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9,639 approved · 434 refused · 561 withdrawn.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: 13 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 Counts reflect the last collected status; some records may be out of date.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
- Decided12/382/PP
Amend planning permission 09/582/PP to change house and garage type, install an air source heat pump and create access
Standingstone (Land Near) Hillside Burray Orkney
Received 16 May 2012 - Decided12/383/PP
Erect a house
Cott-On-Hill (Land Near) Shapinsay Orkney KW17 2EA
Received 16 May 2012 - Decided12/385/TPP
Erect a 5kW wind turbines (max height 17.8m)
Mucklehouse (Land Near) Swannay Orkney KW17 2NR
Received 16 May 2012 - Decided12/386/TPP
Erect a 5kW wind turbine (max height 15m)
Bu' (Land Near) Wyre Orkney KW17 2QA
Received 16 May 2012 - Decided12/387/PP
Erect a garage with connecting corridor to main house
Egypt Stews Road South Ronaldsay Orkney KW17 2RL
Received 17 May 2012 - Decided12/388/TPP
Erect a 6kW wind turbine (max height 15m)
Gateside (Land Near) North Ronaldsay Orkney KW17 2BE
Received 17 May 2012 - Decided12/389/TPP
Erect a 6kW wind turbine (max height 15m)
Cruesbreck (Land Near) North Ronaldsay Orkney KW17 2BE
Received 17 May 2012 - Decided12/390/TPP
Erect a 5kW wind turbine (max height 17.8m)
Millhouse (Land Near) Deerness Orkney KW17 2QH
Received 17 May 2012 - Withdrawn/Returned12/391/TPP
Erect 3 x 10kW wind turbines (max height 19m) and a switchgear building
Rennigal (Land Near) St Ola Kirkwall KW15 1SX
Received 17 May 2012 - Decided12/392/TPP
Erect 2 x 10kW wind turbines (max height 19.1m)
Skelbister (Land Near) Orphir Orkney KW16 3HD
Received 17 May 2012 - Decided12/393/TPP
Erect 2 x 10kW wind turbines (max height 19.1m)
Wattle (Land Near) Birsay Orkney KW17 2LS
Received 17 May 2012 - Withdrawn/Returned12/394/TPP
Erect 4 x 10kW wind turbines (max height 19.1m) and a switchgear building
Clumly Hill (Land Near) Sandwick Orkney KW16 3LP
Received 17 May 2012 - Decided12/395/TPP
Erect a 6kW wind turbine (max height 15m)
Sandback (Land Near) North Ronaldsay Orkney KW17 2BG
Received 18 May 2012 - Decided12/396/PP
Erect a house with integral garage and an air source heat pump
Leon, 1 Jubilee Court, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1XR
Received 18 May 2012 - Decided12/397/TPP
Erect 2 x 5kW wind turbines (max height 17.8m)
Hunchaquoy (Land Near) Swannay Orkney
Received 18 May 2012 - Withdrawn/Returned12/398/PP
Change of use from a bookmakers to a takeaway
29 Bridge Street Kirkwall Orkney KW15 1HR
Received 21 May 2012 - Decided12/399/PP
Remove sheeting from lean-to roof, amend wall height and install replacement flat, flagstone roof to form raised platform, erect a vertical-boarded timber fence, and install an air source heat pump
21 Victoria Street Stromness Orkney KW16 3AA
Received 21 May 2012 - Decided12/400/TPP
Erect a 20kW wind turbine (max height 27.2m)
Heatherhouse Farm (Land Near) Tankerness Orkney KW17 2QS
Received 22 May 2012 - Decided12/401/PP
Erect 2 silos
Orkney Aggregates Ltd Crowness Crescent Kirkwall Orkney KW15 1GJ
Received 22 May 2012 - Decided12/402/TPP
Erect a 20kW wind turbine (max height 22m)
Easthouse (Land Near) Shapinsay Orkney KW17 2EB
Received 22 May 2012 - Decided12/403/TPP
Erect a 5kW wind turbine (max height 15m)
Swinsty (Land Near) Westside Road Eday Orkney KW17 2AA
Received 22 May 2012 - Decided12/404/TPP
Erect a 5kW wind turbine (max height 15m)
Cavit (Land Near) Wyre Orkney KW17 2QA
Received 22 May 2012 - Decided12/405/PP
Erect a house with integral garage and install an air source heat pump
Lynnfield Hotel (Land Near) Kirkwall Orkney
Received 23 May 2012 - Decided12/406/PP
Install an ATM (Automatic Teller Machine)
Co-operative 19 Albert Street Kirkwall Orkney KW15 1HP
Received 23 May 2012
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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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.
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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