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 dates11,977Searchable applications
139Recorded 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9,639 approved · 434 refused · 561 withdrawn.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: 12 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 Counts reflect the last collected status; some records may be out of date.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
- Decided11/265/PP
Erect a house with integral garage and an air source heat pump
Fea Hill (Land Near), Tankerness, Orkney
Received 6 May 2011 - Decided11/266/AMC
Erect 2 semi-detached houses
Palace Farm (Plots 6a & 6b) (Land Near), Birsay, Orkney
Received 6 May 2011 - Decided11/267/APN
Erect an agricultural shed
Cursiter Cottage, Twatt, Orkney
Received 10 May 2011 - Decided11/268/PP
Siting of storage unit
Boys' Brigade Hall, Meadowbank, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1QJ
Received 10 May 2011 - Decided11/269/TPP
Variation to planning permission 10/512/PP to erect a wind turbine (max. height 20m)
Pierowall Fish, Broughton, Westray, Orkney, KW17 2DA
Received 10 May 2011 - Decided11/270/TPP
Erect a wind turbine (max. height 18m)
Banks Cottage, Rousay, Orkney, KW17 2PT
Received 10 May 2011 - Decided11/271/PP
Erect a replacement house with an integral double garage and an air source heat pump
Brims (Land Near), Swannay, Birsay, Orkney
Received 11 May 2011 - Decided11/272/PP
Erect a replacement house with an air source heat pump
Gateside (Land Near), Burness, Sanday, Orkney
Received 11 May 2011 - Decided11/273/TPP
Erect a wind turbine (max. height 18.2m)
Inganess Road (Land Near), St Ola, Orkney
Received 11 May 2011 - Decided11/274/AD
Display 2 signs
Old Academy Business Centre, Back Road, Stromness, Orkney
Received 11 May 2011 - Decided11/275/PP
Demolish barrel-roofed and two-storey garage structures, form opening in warehouse gable, harl external walls, erect attached library, office and other accommodation, and freestanding retail premises, and associated hard landscaping
Former Warehouse & Land At Pierhead, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3AA
Received 11 May 2011 - Decided11/276/LB
Demolish barrel-roofed and two-storey garage parts of listed building, form opening in warehouse north gable, remove cement render and harl with lime, internal alterations, and extend significantly to form library, office and other accommodation
Former Warehouse And Land At Pierhead, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3AA
Received 11 May 2011 - Decided11/277/PP
Erect a house and restore original building as storage
Inkster, Hoy, Orkney, KW16 3NJ
Received 11 May 2011 - Decided11/279/LB
Replace doors and windows
Braehead Manse, Pierowall, Westray, Orkney, KW17 2DB
Received 11 May 2011 - Decided11/280/TPP
Erect a wind turbine (max. height 19m)
East Massater (Land Near), South Ronaldsay, Orkney, KW17 2RN
Received 11 May 2011 - Decided11/281/PIP
Siting of a replacement house
Hall Of Gorn (Land Near), Moss Road, Holm, Orkney, KW17 2SA
Received 12 May 2011 - Decided11/282/AMC
Erect a replacement house with an integral garage
Braeland (Land Near), South Ronaldsay, Orkney
Received 12 May 2011 - Decided11/283/AMC
Erect a replacement house with an integral garage
Newton (Land Near), South Ronaldsay, Orkney
Received 12 May 2011 - Decided11/284/PP
Install an air source heat pump
Dartmeet, 19 Reid Crescent, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1UD
Received 12 May 2011 - Decided11/285/PP
Erect a replacement house with an air source heat pump
Henges (Land Near), Grimeston Road, Harray, Orkney KW17 2JT
Received 12 May 2011 - Decided11/286/TPP
Erect a wind turbine (max. height 19m)
Salties, North Loch Road, Sanday, Orkney, KW17 2BP
Received 13 May 2011 - Decided11/287/TPP
Erect a wind turbine (max. height 20m)
Skaill, Rendall, Orkney, KW17 2EX
Received 16 May 2011 - Decided11/288/PP
Replace existing flat roof with pitched roofs
Rohaven, Annfield Crescent, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1NS
Received 16 May 2011 - Decided11/289/PP
Erect a lobster pond
Shoreside, Grimness, South Ronaldsay, Orkney, KW17 2TQ
Received 16 May 2011
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