Just 38.7% of smaller planning applications were decided on time against a 70% target, the Q1 report to scrutiny on 8 September shows. Affordable homes doubled.
Cherwell District Council decided 38.7% of its smaller planning applications within the national target time between April and June. Its own target is 70%.
The figure is in Appendix 1 to the council’s quarter one performance report, which goes to the Overview and Scrutiny Committee at 6.30pm on Tuesday 8 September at 39 Castle Quay, Banbury. Smaller, or non-major, applications are the ordinary ones: house extensions, loft conversions, garden buildings, changes of use, shop signs.
The service’s comment on the figure in the report is brief: “The planning improvement work we are delivering will be seeking to reduce this and improve the response time for processing applications.”
Large applications went the other way. Cherwell determined 84.2% of major applications on time against a 60% target, and 0% of major applications decided since April 2025 have been overturned at appeal.
The scorecard
The council tracks 35 targeted measures. In quarter one it rated 27 of them green (77%), four amber and four red.
Three of the four reds are named in the report:
- the share of non-major planning applications decided on time, 38.7% against 70%
- the share of major applications overturned at appeal, 11.2% against a 10% ceiling
- the milestone to adopt the new Local Plan, where the examination timetable sits with the Planning Inspectorate rather than the council
The appeal figure carries context. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government placed Cherwell into Designation for major planning decisions, and the council says an action plan followed. On the newer measurement periods it is now below the 10% ceiling, at 5.1% and 0%.
The report also flags the Graven Hill community sports facility, where the milestone for plans and planning permission slipped. The service says the “programme has been delayed due to continuing discourse over the site layout and underlying ground conditions”.
Housing: 790 homes against a target of 1,582
Tucked into the report is a year-end housing number that was missing from the Executive’s version. Net additional housing completions to meet Cherwell’s own needs came to 790 dwellings against a target of 1,582, a little under half.
The service blames “economic pressures, higher interest rates, global uncertainty and ongoing changes to the planning system”, and adds that progress “in areas such as Bicester and Kidlington has been affected by significant infrastructure constraints”. A Housing Delivery Action Plan is in place and the council says it is working with Homes England.
That shortfall is the same problem behind the Local Plan examination. Cherwell’s Annual Monitoring Report 2025 put its combined housing land supply at 3.1 years at 31 March 2025, a shortfall of 3,773 homes.
Where the quarter went well
The affordable housing figure is the standout. Cherwell recorded 106 affordable completions, against 50 in the same quarter last year. The 106 breaks down as 70 affordable rent homes, four social rent, 24 shared ownership and eight First Homes.
Homelessness numbers moved in the right direction too:
- 71 households in temporary accommodation at the end of June, down from 91 a year earlier
- 20 households in nightly charged hotel accommodation, against a target of 25
- homelessness prevented in 60 of 88 cases, a 68% prevention rate against a 60% target
Housing benefit change events and council tax reduction claims were processed in an average of 2.85 days against an eight-day target, which the council credits to more than 40% of the process now being automated. If you are checking a bill, our Banbury council tax bands page has the current figures.
Leisure centre visits across the district reached 382,447, marginally up on 380,253. Kidlington Leisure Centre alone improved by nearly 19,000 visits. Stratfield Brake has transferred to Kidlington Town Council and no longer counts towards the total.
Bins and recycling
The recycling rate was 52.02% against a 54% target, which the council describes as within tolerance. Three related numbers moved the wrong way:
- contamination in recycling loads rose to 13.70%, from 9.40% a year earlier, though the council notes the average for materials recovery facilities is 16%
- missed containers rose to 0.134% of collections, from 0.114%
- residual household waste collected rose to 7,441 tonnes, from 7,349
Collection days are unchanged; ours are listed on the Banbury bin collection days page.
Fly-tipping reports came to 772, against 396 a year earlier, but the two numbers do not compare. The council changed what it counts. The old measure was fly-tips cleared; the new one is reports received, including 97 duplicates where the same tip was reported more than once. The report says a meaningful comparison will not be possible until quarter one of 2027/28.
Complaints doubled
The council received 92 complaints in the quarter and completed 80 of them. Of those, 37 were upheld and 43 were not, with 12 still in progress. The 37 upheld compares with 18 in the same quarter last year. The report offers no explanation for the increase.
What it means for you
If you have a planning application in with Cherwell, the 38.7% figure is the one that matters to you. The statutory period for a non-major application is normally eight weeks unless you agree an extension of time with the case officer, and on this quarter’s record a clear majority ran past it. Ask your case officer for a target date in writing, and check whether you are being asked to sign an extension.
The Overview and Scrutiny Committee meets at 6.30pm on Tuesday 8 September at 39 Castle Quay, Banbury. Meetings are open to the public. The agenda and papers include a supplement of questions submitted in advance, and the committee will move into private session for an item on Graven Hill Village Development Company.
For applications currently in the system, see our Banbury planning news page.
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