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9,639 approved · 434 refused · 561 withdrawn.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 Counts reflect the last collected status; some records may be out of date.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
- Decided16/485/LB
Remove sections of external wall for structural investigation.
Scapa Flow Visitor Centre And Museum, Lyness, Hoy, Orkney, KW16 3NU
Received 4 Oct 2016 - Decided16/486/APN
Erect a GP shed.
Upperbigging (Land Near), Corrigall Road, Harray, Orkney, KW17 2LQ
Received 5 Oct 2016 - Decided16/487/PP
Erect a GP shed.
10 Crowness Road, St Ola, Orkney, KW15 1RG
Received 5 Oct 2016 - Decided16/488/LB
Display signage.
10 King Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1JF
Received 5 Oct 2016 - Decided16/489/PP
Extend a house and change of use of land from agricultural to domestic.
Bigbreck Cottage, Birsay, Orkney, KW17 2LZ
Received 5 Oct 2016 - Decided16/490/VR
Variation to condition 5 of permission 09/204/PPF to extend the period of consent to 25 years.
Upper Stove (Land Near), Deerness
Received 7 Oct 2016 - Decided16/491/PP
Erect a slatted byre.
Feaval (Land Near), Birsay, Orkney, KW17 2LT
Received 6 Oct 2016 - Decided16/492/APN
Erect a byre.
Breckan (Land Near), Deerness, Orkney, KW17 2QJ
Received 7 Oct 2016 - Decided16/493/PN
Install a telecommunications box.
Northside Road, Birsay
Received 7 Oct 2016 - Decided16/494/PN
Install a telecommunications box.
Strathgray (Land Near), Craigfield Road, Kirkwall
Received 7 Oct 2016 - Decided16/495/MARPN
Replace barge.
Toyness, Orphir
Received 10 Oct 2016 - Decided16/496/APN
Erect an agricultural shed.
Standpretty (Land Near), Evie School, Evie, Orkney, KW17 2PE
Received 11 Oct 2016 - Decided16/497/PP
Erect a house with an air source heat pump.
Sittadale Park (Land Near), Berstane Road, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1SZ
Received 11 Oct 2016 - Decided16/498/PP
Erect a house and install an air source heat pump.
Esgar (Plot D), Hillside Road, Dounby, Orkney, KW17 2HX
Received 12 Oct 2016 - Decided16/499/VR
Variation to condition 6 of permission 07/069/PPF to extend the period of consent to 25 years.
Holodyke (Land Near), Dounby KW17 2HZ
Received 14 Oct 2016 - Decided16/500/PIP
Siting of a replacement house.
Breck Of Aikerness, Westray, Orkney
Received 17 Oct 2016 - Decided16/501/HH
Install a dormer window.
Westbrae, Grainbank Road, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1RD
Received 17 Oct 2016 - Decided16/502/HH
Extend a house and install an air source heat pump.
Mugar, Sandwick Road, South Ronaldsay, Orkney, KW17 2RJ
Received 17 Oct 2016 - Decided16/503/PIP
Siting of a replacement house.
Sunnybraes (Land Near), Houton Road, Orphir, Orkney, KW17 2RD
Received 17 Oct 2016 - Withdrawn/Returned16/504/PP
Construct new access.
Garth (Land Near), St Margaret's Hope, South Ronaldsay, Orkney
Received 17 Oct 2016 - Decided16/505/PP
Erect 2 houses (amendment to 10/385/PP).
Breckan Brae (Land Near), Holm, Orkney, KW17 2RU
Received 18 Oct 2016 - Decided16/506/PP
Change of use from Arts Theatre to store (Class 6), erect a fence, create car parking and install bollards.
Orkney Arts Theatre, Willowburn Road, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1NL
Received 19 Oct 2016 - Decided16/507/PP
Change of use from store (class 6) to letting rooms with laundry facilities, martial arts studio, install air source heat pump and solar panels.
Former Printworks, Junction Road, Kirkwall, Orkney
Received 14 Oct 2016 - Decided16/508/HH
Install an air source heat pump (retrospective).
19 John Street, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3AD
Received 19 Oct 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