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9,639 approved · 434 refused · 561 withdrawn.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 Counts reflect the last collected status; some records may be out of date.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
- Decided13/147/PP
Install an air source heat pump
Hall Cottage, Evie, Orkney, KW17 2PH
Received 2 Apr 2013 - Decided13/148/PP
Re-grade ground level; repair and extend stone wall; install row of stone gabions to Ness Road; install timber fence above gabions, total height 2.8 metres above road; erect other fences within site; form access to public road; install access ramp (retrospective)
Stromness Golf Club, Ness Road, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3DW
Received 2 Apr 2013 - Decided13/149/PP
Erect a house with integral garage and an air source heat pump
Millfield (Plot 1) (Land Near), Quholm Road, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3LL
Received 2 Apr 2013 - Decided13/150/PP
Extend a slatted court
Cockmurra, Holm, Orkney, KW17 2RZ
Received 2 Apr 2013 - Withdrawn/Returned13/151/PP
Convert existing barn and extend to form a house
Fea (Land Near), Stenness, Orkney, KW16 3EZ
Received 3 Apr 2013 - Decided13/152/MARAUD
Audit of marine finfish farm on site at Bay of Vady (consent by Crown Estates - prior to 2007)
Bay Of Vady, Egilsay, Orkney
Received 3 Apr 2013 - Decided13/153/MARAUD
Audit of marine finfish farm on site at Kirknoust (consent by Crown Estates - prior to 2007)
Kirknoust, Rousay Sound, Orkney
Received 3 Apr 2013 - Decided13/154/APN
Erect a roof over existing silage clamp
Millhouse, Deerness, Orkney, KW17 2QH
Received 3 Apr 2013 - Decided13/155/PP
Extend a house
Roadside, Old Finstown Road, Firth, Orkney, KW15 1TT
Received 3 Apr 2013 - Withdrawn/Returned13/156/AMC
Erect a replacement house with integral garage, install an air source heat pump and create an access (following permission in principle - 13/012/PIP)
Latherbare (Land Near), Tankerness, Orkney
Received 4 Apr 2013 - Decided13/157/PP
Erect a sun porch
17 Garrioch Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1PL
Received 4 Apr 2013 - Decided13/158/APN
Demolish a shed and extend existing GP shed
Lower Cornquoy, Cornquoy Road, Holm, Orkney, KW17 2SD
Received 4 Apr 2013 - Decided13/159/PP
Erect an agricultural general purpose shed
Breck Cottage, Birsay, Orkney, KW17 2ND
Received 4 Apr 2013 - Decided13/160/APN
Erect a GP shed
Cuppin, Heddle Road, Firth, Orkney, KW17 2JX
Received 4 Apr 2013 - Decided13/161/PP
Erect a domestic general purpose shed
Errival, St Ola, Orkney, KW15 1SX
Received 4 Apr 2013 - Decided13/162/PP
Erect an agricultural building
Heathfield, Old Finstown Road, St Ola, Orkney, KW15 1TR
Received 4 Apr 2013 - Decided13/163/PIP
Demolish redundant agricultural buildings and siting of a house
Grimestone Park (Land Near), Newark Road, Harray, Orkney
Received 5 Apr 2013 - Decided13/164/APN
Erect a GP shed
Neviholm, South Ronaldsay, Orkney
Received 5 Apr 2013 - Decided13/165/APN
Erect a GP shed
Quoydam, South Ronaldsay, Orkney
Received 5 Apr 2013 - Decided13/166/PP
Siting of a caravan for self-catering (retrospective)
Braehead (Land Near), Innertown, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3JW
Received 5 Apr 2013 - Decided13/167/PP
Convert existing barn and extend to create a house
Rossmyre, Grimbister, Firth, Orkney, KW15 1TS
Received 5 Apr 2013 - Decided13/168/APN
Demolish two existing stone sheds and erect a GP shed
Aikers (Land Near), Yinstay Road, Tankerness, Orkney, KW17 2QS
Received 5 Apr 2013 - Decided13/169/AMC
Erect a house and install an air source heat pump for a rural business (following permission in principle - 12/740/PIP)
Lowerlands Of Midhouse (Land Near), South Ronaldsay, Orkney, KW17 2TJ
Received 5 Apr 2013 - Decided13/171/MARAUD
Audit of marine finfish farm on site at West Fara (consent by Crown Estates - prior to 2007)
West Fara, Hoy, Orkney
Received 8 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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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