Nine in 10 local planning authorities across England and Wales are operating below the staffing levels they say they need, according to new HBF and Paragon Bank research that warns the gap is slowing housing delivery.
The report says councils are working at an average of just 80 percent of required planning capacity and now need an estimated 2,660 extra planners to reach full strength. That shortfall is 20 percent worse than a year earlier, despite government funding and a pledge to recruit 1,400 planners during this Parliament.
For landlords, this is not just a housebuilder staffing problem. A slower planning system means fewer new homes, longer Section 106 timetables and a tighter pipeline of stock that could otherwise ease rental pressure in undersupplied areas over the next few years.
Planning capacity is slipping as reforms demand more from councils
The findings arrive shortly after Landlord Knowledge’s coverage of new mayoral planning powers for larger schemes and its report on the first £10bn of affordable homes funding being allocated. The latest Planning on Empty findings suggest delivery capacity inside councils is still lagging behind the policy ambition.
HBF said councils employ fewer than 36 planning staff on average but estimate they need around 44 to operate at full capacity. It also said only about one in five major planning applications are being determined within the statutory 13-week target.
The pressure is building at exactly the wrong moment. Ministers are pushing higher housing targets, quicker decisions and stronger development expectations around transport hubs, yet planning teams are already stretched by vacancies, turnover and the use of agency staff.
Section 106 delays are adding to the bottleneck
This follows Landlord Knowledge’s wider reporting on rental pressure staying elevated where supply remains constrained. If councils cannot process planning applications and linked agreements more quickly, the supply side of that story is unlikely to improve much.
The report says Section 106 agreements now take an average of 515 days to complete, creating a long gap between planning approval and homes actually moving forward. Councils have also cited staffing and resource shortages as a reason they struggle to monitor, allocate and spend Section 106 funds efficiently.
For landlords, the warning here is simple. If the planning bottleneck persists, private rental demand could stay firmer for longer because replacement housing supply will take more time to arrive. That may support rents in the short term, but it also keeps political pressure on the sector high when ministers are looking for quick answers to the housing shortage.
What this means for landlords
- If you invest in undersupplied areas: weak planning capacity may keep local rental demand stronger for longer.
- If you rely on new-build stock: expect planning and legal timelines to stay slow unless council staffing improves.
- Watch for: extra government funding or planning recruitment moves in the autumn.
- If you hold sites or conversion projects: longer consent and agreement periods should be built into your timelines and costs.
- Bottom line: planning reform alone will not fix supply if councils lack the people to implement it.
Editor’s view
Housing policy often focuses on targets, powers and announcements. This report points to the less glamorous constraint that matters just as much – whether councils have enough skilled staff to turn policy into actual homes. Until that gap narrows, landlords should assume supply relief will arrive slowly.
Author: Editorial Team – UK landlord & buy-to-let news, policy, and finance
Published: 1 September 2026
Sources: Home Builders Federation, Paragon Bank
Related reading: Government opens mayoral planning powers for 150-home schemes
