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.
6,825 approved · 214 refused · 438 withdrawn. Received dates in our records: 12 Dec 1938 to 5 Oct 2026. Most recent record check: 15 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 Counts reflect the last collected status; some records may be out of date.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.
Bellhouse Quarry and Landfill Site, Warren Lane, Stanway
Received 2 Sept 2015Lawford C Of E Primary School, Long Road, Lawford, CO11 2EF
Received 10 May 2021Southminster WRC, Goldsands Road, Southminster, Essex, CM0 7JW
Received 1 Dec 2015Mayflower School,Stock Road,Billericay,CM12 0RT
Received 3 Nov 2004Maple River Industrial Estate,Unit 7,Maple River Industrial Estate,River Way,Harlow,Essex,CM20 2DP
Received 6 Dec 2012Great Bardfield Primary School, Braintree Road, Great Bardfield, Essex, CM7 4RN
Received 17 Aug 2022Lee Chapel County Primary School,The Knares,Basildon,SS16 5RU
Received 10 May 2006Stanway Sand & Gravel Pit,Bellhouse & Abbotstone Landfill Site,Warren Lane,Stanway,Colchester,CO3 0NN
Received 2 Jun 2000Hillyfields Open Space adjacent to Pyrles Lane, Loughton
Received 8 Feb 2019Brightside Primary School, Rosebay Avenue, Brightside, Billericay CM12 0LE
Received Not publishedLand at Bellhouse Farm South
Received 3 Dec 2025Birch Airfield, Blind Lane, Birch, Essex, CO5 9XE
Received 8 Jul 2026ECC Store, Rear of Inde Plastik UK Ltd,Hanbury Road,Chelmsford,CM1 3SZ
Received 6 Sept 2005Frobisher Primary School,Frobisher Primary & Nursery School,Frobisher Drive,Jaywick,Clacton on Sea,CO15 2QH
Received 25 Apr 2006Writtle College Agricultural reservoir on Land at Writtle College, Writtle, Chelmsford, Essex,Land at Writtle College,Writtle,Chelmsford,CM1 3SB
Received 21 Sept 2006Glenwood School, Rushbottom Lane, Thundersley, Benfleet, Essex, SS7 4LW
Received 15 Mar 2024Staples Road Primary School, Staples Road, Loughton, IG101HR
Received 30 Jun 2014Crown Quarry, Old Ipswich Road, Ardleigh, Colchester, CO7 7QR
Received 17 Sept 2018Walton on the Naze Primary School, Standley Road, Walton on the Naze, Walton on the Naze, Essex, CO14 8PT
Received 8 Aug 2013Land to the east of Brickfields Way, Rochford, Essex, SS4 1NB
Received 17 Apr 2014Lincewood Primary School, Berry Lane, Langdon Hills, Basildon, SS166AZ
Received 8 Jul 2013Moulsham High, Junior & Infant School,Brian Close,Chelmsford,CM2 9ES
Received 4 Jul 2003Blackleys Quarry, (Essex Show Ground),Great Leighs,Chelmsford,CM3 1QB
Received 22 Jul 2008Wells Park School, School Lane, Chigwell, Essex, IG7 6NN
Received 28 Sept 2026Records 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