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.
6,828 approved · 214 refused · 438 withdrawn. Received dates in our records: 12 Dec 1938 to 15 Oct 2026. Most recent record check: 17 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 Counts reflect the last collected status; some records may be out of date.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.
Sandon Park and Ride, Maldon Road, Chelmsford
Received 30 Mar 2023Kirby Primary School,Halstead Road,Kirby Cross,Frinton on Sea,CO13 0LW
Received 20 Feb 1998The Colne Community School, Church Road, Brightlingsea CO7 0QL
Received 30 Sept 2020Anglian Water Services Ltd, Basildon Sewage Treatment Works, Courtauld Road, Basildon, SS131DB
Received 18 Apr 2013Maldon Youth Centre, Carmelite Way,Maldon,CM9 5GF
Received 30 Jun 2005Springfield Parish Centre, St. Augustines Way, Chelmsford, CM1 6GX
Received 5 Jul 2012Cedar Hall Day School, Hart Road, Thundersley, Benfleet, Essex, SS7 3UQ
Received 6 Mar 2023Clavering Primary School, Stortford Road, Clavering, CB11 4PE
Received 9 Apr 2018Bulls Lodge Quarry, Beaulieu Parkway, Boreham, Chelmsford, CM3 3JU
Received 8 Jun 2023All Saints CE Primary School (London Rd Campus),London Road,Maldon,CM9 6HY
Received 21 Dec 2001Sandon Quarry,Southend Road,Chelmsford,CM2 7TE
Received 28 Mar 2017Sandon Quarry,Southend Road,Chelmsford,CM2 7TE
Received Not publishedShalford Primary School,Church End,Shalford,Braintree,CM7 5EZ
Received 5 Mar 2002Land at Rayne Quarry, Dunmow Road, Braintree, Essex, Rayne
Received 29 Oct 2020Ardleigh Highway Depot, Glebe Corner, Harwich Road, Ardleigh, CO7 7LA
Received 3 Aug 2016Brittons Hall Farm,Roxwell Landfill,Chignal St James,Chelmsford,CM1 4TZ
Received 19 Feb 1998Powers Hall Academy, Spa Road, Witham, Essex, CM8 1NA
Received 5 Mar 2014Elmstead Hall, Elmstead, Colchester, Essex
Received 14 Feb 2022Woodlands School,Takeley End,Kingswood,Basildon,SS165BA
Received 14 Mar 2012Limes Farm County Junior and Infant Schools,Limes Avenue,Chigwell,IG7 5LP
Received 17 Dec 2007Land adjacent to Rickstones Road, Rivenhall, CM8 2SD
Received 3 Jul 2020Land at Sheepcotes Farm, Sheepcotes Lane, Little Waltham, CM3 3LU
Received 24 Nov 2021Chapel Hill Primary School & Nursery, George Street, Basildon, Essex, SS16 5NQ
Received 10 Jan 2025Lubbins Park County Primary School,May Avenue,Canvey,SS8 7HF
Received 29 Apr 2003Records 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