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9,639 approved · 434 refused · 561 withdrawn.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 Counts reflect the last collected status; some records may be out of date.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
- Decided16/534/PP
Erect a house with an air source heat pump and detached garage/workshop.
Westshore (Site 8a) (Land Near), Burray, Orkney
Received 11 Nov 2016 - Decided16/535/PP
Erect a house with integral garage, install an air source heat pump and create an access.
Moar Drive (Plot 7), Kirkwall, Orkney
Received 11 Nov 2016 - Decided16/536/PP
Install replacement door and rainwater goods, and paint wall, windows and doors.
63 Albert Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1HQ
Received 14 Nov 2016 - Decided16/537/LB
Install replacement door and rainwater goods, paint wall, windows and doors and display signage.
63 Albert Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1HQ
Received 14 Nov 2016 - Decided16/538/PIP
Siting of a replacement house and create an access.
Tufta (Land Near), Sandwick, Orkney, KW17 2JE
Received 15 Nov 2016 - Decided16/539/APN
Erect a GP shed
Cotland (Land Near), St Ola, Orkney, KW15 1SF
Received 16 Nov 2016 - Decided16/540/HH
Erect a garage (retrospective).
Millhouse, Hoy, Orkney, KW16 3NU
Received 15 Nov 2016 - Decided16/541/PN
Install a 11kV overhead electricity line.
Lochside Cottage (Land Near), Lochside Road, Birsay, Orkney, KW17 2NR
Received 15 Nov 2016 - Decided16/542/APN
Erect a GP shed.
Upper Braebuster (Land Near), Halley Road, Deerness, Orkney, KW17 2QL
Received 15 Nov 2016 - Decided16/543/APN
Erect a GP shed.
Roadside Cottage (Land Near), Orphir, Orkney, KW17 2RB
Received 15 Nov 2016 - Decided16/544/LB
Minor internal alterations and install grilles.
86 Dundas Street, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3DA
Received 16 Nov 2016 - Decided16/545/PP
Erect a house with an integral garage, install an air source heat pump and create an access.
Church Road (Plot 3), St Margarets Hope, Orkney
Received 17 Nov 2016 - Decided16/546/HH
Extend a house.
Quoybow, Howe Road, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3JU
Received 17 Nov 2016 - Decided16/547/AMC
Erect a house, install an air source heat pump and create an access (following planning in principle - 15/398/PIP).
West Puldrite (Land Near), Puldrite Road, Rendall, Orkney, KW17 2PB
Received 18 Nov 2016 - Decided16/548/PP
Erect a house with integral garage and create an access.
Ridgeways (Land Near), Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3DS
Received 17 Nov 2016 - Decided16/549/PP
Install a temporary office cabin.
Onziebust (Land Near), Onziebust Road, Egilsay, Orkney, KW17 2QD
Received 18 Nov 2016 - Decided16/550/PP
Erect a house with an integral garage, install an air source heat pump and create an access.
Jubilee Court (Plot 4), Kirkwall, Orkney
Received 18 Nov 2016 - Decided16/551/PN
Install 3 antennas to existing tower, a generator and ancillary apparatus.
Police Radio Station, Wideford Hill, Kirkwall
Received 21 Nov 2016 - Decided16/552/HH
Extend a house and install an air source heat pump.
Lochside Cottage, Ferryhouse Road, Holm, Orkney, KW17 2RY
Received 22 Nov 2016 - Decided16/553/APN
Erect a GP shed.
Upper Work, Work Road, St Ola, Orkney, KW15 1UF
Received 23 Nov 2016 - Decided16/554/PP
Demolish shed and erect a replacement shed and kiosk
Merriman's Noust, Stromness, Orkney
Received 23 Nov 2016 - Decided16/555/PP
Erect a house and create an access
Geothe (Land Near), Gueth Road, Harray, Orkney, KW17 2JB
Received 24 Nov 2016 - Decided16/556/PIP
Siting of 3 houses (one for one) and convert redundant building to a house (two for one) and create accesses.
Towerhill (Land Near), Inganess Road, St Ola, Orkney, KW15 1SR
Received 24 Nov 2016 - Decided16/557/WL
Extend outfall pipe.
Well Park, Stromness, Orkney
Received 22 Nov 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
All planning guides
Understanding planning · 13 min read
Planning permission drawings: how to read plans
Read planning drawings, floor plans, elevations and sections. Use labelled diagrams, a drawing comparison table and revision checks to understand a proposal.
UK researchPublished Updated
Property research · 13 min read
Planning approval rates: how to read council statistics
Understand planning approval rates with an interactive calculator, worked examples and comparison table. Check sample sizes, outcomes and coverage before comparing.
UK researchPublished Updated
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