Eastbourne refuses just 1 in 46 planning applications. One of the most permissive councils in the country.
Eastbourne received 681 planning applications submitted to Eastbourne Borough Council in 2025. Of the 1,188 applications decided across 2024 and 2025, 97.8% were approved and only 2.2% refused, about 1 in 46, where the national refusal rate is 1 in 8. HMO conversions are the one category that stands clearly above the national share, at twice the national rate.
The year in one line
Eastbourne approves nearly all planning applications it decides, with a refusal rate of just 2.2%, roughly 1 in 46, against the national figure of 1 in 8. HMO conversions are the standout category, running at twice the national share.
What Eastbourne Is Building
Extensions dominate, with HMO conversions above the norm.
Home extensions were the most common application submitted to Eastbourne in 2025, at 25.2% of the mix, slightly below the national share of 29.1%. HMO conversions stand out: 2.5% of applications here against 1.2% nationally, twice the national rate, the only category that clears both the volume and ratio gate. Dormers (5.1%) and retrospective cases (3.6%) make up a further share of the mix. This is the application profile of a coastal town where the rental market is active.
Applications submitted to Eastbourne Borough Council in 2025, by project type.
The standout type
HMO conversions account for 2.5% of applications in Eastbourne, twice the national share of 1.2%, the only category both large enough and far enough above the norm to count as a genuine difference.
The council verdict
A near-certain yes from the council.
Across 2024 and 2025, Eastbourne Borough Council approved 97.8% of the applications it decided and refused just 2.2%, about 1 in 46, well below the national refusal rate of 12.4%. On approval rate, Eastbourne is one of the easier places in England to win permission.
About 1 in 46 Eastbourne applications was turned down.
of decided applications were refused, about 1 in 46. The national refusal rate is 12.4%, roughly 1 in 8. Eastbourne's approval rate of 97.8% sits well above the national norm of 87.6%.
Eastbourne vs The National Norm
An easy town to build in, with an active HMO market.
Set Eastbourne's mix against the national average and the differences are clear in two directions. HMO conversions run at twice the national share, pointing to a busy rental conversion market. Demolition, by contrast, accounts for just 3.0% of applications against 9.1% nationally, a third of the national rate. The real outlier remains the verdict: at 2.2%, refusals are far rarer here than anywhere typical in England.
applications are refused in Eastbourne, against a national rate of about 1 in 8. This makes Eastbourne one of the most permissive planning authorities in England.
Each bar is Eastbourne's share of applications; the marker is the national share. HMO conversions are the town's clearest difference above the norm.
Meanwhile, the market
Prices rose alongside the building work.
Permission may be easy to win here, and prices have moved with the building activity: the average Eastbourne home grew in value over the latest full year.
Eastbourne's planning data tells a clear story. With a refusal rate of just 2.2%, roughly 1 in 46, this is one of the most permissive planning authorities in England. The standout in the application mix is HMO conversions, running at twice the national share, a signal of active demand for rental property in the town. For anyone looking to extend, convert or change use here, the council is rarely the obstacle.
Where the numbers come from
Planning Data
Applications submitted to Eastbourne Borough Council in 2025 (volume) and decided across 2024-2025 (rates and shares), classified from each application's published description. Shares are each category as a percentage of all applications in scope.
Decision Rates
Approval rate is approvals as a share of approvals plus refusals. The national benchmarks are computed the same way across all decided applications in England and Wales.
Sales Data
HM Land Registry Price Paid Data for the Eastbourne post town, the latest full year's completions, with growth measured against the previous year.
The Real Applications
Open the planning applications behind the numbers.
These are real applications submitted to Eastbourne in 2025, from the extensions and HMO conversions the town files most to a refusal. Open any one to see its full record.
5 Downsview Road BN20 9PT
A single-storey rear extension with a garage conversion and front works, a typical example of the most common project type submitted to Eastbourne, was approved.
See this property's full record15 Manvers Road BN20 8HH
A hip-to-gable roof extension with a rear dormer and front rooflights was put forward, the kind of dormer application Eastbourne receives regularly.
See this property's full record63 Wannock Avenue BN20 9RH
Roof and dormer extensions to form a loft conversion, with a ground-floor porch, were judged to need no planning permission.
See this property's full recordTaperfield Jevington Road, Friston BN20 0AG
A small rear extension and conversion of the integral garage into extra bedrooms were approved.
See this property's full record108 Brodrick Road BN22 9NY
A proposed outbuilding was confirmed as permitted development under a lawful development certificate.
See this property's full record10 The Cloisters BN22 0JW
A part two-storey, part single-storey side and rear extension with a first-floor addition over the garage and a front porch was turned down, one of the roughly 1 in 46 applications the council refused.
See this property's full recordCurious about a home in Eastbourne?
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