Planning applications in Blaby

Planning in Blaby

Blaby is an easy place for extensions and a harder one for boundaries and driveways. Rear extensions are refused only about 1 in 53 times, side extensions about 1 in 50 and front extensions and porches about 1 in 46, far below the 1 in 7 seen across the areas we cover. Windows and doors are about 1 in 24, and garden rooms and outbuildings, loft conversions and dormers are both about 1 in 14 or 1 in 15, close to the council’s overall rate.

The contrast is with fences, walls and gates, refused about 1 in 8 times, and driveways and dropped kerbs, about 1 in 7. Both are better than the national picture, but they are refused far more often than Blaby’s extensions and more often than the council overall. If you are planning a new boundary or access, look at what has been approved on nearby streets before you draw anything up.

Overall, about 1 in 15 of the more than 6,000 applications decided since 2020 was refused, which is lenient compared with about 1 in 7 nationally. Blaby refuses less often than most of its neighbours: Charnwood (about 1 in 10), Hinckley and Bosworth (about 1 in 9), Oadby and Wigston (about 1 in 6) and Leicester (about 1 in 2). Only Harborough, at about 1 in 19, is more lenient.

When Blaby does refuse, the reasons lean on design and character. Of 228 recent refusals we read, about two in three mentioned the size, bulk or design of the work, and nearly six in ten the look of the street or area. Roughly four in ten raised parking, access or road safety. About a quarter said not enough information had been supplied, around one in five neighbours’ light, privacy or outlook, and a similar share heritage, trees or building outside towns and villages. Blaby has 11 conservation areas and 197 listed buildings.

Householder applications took a median of 8.0 weeks to decide between 2023 and 2025, with about 53% decided within 8 weeks. The busiest year was 2021 with 1,196 applications. In 2025 there were 850, against an average of about 870 a year in the three years before, and refusals eased from about 1 in 13 to about 1 in 19.

Figures in this section as of 9 October 2026.