Understanding planning · 13 min read
Planning application documents: what to read first
Understand planning application documents, officer reports and decision notices. Use a reading checklist, document table and worked example to inspect a case.
England · County council
Explore collected planning applications and decisions for Essex County Council. Search an address, application reference or proposal to find a record.
6,824 approved · 214 refused · 438 withdrawn. Received dates in our records: 12 Dec 1938 to 5 Oct 2026. Most recent record check: 13 Oct 2026. Counts reflect the last collected status; some records may be out of date.
Explore published planning boundaries and follow their source records for designation details. Coverage varies: an empty map does not mean there are no restrictions. Check the council’s current maps and documents before relying on a boundary.
A boundary map is not available for this authority yet. Use council conservation-area and Article 4 guidance above where linked.
Download Article 4 coverage for all authorities (CSV)
Sources: Planning Data conservation areas and Article 4 direction areas. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
The Westerings Primary School, Sunny Road, Hawkwell, SS5 4NZ
Received 9 Feb 2018Land at Rayne Quarry, Dunmow Road, Braintree, Essex, Rayne
Received 29 Oct 2020Greenacres, Packards Lane, Wormingford, Essex, CO6 3AH
Received 20 Dec 2019Hillhouse Primary School, Waltham Abbey, EN9 3EL
Received 6 Dec 2013Elsenham Quarry,Hall Rd,Elsenham,Bishops Stortford,CM22 6DJ
Received 12 Jul 2011Lufkins Farm, Great Bentley Road, Frating, CO7 7HN
Received 31 Jan 2025Essex County Council Waste Transfer Station, Colchester Eastern Bypass, Ardleigh, CO7 7SL
Received 1 May 2020St. Georges New Town Junior School, Canterbury Road, Colchester, CO2 7RU
Received 27 Aug 2013The Hereward County Primary School, Colebrook Lane, Loughton, IG102HR
Received 14 Nov 2012Land North Of Generals Lane Roundabout, Generals Lane, Boreham. Chelmsford, Essex, CM3 3HJ.
Received 1 Jul 2025Hanson Aggregates, Bulls Lodge Quarry, Generals Lane, Boreham, Chelmsford, CM3 3HR
Received 6 Nov 2013Brightlingsea Quarry, Moverons Lane, Brightlingsea, CO7 0SB
Received 23 Jul 2013Basildon Sewage Treatment Works, Courtauld Road, Basildon
Received 31 Jan 1994Wivenhoe Quarry, Alresford Road, Wivenhoe, Colchester, Essex, CO7 9JU
Received 21 Oct 2014Asheldham Quarry, Southminster Road, Asheldham, Essex, CM0 7DZ
Received 17 May 2022Barling Marsh Quarry and Landfill Site,Mucking Hall Road,Barling Magna,Rochford,SS3 0NR
Received 19 Mar 2002Ugley Landfill Site,Ugley Landfill Site,Cambridge Road,Stansted Mountfitchet,CM22 6HT
Received 25 Aug 1995Shorefields School, 114, Holland Road, Clacton-on-sea, CO156HF
Received 21 Mar 2013Felmore Primary School,Felmore Primary School,Davenants,Pitsea,Basildon,SS131QZ
Received Not publishedWallasea Island Wild Coast Project, Creeksea Ferry Road, WALLASEA ISLAND, SS4 2HD
Received 9 May 2018Widdington Pit, Hollow Road, Widdington, CB11 3SL
Received 19 Jun 2014The Plume School, Fambridge Road, Maldon, Essex, CM9 6AB
Received 24 Feb 2025Brakes Farm End, Birch,Roundbush Corner,Birch Airfield,Birch,Colchester
Received 28 Sept 2000Anglo European High School,Willow Green,Ingatestone,CM4 0DJ
Received 28 Sept 2005Records are ordered by application ID, not submission date. Use search to find a particular address or proposal.
View all applicationsStart with the address or application reference. Open a record to read the proposal, dates and available documents, then check the official register for the latest plans and consultation details. If nothing appears, check coverage before treating the result as a complete planning history.
How to search planning applications
Understanding planning · 13 min read
Understand planning application documents, officer reports and decision notices. Use a reading checklist, document table and worked example to inspect a case.

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Read planning drawings, floor plans, elevations and sections. Use labelled diagrams, a drawing comparison table and revision checks to understand a proposal.

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Understand planning approval rates with an interactive calculator, worked examples and comparison table. Check sample sizes, outcomes and coverage before comparing.
These figures describe applications collected by PlanningTrack for Essex County Council, across all dates currently available. They are a partial dataset, rather than an authority-wide performance measure. The date range does not establish continuous historical coverage.
The approval percentage is approved records divided by approved plus refused records. Pending, withdrawn and unknown outcomes are excluded. No percentage is shown until there is an approved or refused record.
Check collection coverage