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Your planning decision,
decoded in plain English.

Paste your planning reference below. In seconds we'll tell you your local approval rate, how many similar projects were given the green light nearby, and whether a refusal is worth challenging.

Free instant snapshot · Full report £7.99 · Appeal letter £2.99 · If we can't help you, you won't pay a penny.

Check my planning reference →See how it works

Trusted by 4,200+ homeowners across England & Wales

Find this on your decision notice or your council's planning portal. Or upload your decision PDF instead.
4,200+ decisions decoded
312 successful appeals supported
All 333 UK local authorities
Results in under 60 seconds
How it works

Four steps. Under a minute.

No jargon. No waiting on hold. No consultant charging by the hour.

1
Paste or upload
Your planning reference number or decision PDF. That's all we need to get started.
Free
2
Get your free snapshot
Local approval rate, nearby precedents, and appeal likelihood — in seconds, before you pay a thing.
Free
3
Unlock the full report
£7.99 unlocks the complete plain-English decode: every condition, every precedent, cost estimate, professional matches.
£7.99
4
Appeal or get building
Add a drafted appeal letter for £2.99. Or proceed — with a clear green light and full confidence in what your approval requires.
+£2.99 optional
The maths

A planning consultant charges £250/hour.
Your full report and appeal letter costs £10.98.

That's the cost of a round at the pub. No retainer. No hourly rate. No sitting on hold. Just a clear answer — and a drafted letter ready to go.

What's included

Everything you need.
Nothing you don't.

Six features in every report. All of them designed to get you to a clear yes, no, or next step.

📖
Plain English Summary
Your decision decoded into clear, direct language. What was applied for, what was decided, and exactly why — not a word of planning-speak.
✓ Included in every report
🔍
Conditions Explained
Every condition unpacked individually. What it means in practice, what you need to do, and by when — so there are no surprises on site.
✓ Included in every report
📍
Precedent Finder
2–3 similar applications approved nearby, with direct links to the original decisions. If the council gave your neighbour a green light last year, they need a very good reason to refuse yours.
✓ Your strongest appeal weapon
💷
Build Cost Indicator
Ballpark cost range based on your development type, scale, and region. Know roughly what you're facing before you pick up the phone to a builder.
✓ Included in every report
🏗️
Local Professional Matches
Vetted architects, planning consultants, and structural engineers near you — matched to your application type. Warm introductions, not cold searching.
✓ Free warm introductions
💾
Full Case History
Every report saved to your account. Run multiple applications from one place. Return and we'll decode each new response knowing the full story.
✓ Your complete planning record
Your planning account
See it working

From planning-speak
to plain English.

The most common refusal reason in England. Direct from a real decision notice — and what it actually means for your project.

Add the appeal letter for £2.99 and we draft the response — citing the precedents we found, in the tone councils actually respond to.

Original Decision NoticeDecoded ✓

...the proposed development by reason of its massing, scale and design would result in an incongruous form of development harmful to the character and appearance of the area contrary to Policy DM1...

↳ What this actually means:
They think it's too big and looks out of place on your street. This is the most common refusal reason in England — and the most frequently overturned on appeal, especially where similar schemes have been approved nearby.
✓ 14 similar approvals found within 0.6 miles — all linked in your report
★ Premium Feature — Planning Watch

Don't wait three weeks for a letter
that was typed two weeks ago.

When you activate Planning Watch, we monitor your local authority's planning portal every hour. The moment a decision, officer comment, or appeal outcome is published — we decode it and notify you. Not when the council gets round to posting it. Now.

⏱
Hourly monitoring
We scrape your council's planning portal every hour. The average homeowner finds out about a decision 18 days after it's published. You'll know within the hour.
📲
Instant decoded alert
When a response drops, we don't just notify you — we decode it. You get a plain-English summary of what the council said and what it means for your project, immediately.
📋
Full case thread
Every update, response, and officer comment logged to your account in order. By the time you need a planning consultant, you'll have a complete, organised case history ready.
How it works

Every UK council publishes planning decisions on a public portal. We check yours automatically — every hour — comparing against your registered reference. When new content appears, we pull it, decode it with AI, and push your alert within minutes. No scraping grey areas, no data you couldn't find yourself. We just do the watching so you don't have to.

£4.99
per application · per month · cancel anytime
★ Add Planning Watch to my application

Covers all 333 UK local planning authorities · Activate after your first report

Pricing

Less than the cost
of a light lunch.

No hidden fees. No hourly rates. Pay once for your report — or add Planning Watch and never miss an update again.

Decoder Report
£7.99
One-time · No subscription
  • Plain English decision summary
  • All conditions explained individually
  • Precedent finder — nearby approvals
  • Build cost indicator
  • Local professional matches
  • Saved to your account
Report + Appeal Letter
£10.98
Everything above, plus your letter
  • Everything in the Decoder Report
  • Drafted appeal or query letter
  • Cites your exact refusal reasons
  • References nearby precedent cases
  • Council-appropriate tone throughout
  • Ready to send immediately
★ PREMIUM ADD-ON
Planning Watch
£4.99
per application · per month · cancel anytime
  • ★Hourly monitoring of your council portal
  • ★Instant alert the moment a decision drops
  • ★AI-decoded plain English summary — immediately
  • ★Full case thread — every update in order
  • ★Know before the postman does
via LemonSqueezy · Cancel anytime
⚖️ One hour with a planning consultant runs £200–£350. A decoded report, a drafted appeal letter, and a full month of hourly monitoring costs less than £16 total. It is genuinely not a close decision.
What people say

Real homeowners.
Real green lights.

★★★★★
“I'd read that decision notice four times and still had no idea what they actually objected to. Planning Decoder told me in 30 seconds. The precedent examples were the bit that really helped.”
Mark T.
Rear extension · Bristol
✓ Appeal approved
★★★★★
“The appeal letter was better than anything I'd have put together myself. The council came back and approved with minor modifications. Worth every penny — literally.”
Sarah L.
Loft conversion · South London
✓ Approved with modifications
★★★★★
“Used it twice on the same project as the council kept coming back. The account history meant it already knew the whole story the second time. Saved me having to explain it all again.”
James R.
Change of use · Leeds
✓ Fully approved on second attempt
Questions

Things people ask.

Is this actual planning or legal advice?
+
No — and we're upfront about that. Planning Decoder is an information service, not a consultancy. We translate decisions, surface precedents, and draft letters. For complex or high-value cases, we'll always point you to a qualified RTPI planning consultant — and help you find one locally.
What if you can't find my application?
+
If we can't locate your application or can't provide a useful report, we don't charge you. You can also upload your decision notice PDF directly and we'll decode from the document itself.
Which local authorities do you cover?
+
All 333 local planning authorities in England and Wales. Scottish planning decisions use different terminology but are also fully supported.
What if the council replies to my appeal?
+
Return to your account, upload their response, and we decode it knowing the full history of your case. Each new document on the same application is a small separate payment. No subscription, no commitment.
Can I track multiple planning applications?
+
Yes. Create a free account and manage as many applications as you like from one dashboard. Small developers, self-builders, and architects handling multiple sites use this regularly. Ask us about volume rates if you're processing more than five applications.

Time to get your green light.

Paste your planning reference and get your free instant check in under a minute. No payment, no account needed to start.

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Full report £7.99 · Appeal letter add-on £2.99 · If we can't help, you won't pay