This edition will be refreshed as late filings arrive. Charges created after 30 June 2026 are still being filed at Companies House, and HM Land Registry registers commercial sales months after completion. Figures for Q3 2026 will rise.
Key findings
- 204 self storage planning applications were submitted across England and Wales between January and September 2026, with 89.0% of decided applications granted. Source: Local planning authority records via Landstack.
Self storage planning pipeline
204 self storage planning applications were submitted across England and Wales between January and September 2026. Councils decided 182 with a granted or refused outcome in the period and granted 89.0% of them.
Quarterly submissions moved from 67 in Q3 2025 to 59 in Q3 2026. Applications are a forward signal for finance: a granted change of use or new unit usually needs a purchase, refinance or bridging loan within 12 months.
Applications submitted by quarter
Source: local planning authority records via Landstack.
Recent approvals
- Amber Valley · AVA/2026/0362Change of use of former car sales building & yard to create self-storage building (B8 storage) along with drive up storage units and containersGranted 25 September 2026
- Southend-on-Sea · 26/00934/FULInstall steel containers on site for self-storage purposes (retrospective)Granted 22 September 2026
- Westmorland and Furness · 2026/1214/FPAChange of use of part of the existing workshop building from car workshop (Use Class Sui Generis) to a mixed use development of self-storage units (Use Class B8) and general industrial (Use Class B2) and alteration to thGranted 14 September 2026
- Durham · DM/26/01816/FPAChange of use to managed self storage facility (Use Class B8)Granted 10 September 2026
- Braintree · 26/01426/FULRetrospective change of use of land from agricultural use to a mixed agricultural and Use Class B8 (self-storage) use, including the retention of 14 No. existing storage containers.Granted 8 September 2026
- Preston · 06/2026/0240Change of use of cinema to self-storage use including minor changes to door strategy, minor revisions to elevations and car park layoutGranted 8 September 2026
Self storage against the wider commercial market
The planning approval rate of 89.0% compares with 86.9% for commercial applications nationally.
Financing self storage property
For lender criteria, typical terms and case examples on self storage finance, see Self Storage Finance, our specialist resource for this sector.
Regional breakdown
| Region | Applications |
|---|---|
| London & South East | 97 |
| Midlands | 33 |
| North East & Yorkshire | 17 |
| South West | 17 |
| North West | 22 |
| East of England | 17 |
| Wales | 1 |
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Methodology and sources
Sales: HM Land Registry Price Paid Data, property type "Other", which covers non-residential sales in England and Wales. Rows that share a price and date are counted as one multi-title deal. Data registered to 25 August 2026.
Lending: the Companies House charges register (snapshot 1 October 2026). A charge counts as commercial when it is secured on a property postcode and either the borrower operates in a commercial sector (for example hotels, pubs, care, retail, manufacturing or logistics, by SIC code) or the postcode matches a commercial sale in 2025 or 2026. Lenders are grouped using our own classification.
Planning: local planning authority records collated by Landstack, filtered to applications whose description indicates a commercial use. Discharge of conditions, advertisement consents, householder works and conversions to residential are excluded. Records cover 253 councils; where a council's applications are not yet collated, its pipeline is understated.
Geography: regions follow postcode districts. County reports cover the ceremonial county including its unitary authorities. City reports cover the local authority area named on each page. Scotland and Northern Ireland are outside HM Land Registry coverage and are not included.
Sector identification: a sale or charge is included when its address or charge particulars name the use, or when the borrower's SIC code places it in the sector. Planning applications are included when the description names the use. Sections with too few records to be reliable are not shown.
Commercial mortgages are unregulated lending and fall outside the FCA's regulated mortgage perimeter. We do not hold FCA authorisation because the products we arrange are unregulated. This report is market information, not advice.