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This guide concerns England and Wales, including decisions under the planning Acts by a local planning authority or the Secretary of State. The correct challenge route and deadline depend on the decision-maker, the type of consent and the governing statute, so identify those before relying on any general judicial-review rule.
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What is judicial review in planning?
Judicial review is a High Court process for examining whether a public body made a decision lawfully. In planning, that can include a local planning authority, the Secretary of State and other bodies exercising planning functions. The Planning Court’s remit under the Civil Procedure Rules includes planning permission, other development consents, planning policy documents and related listed matters when a claim is issued or transferred to it.
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The court’s question is essentially legal: did the decision-maker use the correct legal framework, understand and apply relevant policy, take account of matters it was required to consider, and reach a decision within its lawful powers? The court is not asked to act as a planning committee or inspector and select the best outcome on the evidence.
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The Planning Inspectorate puts the distinction plainly in its guidance on called-in planning applications: “A decision cannot be challenged merely because someone disagrees with the Secretary of State’s decision.” A claimant must identify an error of law or another recognised unlawfulness in the decision-making process.
What can a successful claim change?
A quashing order
If the High Court finds a relevant legal error and grants relief, the usual practical remedy is a quashing order. The challenged decision is set aside because it was not lawfully made. Quashing does not itself grant planning permission, refuse permission, approve a scheme or impose a replacement condition.
The legal effect is important but limited: the unlawful decision no longer stands in its original form. What happens next depends on the judgment, the statutory scheme and the decision-maker’s powers.
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The normal planning consequence of quashing is remittal. The matter goes back to the original decision-maker, which must reconsider it in accordance with the court’s judgment. The court may identify the legal error and explain the limits within which the fresh decision must be made; it does not ordinarily conduct the planning assessment itself.
For example, if a Secretary of State misunderstood a material planning policy, a lawful reconsideration would need to address that policy correctly. If a local planning authority omitted an important consideration that it was required to take into account, the authority would need to revisit the decision with that consideration properly addressed. The eventual result could be the same or different. A successful judicial review therefore creates a lawful decision-making opportunity, not a guaranteed planning permission.
Substitution only where legislation permits it
CPR 54.19(2) describes the available options in these terms: “the court may – (a) (i) remit the matter to the decision-maker; and (ii) direct it to reconsider the matter and reach a decision in accordance with the judgment of the court; or (b) in so far as any enactment permits, substitute its own decision for the decision to which the claim relates.”
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That second possibility is qualified. The court can substitute its own decision only to the extent that the applicable enactment permits substitution. It should not be presented as the ordinary result of a planning judicial review. For most planning challenges discussed in this guide, remittal and reconsideration are the practical possibilities to expect.
What judicial review cannot change
It cannot turn disagreement into a legal ground
A planning outcome may be unpopular, appear harsh or conflict with a claimant’s preferred use of land. Those points alone do not establish unlawfulness. The High Court is not an appeal body with a general power to revisit the planning balance.
Arguments such as “the committee gave too much weight to traffic,” “the inspector should have preferred the objectors’ evidence,” or “a different conclusion would have been more sensible” are generally merits arguments. They become relevant to judicial review only if they expose a legal defect—for example, a failure to apply the required policy, reliance on an impermissible consideration or failure to consider a matter the law required the decision-maker to address.
It cannot promise the result the claimant wants
Even where a claim succeeds, the court does not promise that permission will be granted, refused, varied or conditioned in a particular way. After a quashing order, the original decision-maker must reconsider the matter lawfully. It may reach the same conclusion if it corrects the legal error and remains entitled to do so.
It cannot bypass a different statutory challenge route
Not every planning-related decision uses the same judicial-review route or deadline. Individual decisions may be governed by separate statutory challenge provisions. A challenge to one type of consent, policy document or costs decision may have requirements that differ from the planning-Act category addressed by CPR 54.5(5). Treating the six-week rule as universal is unsafe.
On what grounds can a planning decision be challenged?
The grounds must be tied to an error of law or unlawful decision-making, not simply to the planning merits. The Planning Inspectorate gives two practical examples:
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- Misinterpreting or misapplying policy: the decision-maker used the wrong meaning of a policy or applied it in a way the legal framework does not permit.
- Failing to take account of an important consideration: a matter that the law or the relevant decision framework required to be considered was left out of the reasoning.
