quickly and approves most householder cases, so the work is in a clean first submission that matches the council's published tests.
1
Constraint check
We check the address against the council's conservation area list, its four Article 4(2) directions and the Green Belt policies map.
2
Measured survey
We measure the house as built. National limits run from the original rear wall and roof, and the SPD's depth tests run from the house and garden as they are.
We draw to the scales the council accepts and test the scheme against the SPD's rear depth, side width and garden figures.
5
Submission and liaison
We submit to Bexley, answer the case officer and revise the drawings free of charge until the council decides.
Bexley's live approval record
Bexley's approval rate against the national one, refreshed as each quarter of MHCLG data is released.
Source: MHCLG planning application statistics (householder decisions, England, 1 April 2025 - 31 March 2026). Compare every borough on our London approval-rate league table.
95%householder applications approved in Bexley
90.3%national average — Bexley is 4.700000000000003 points above the national average
Frequently asked questions
What percentage of Bexley planning applications are approved?
Bexley granted 95.3% of the householder applications it decided in the 2025-26 financial year, 895 of 939, with 44 refused. That is the second highest of the 32 London boroughs with a published rate, against 85.6% across London and 90.3% across England. The council also decided 99.2% of its standard cases within eight weeks.
What is the current Bexley Local Plan?
The council's development plan page lists the Bexley Local Plan, adopted on 26 April 2023, alongside the Mayor's London Plan and the Policies Map. Its Local Development Scheme of March 2025 includes a Green Belt review and sets an interim timetable that would see a new plan submitted in March 2030 and adopted in October 2030. Until then the 2023 plan remains the adopted one.
How many conservation areas are there in Bexley?
The council's pages say 23, a figure repeated in its Local Plan and Design Guide SPD. The national planning data register records 31 for Bexley. The two have not been reconciled, so check your address with the council's conservation team. Sidcup has 8 areas on the council's list, and Red House Lane and Old Bexley are listed too.
Does Bexley have Article 4 directions in conservation areas?
Yes, four Article 4(2) directions according to the council's pages: Brook Street, Old Bexley, Old Forge Way and Red House Lane. The Brook Street, Old Bexley and Red House Lane directions apply to named properties, and Old Forge Way's covers the whole conservation area. The controls vary by property and include alterations and enlargements, attic rooms, windows, roofing, porches and boundary enclosures. Check whether your property is covered before relying on permitted development.
Do I need planning permission for an HMO in Bexley?
Normally yes for a small HMO. The council says its Article 4 direction on small HMOs, which removes permitted development rights for a change from a dwelling to a small HMO, covers the whole borough and came into force on 24 September 2017. A licence is separate; the council names selective licensing for Belvedere ward from 13 January 2025 to 12 January 2030.
How deep can a rear extension be in Bexley?
Under the council's Design Guide SPD Part 2, a single-storey rear extension is typically 3.5m deep, with eaves of 3.1m and a highest point of 4m. For detached houses it applies a 45 degree rule or 3.5m, whichever is greater. Separate national permitted development limits are 3m for a house other than a detached one and 4m for a detached one, or 6m and 8m through prior approval, which does not apply in conservation areas.
Does Bexley allow garage conversions?
The council's SPD says a garage conversion is generally acceptable if parking remains. Internal conversions are usually not development, but a condition on the original permission can require the garage to stay available for parking. Read the decision notice for the house, and check that the front alteration does not need permission where rights have been removed.
Are front dormers acceptable in Bexley?
The council's SPD says front dormers are not typically acceptable. National rules reinforce that: Class B of the General Permitted Development Order does not allow an enlargement beyond the roof slope that forms the principal elevation and fronts a highway. A rear dormer is judged against the volume, set-back and material limits, and in conservation areas Class B does not apply.
What drawings does Bexley need for a householder application?
The council's requirements PDF gives, for example, a location plan at 1:1250 or 1:2500, a block plan at 1:500 or 1:200 (its householder checklist says 1:100 or 1:200), and floor plans and elevations at 1:50 or 1:100. Roof plans and sections are required only where the validation officer asks. It was reviewed on 17 October 2018, so check the council's current page before you submit.
Does Bexley offer pre-application advice?
Yes. The council's pre-application service includes a householder category for extensions and outbuildings, with a written response within 15 working days. It charges a fee, which the council states on its page. Advice is the officers' view at the time and does not bind the council's later decision, but it can flag a depth or width problem early.
How much Green Belt is there in Bexley?
The council says Green Belt covers 18% of the borough, about 1,110 hectares. Its Local Plan Policy SP8 protects Metropolitan Green Belt and Metropolitan Open Land from inappropriate development. If your property is near the boundary, check the council's policies map before you assume a standard suburban extension test applies.
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