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9,639 approved · 434 refused · 561 withdrawn.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 Counts reflect the last collected status; some records may be out of date.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
- Decided13/122/LB
Create a ramped access, provide external cast iron soil vent pipe and extract grill
St Columbas Church, Longhope, Hoy, Orkney
Received 20 Mar 2013 - Decided13/123/PP
Erect a polytunnel and a site hut
Steptoze Yard, 2 Garson Place, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3EE
Received 21 Mar 2013 - Decided13/124/PP
Install a radar antenna on existing sub-station
Billia Croo (Land Near) Outertown Road, Stromness, Orkney KW16 3JP
Received 22 Mar 2013 - Decided13/125/PP
Create a ramped access, provide external cast iron soil vent pipe and extract grill
St Columbas Church, Longhope, Hoy, Orkney
Received 22 Mar 2013 - Decided13/126/PP
Erect a general purpose shed
Skaill (Land Near), Sandwick, Orkney, KW16 3LR
Received 22 Mar 2013 - Decided13/127/PP
Install an air source heat pump
Edenmore, 12 Hatston Park, St Ola, Orkney, KW15 1UB
Received 22 Mar 2013 - Decided13/128/TPP
Erect a 80kW wind turbine (max height 40m), erect a switchgear hut and create an access track
Crantit Dairy (Land Near), St Ola, Orkney, KW15 1RZ
Received 25 Mar 2013 - Decided13/129/PP
Erect a detached double garage
Upper Work, Work Road, St Ola, Orkney, KW15 1UF
Received 25 Mar 2013 - Decided13/130/APN
Erect a GP shed
Snippigar (Land Near), Deerness, Orkney, KW17 2QQ
Received 25 Mar 2013 - Decided13/131/APN
Erect a GP shed
Upper Work (Land Near), Work Road, St Ola, Orkney, KW15 1UF
Received 25 Mar 2013 - Decided13/132/PP
Erect a replacement house with a shed and an air source heat pump (amendment to approval of 13/047/PP)
Parkhouse (Site 1) (Land Near), Grimness, South Ronaldsay, Orkney
Received 26 Mar 2013 - Decided13/133/PP
Erect a house with integral garage and an air source heat pump
Grunavi 1 Queen Elizabeth Way Kirkwall Orkney Islands KW15 1ZN
Received 26 Mar 2013 - Decided13/134/LB
Install double glazed units in existing windows; paint windows and doors; re-roof, install replacement shed windows; and replace garden gates
Grain Farm House, 3 Wellington Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1AY
Received 26 Mar 2013 - Decided13/135/PP
Erect an integral garage
Saevermere, Carness Road, St Ola, Orkney, KW15 1UE
Received 27 Mar 2013 - Decided13/137/PP
Demolish existing flat and conservatory, extend a house and install an air source heat pump
New Moan, Nistaben Road, Harray, Orkney, KW17 2LE
Received 28 Mar 2013 - Decided13/138/PP
Install an air source heat pump (retrospective)
32 Burnside, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1TF
Received 28 Mar 2013 - Decided13/139/PP
Erect a general purpose shed
Barebreck, Grimness, South Ronaldsay, Orkney, KW17 2TH
Received 28 Mar 2013 - Decided13/140/PP
Erect a house with detached garage and create an access
South Howar (Land Near), Sanday, Orkney, KW17 2BA
Received 29 Mar 2013 - Decided13/141/APN
Demolish upper sections of a single slatted court and replace with new upper walls and roofs to form two adjacent slatted courts
Heathfield, Old Finstown Road, St Ola, Orkney, KW15 1TR
Received 29 Mar 2013 - Decided13/142/AMC
Erect a house with integral garage and an air source heat pump (following permission in principle - 10/070/PIP)
Hindatoon Farm (Land Near), Harray, Orkney KW17 2JT
Received 2 Apr 2013 - Decided13/143/PP
Extend a house to include integral double garage
Midhouse (New House) (Land Near), Harray, Orkney
Received 2 Apr 2013 - Decided13/144/PP
Erect an agricultural building for cattle housing with a slatted tank
North Bigging (Land Near), North Bigging Road, Harray, Orkney, KW17 2HZ
Received 2 Apr 2013 - Decided13/145/PP
Erect an agricultural building for cattle housing with a slatted tank and erect an earth-walled silo
Waltness, Sandyhill Road, Shapinsay, Orkney, KW17 2DY
Received 2 Apr 2013 - Decided13/146/TPP
Erect a 5kW wind turbine (max height 17.8m)
Croval (Land Near), Sandwick, Orkney, KW16 3LP
Received 2 Apr 2013
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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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