Those examples are not a checklist that makes every disagreement arguable. The claimant must connect the alleged error to the legal duty governing that decision and show why it matters to the lawfulness of the outcome. A court reviews the reasons and process that produced the decision; it does not redo every factual and planning judgment from the beginning.
Questions to test a possible ground
- What precise statutory power, policy requirement or legal duty applied to the decision?
- Where does the decision show that the decision-maker misunderstood, ignored or misapplied that requirement?
- Was the omitted matter one the law required to be considered, rather than simply a point the claimant wished had received more weight?
- Could the alleged defect have affected the lawful decision-making exercise, or is it only a disagreement with the weight given to evidence?
- Does the proposed ground concern this decision, made by this decision-maker, under this statute?
These questions help separate a reviewable legal error from a merits appeal. A planning lawyer should assess the documents and the applicable regime before a claim is issued.
Which planning decisions fall within this guidance?
The scope here is England and Wales and focuses on decisions under the planning Acts by a local planning authority or the Secretary of State. The Planning Court can deal with planning permission, other development consents, planning policy documents and related listed matters when a claim is issued or transferred to it.
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That description does not make every planning dispute identical. The decision-maker, the nature of the consent, whether the Secretary of State called in the application, and the statute creating the decision power can all affect the proper route. Some decisions have a specific statutory challenge mechanism rather than the general judicial-review procedure.
Identify the decision before choosing the procedure
- Name the decision-maker. Record whether the decision was made by a local planning authority, the Secretary of State, an inspector or another public body.
- Describe the decision precisely. Use the decision notice or order, including the application, consent, policy document or costs decision involved.
- Find the governing legislation. Confirm which planning Act or other enactment supplies the power and whether it contains a dedicated challenge route.
- Check the date and trigger. Establish when the grounds for the proposed claim first arose and whether the applicable regime measures time from that event or from the decision date.
- Obtain advice promptly. A specialist adviser can test the legal ground, identify the correct court procedure and prevent a general planning complaint being filed as the wrong type of claim.
What is the time limit for making a challenge in the High Court?
For a judicial review relating to a decision made by the Secretary of State or a local planning authority under the planning Acts, CPR 54.5(5) says the claim form must be filed no later than six weeks after the grounds to make the claim first arose. This is a short, decision-specific deadline.
The Planning Inspectorate’s guidance for called-in planning applications expresses the period as 42 days (six weeks) from the decision date and says that period cannot be extended. That statement belongs to the called-in decision context. It should not be turned into a universal deadline for every planning-related decision.
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| Situation | Time point described by the source | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Planning-Act decision by the Secretary of State or local planning authority within CPR 54.5(5) | No later than six weeks after the grounds first arose | Identify the event creating the proposed legal ground and calculate the filing deadline immediately. |
| Called-in planning application or related costs decision covered by Planning Inspectorate guidance | 42 days (six weeks) from the decision date; the guidance says the period cannot be extended | Use the decision date for the calculation in that specific context and obtain advice without delay. |
| Another planning-related decision or consent | Not established by these general rules | Check the decision’s governing statute and its specific challenge provisions. |
Do not wait for negotiations, a later planning application or a fuller merits review if a legal challenge may be required. Missing a short statutory or procedural period can prevent the court from considering the claim. The applicable route should be confirmed from the decision and legislation, not inferred from the fact that the dispute concerns planning.
How does the court’s role differ from a planning appeal?
| Question | Judicial review | Planning appeal or merits process |
|---|---|---|
| What is being tested? | The legality of the decision and the lawfulness of the process. | The planning merits, evidence and outcome within the powers of the appeal body. |
| Can disagreement alone succeed? | No. An error of law or other unlawfulness must be identified. | Disagreement with the original decision is part of the appeal’s purpose, subject to the applicable rules. |
| Who normally decides the planning result after a successful challenge? | The original decision-maker on remittal and reconsideration. | The appeal body, or another body authorised by the relevant legislation. |
| Can the High Court substitute its own planning decision? | Only insofar as an enactment permits substitution; remittal is the typical possibility. | Only within the powers conferred on that appeal route. |
| What is the main risk? | A claim may fail because it is really a merits complaint or because the wrong route or deadline was used. | The appeal may address the merits but cannot cure every separate legal or procedural restriction. |
This distinction matters when deciding how to frame a case. A claimant who wants the court to prefer one traffic assessment, design judgment or policy balance over another may be seeking an appeal rather than judicial review. A claimant who can show that the decision-maker applied the wrong policy test or omitted a legally required consideration may have a reviewable issue.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What happens if the court quashes the decision?
