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.
Scotland · Local authority
Orkney Islands
Planning applications.
Explore collected planning applications and decisions for Orkney Islands. Search an address, application reference or proposal to find a record.
Collected application statistics
Collected records · All available dates11,978Searchable applications
140Recorded as pending
96%Approval rate · 10,073 approved or refused records
434Refused applications
9,639 approved · 434 refused · 561 withdrawn. Received dates in our records: 24 Sept 1979 to 5 Oct 2026. Most recent record check: 14 Oct 2026. Counts reflect the last collected status; some records may be out of date.
Local planning information
Council sources checked 14 Sept 2026Planning information Planning and BuildingLocal plan Development and Marine Planning (policy)Pre-application advice Pre-application AdviceConservation areas Conservation Area Consent
Council contacts
- Planning enquiries01856873535Council source
- Planning enquiriesplanning@orkney.gov.ukCouncil source
Contact details were found on council pages. Check the source for opening hours and which enquiries the service handles.
Conservation areas and Article 4 directions
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.
Conservation areas6 mapped area records
Article 4 direction areasBoundary dataset not connected
Interactive planning map loads with JavaScript. Dataset sources are linked below.
Download Article 4 coverage for all authorities (CSV)
Data downloaded 14 Sept 2026. Display boundaries are simplified and indicative. Map record counts are not a complete count of designations or directions.
Source: Historic Environment Scotland. Contains Historic Environment Scotland and Ordnance Survey data © Historic Environment Scotland – Scottish Charity No. SC045925 © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Open Government Licence v3.0. Data is indicative and may not contain the latest designations.
More application records
- Decided16/434/LB
Install air source heat pumps and cover.
18 Franklin Road, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3DZ
Received 12 Sept 2016 - Decided16/435/PP
Erect a byre with a slurry lagoon
Tir Nan Og (Land Near), Hoy, Orkney, KW16 3PA
Received 12 Sept 2016 - Decided16/436/HH
Install an air source heat pump.
Rothiesholm, 26 Bignold Park Road, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1PT
Received 12 Sept 2016 - Decided16/437/PP
Replace windows and doors, paint walls and install flagstones.
25, 27 & 29 Bridge Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1HR
Received 12 Sept 2016 - Decided16/438/PP
Change of use of part of the bar & restaurant to letting accommodation & install an air source heat pump.
The Commodore, St Marys, Holm, Orkney, KW17 2RU
Received 12 Sept 2016 - Decided16/439/PP
Change of use from redundant building to self catering (retrospective).
Salwick, Longhope, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3NZ
Received 12 Sept 2016 - Decided16/440/HH
Install replacement window, door and install air source heat pump.
42 Dundas Street, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3BZ
Received 12 Sept 2016 - Decided16/441/AD
Display signage (Retrospective).
The Co-operative Food, Dounby Stores, Dounby, Sandwick, Orkney, KW17 2HT
Received 13 Sept 2016 - Decided16/442/PP
Erect 26 houses with air sourced heat pumps, create an access and form public green space.
Walliwall (Land Near), Old Finstown Road, Kirkwall, Orkney
Received 14 Sept 2016 - Decided16/443/PP
Change of use of part of a storage building for occasional use as food, drink & entertainment building which is ancillary to the visitor centre and associated works.
The Orkney Brewery, Quoyloo Road, Sandwick, Orkney, KW16 3LT
Received 14 Sept 2016 - Decided16/444/PN
Install a generator and a fuel tank.
Corse Cottage (Land Near), Glaitness Road, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1TW
Received 13 Sept 2016 - Withdrawn/Returned16/445/PN
Install a generator and a fuel tank.
Police Radio Station, Keelylang Kirkwall, KW15 1TS
Received 13 Sept 2016 - Decided16/446/SCR
Screening opinion to create a decommisioning facility.
Lyness Wharf (Land Near), Hoy
Received 13 Sept 2016 - Decided16/447/HH
Install an air source heat pump (retrospective).
39 Graham Place, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3BY
Received 15 Sept 2016 - Decided16/448/LB
Install an air source heat pump (retrospective).
39 Graham Place, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3BY
Received 16 Sept 2016 - Decided16/449/PP
Erect a house with parking provision (amendment to 11/590/PP).
Whitehouse Lane (Land Near), Stromness, Orkney
Received 15 Sept 2016 - Decided16/450/PP
Change the use of land from agricultural to funeral home (Class 10)
Fieldhouse (Land Near), Old Scapa Road, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1BB
Received 16 Sept 2016 - Decided16/451/PN
Install 6 integrated dishes.
The Wart, Sanday
Received 15 Sept 2016 - Decided16/452/PP
Divide the existing house into two houses.
Kelson, 21 East Road, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1HZ
Received 16 Sept 2016 - Decided16/453/PP
Paint wall, erect new and replacement signs and install an air source heat pump.
Salon 7, 11A - 11B Albert Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1HP
Received 19 Sept 2016 - Decided16/454/MAR
Create a salmon farming site, comprising 8 x 130m circumference cages, 2 x 4 in a 75m grid and include a 600t feed barge.
East Of Skelwick Skerry, North Sound, Westray, Orkney
Received 19 Sept 2016 - Decided16/455/PP
Install a 15m lattice tower, install 3 antennas, 3 remote radio units, 2 dishes, 3 cabinets and erect a fence.
Orkney Aggregates Ltd, Crowness Crescent, St Ola, Orkney, KW15 1GJ
Received 20 Sept 2016 - Decided16/456/PP
Refurbishment of office frontage.
14 Victoria Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1DN
Received 20 Sept 2016 - Decided16/457/LB
Refurbishment of office frontage.
14 Victoria Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1DN
Received 20 Sept 2016
Records are ordered by application ID, not submission date. Use search to find a particular address or proposal.
View all applicationsResearching a proposal in Orkney Islands
Start 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.
Planning procedures in Scotland differ from those in England. Use the authority’s own guidance for application requirements, comments and decision timescales.
How to search planning applicationsGuides to planning records
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What these statistics cover
These figures describe applications collected by PlanningTrack for Orkney Islands, 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