Planning leads are proposed projects discovered through planning information. For a building business, they can be an early indication of work in a useful location: an extension, an alteration or another development that might match the team's experience.
The important word is might. A planning application is not a request for your quotation. It does not confirm a budget, an available contract or a construction start date. Its value is that it gives you something specific to investigate, rather than waiting for an enquiry with no visibility of what is being proposed locally.
This guide explains how to turn that information into a focused research routine—and where Trade Watch Alerts fits.
What makes a planning record a useful lead?
A record becomes useful when it helps you make a business decision. That might be to examine the drawings, check the current position, revisit a project later or exclude it because it is outside your working area.
A large database is not automatically a useful pipeline. If most records concern locations you cannot serve or work you do not undertake, the headline total can distract from the small number that matter.
Start with your own criteria. Define the places you serve, the types of work you deliver well and the circumstances that would make you decline a project. Apply those criteria consistently. This turns a broad source of information into a manageable shortlist.
Planning intelligence versus a quotation request
These are different ways of finding work, and they should be judged differently.
| Planning intelligence | A direct quotation enquiry |
|---|---|
| Starts with a record of proposed development | Starts with someone contacting a business or requesting quotes |
| May help you discover projects before a buying decision is clear | May indicate an intention to discuss or price work |
| Requires checking scope, timing and contractor involvement | Still requires qualification, even if the person wants a quote |
| Does not establish permission for marketing contact | Does not remove the need to handle information responsibly |
Neither route guarantees a suitable job. The distinction helps you set expectations: planning information supports discovery and research; a genuine enquiry starts a different conversation. Read our comparison of planning leads and quotation requests before choosing how to use the information.
Where planning information comes from
Local planning authorities maintain application registers. GOV.UK's planning-register finder is a starting point for finding the relevant council service.
The information and documents available vary by council, application and stage. A proposal summary can be useful, but it is not a full construction specification. Documents can be updated, applications can change and an older result may not reflect the latest position.
Treat the original register as a source to revisit, not just a link to open once. Record when you checked it. If there is a material gap, keep that gap visible instead of replacing it with an assumption.
A five-step planning-lead workflow
1. Set a workable geographical area
Use the area your team can serve repeatedly, not just the furthest place you would drive once. Site supervision, deliveries and follow-up visits make travel a recurring commitment. Council boundaries can help organise research, but they do not necessarily match your normal working radius.
2. Screen the description
Look for a proposed scope that resembles the work you want. Separate a substantial extension from an amendment or an application that does not suit your services. If the description is ambiguous, mark it for clarification rather than assuming the largest possible interpretation.
3. Verify the source
Open the current council record and inspect the available material. Check that the description, reference and documents relate to the same proposal. Avoid mixing details from earlier or neighbouring applications. Our guide to reading a planning application gives a more detailed checklist.
4. Separate known facts from unknowns
You might know that a rear extension has been proposed in your working area. You may not know who is coordinating it, whether a contractor has been selected, when work might begin or whether the scheme is commercially viable for your team. Write those unknowns down.
5. Choose one next action
Give each shortlisted record a reason to remain on the list: a source check, a question to resolve or a date to revisit. If there is no useful next action, setting it aside can be the right outcome. A smaller, well-understood shortlist is easier to manage than a growing collection of unreviewed records.
What weekly totals do—and do not—tell you
An update total describes records within a particular definition and time window. It is not a count of customers waiting for your quotation. Before comparing totals, check whether they refer to records newly found, records published by a council or records visible in a selected app view.
The website's updates panel is a sanitised summary. It is designed to show activity without publishing project addresses, application references or personal contact information. Full project assessment happens in the app and through the source records available there.
Check the panel's update time and status. If fresh information is unavailable, do not treat an old number as today's result. Current coverage information also matters: a council with no results in a period is not necessarily a council that was successfully checked and had no relevant applications.
Where Trade Watch Alerts helps
Trade Watch Alerts focuses on selected extension-related planning opportunities across parts of the Thames Valley and Home Counties. Its role is to make the discovery stage easier to review in one place.
The free preview lets you explore the product before deciding whether it is useful. Paid access unlocks available full details, including information that councils actually publish. Availability differs between records; a subscription cannot create a missing document or contact field.
Use the how-it-works guide to understand the journey and plans page to understand access. Current prices and checkout terms are shown in the app, where accounts and payments are managed.
Responsible use of public information
Publicly accessible information is not blanket permission to use someone's details for marketing. Before contacting people, check the rules that apply to your proposed use, recipient and communication channel. The ICO's business-to-business marketing guidance is a useful starting point; a project involving a homeowner should not automatically be treated as business-to-business marketing.
Keep research proportionate. Do not collect unnecessary personal information, publish project-level details in public marketing materials or assume that a planning applicant has asked to hear from your business. This guide describes a research process, not legal advice.
How to tell whether the routine is working
Measure useful outcomes in your own business records. Track time spent reviewing, unique projects shortlisted and the reasons projects are excluded. If genuine conversations or quotations later result, record them separately rather than attributing every outcome to a planning record.
Compare like-for-like periods and working areas. A large increase in source volume may mean more research work, not better opportunities. Our guide to measuring planning-lead value helps distinguish activity from outcomes.
Start with a small, repeatable review
Choose a regular review slot and a narrow definition of a suitable project. Explore the available records, check a few relevant examples and decide whether the information improves your discovery process.
Then use the weekly planning-lead routine to make the process repeatable. If domestic extensions are your focus, continue with our extension leads guide for builders.
Explore the Trade Watch Alerts app and check your area before deciding whether paid access is right for your business.