- The unlawful decision is set aside. The quashing order removes the challenged decision in accordance with the terms of the court’s order.
- The matter is remitted where appropriate. The original decision-maker receives the matter back for reconsideration.
- The decision-maker follows the judgment. The fresh exercise must address the legal error identified by the court and comply with the judgment’s directions.
- A new decision is made. The result is not predetermined. Permission may still be granted or refused, or a policy document or consent may be reconsidered in another lawful way, depending on the decision type and statutory powers.
The court’s substitution power is a separate, narrower possibility and depends on what the applicable enactment permits. It should not be assumed merely because the claimant has won the judicial review.
Practical examples: when the remedy may help, and when it will not
Policy applied with the wrong meaning
A decision notice relies on a policy but treats a mandatory requirement as optional, or uses a definition that the legal framework does not support. If that is established as an error of law, the court may quash the decision and remit it for reconsideration using the correct interpretation. The court still would not automatically grant the permission.
Important consideration omitted
The decision-maker was required to consider a particular matter but the reasons and material show no lawful consideration of it. A successful claim may require the decision-maker to revisit the application with that matter addressed. The claimant must show a legal duty to consider it, not merely that the matter deserved more weight in the claimant’s view.
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The claimant accepts that the correct policy and relevant matters were considered but says the authority gave too much weight to one factor and too little to another. That is ordinarily a merits complaint, not a judicial-review ground. The High Court is not a forum for choosing a different planning balance simply because another view is possible.
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Wrong challenge route
A party labels a decision “planning” and assumes the general six-week rule applies, although the governing statute supplies a separate challenge procedure. The claim may be vulnerable before the merits are reached. Identifying the decision and statute is therefore a first step, not an administrative detail.
Preparing a responsible challenge
A potential claimant should preserve the decision notice, reasons, plans, policy documents and material relied on by the decision-maker. Make a dated record of when the decision was issued and when the alleged legal ground first arose. Then obtain advice on the governing route and the wording of each proposed ground.
- State the exact decision being challenged.
- Identify the public body and statutory power.
- Separate each alleged error of law into a clear ground.
- Explain why the point is legally required and why the decision does not satisfy it.
- Calculate the applicable deadline in the relevant regime.
- Ask what remedy is realistically available—usually quashing and remittal, not an order granting permission.
Because the deadline can be six weeks or 42 days in the contexts described above, delay can be decisive. Anyone considering a live claim should obtain appropriate legal advice promptly, especially where a separate statutory challenge route may apply.
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Key takeaways
- Judicial review examines legality, not whether the court prefers a different planning outcome.
- Disagreement with a Secretary of State or local-authority decision is not enough; an error of law must be identified.
- Misinterpreting or misapplying policy, or failing to consider an important matter required by law, are examples of potentially reviewable errors.
- A successful claim may result in a quashing order and remittal for lawful reconsideration.
- The court’s ability to substitute its own decision is limited to cases where an enactment permits it.
- For the planning-Act category in CPR 54.5(5), the stated filing period is six weeks after the grounds first arose; called-in guidance describes 42 days from the decision date and says that period cannot be extended.
- Other planning decisions may have different statutory routes and deadlines.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I bring judicial review just because I think the planning decision is wrong?
No. The Planning Inspectorate states that a decision cannot be challenged merely because someone disagrees with it. You must identify an error of law or another unlawful feature of the decision-making process.
If I win, will the court grant my planning permission?
Not usually. The typical result is a quashing order followed by remittal to the original decision-maker for reconsideration in accordance with the judgment. The eventual planning result is not guaranteed.
Is six weeks always the deadline for a planning judicial review?
No. CPR 54.5(5) gives six weeks after the grounds first arose for the specified planning-Act decisions by a local planning authority or the Secretary of State. Called-in guidance describes 42 days from the decision date. Other statutory regimes can have different rules.
What is the difference between a legal error and a planning-merits complaint?
A legal error may involve applying the wrong policy meaning or omitting a consideration the law required the decision-maker to address. A complaint that the authority gave too much or too little weight to competing planning factors is generally a merits disagreement.
Who should reconsider a decision after it is quashed?
The matter is normally remitted to the original decision-maker, which must reconsider it in accordance with the court’s judgment. Substitution by the court is possible only insofar as the applicable enactment permits it.
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