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9,639 approved · 434 refused · 561 withdrawn.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 Counts reflect the last collected status; some records may be out of date.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
- Decided13/346/PP
Erect an agricultural building and erect a slurry store within an existing building
Brockan, Outertown Road, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3JP
Received 21 Aug 2013 - Decided13/347/PP
Erect a double garage
Fjall, Raviehall, Birsay, Orkney, KW17 2NA
Received 21 Aug 2013 - Decided13/348/VR
Vary condition 1 of planning permission 08/306/PPF to extend consent to continue to use the car park
Tormiston Mill, Stenness, Orkney
Received 22 Aug 2013 - Decided13/349/TPP
Erect a 5kW wind turbine (max height 15m)
Balfours Brae (Land Near), Sanday, Orkney, KW17 2BA
Received 22 Aug 2013 - Decided13/350/PP
Create a serviced site
St Margaret's Road (Land Near), St Margaret's Hope, Orkney
Received 23 Aug 2013 - Decided13/351/PP
Install replacement timber shop windows, fascia and rear window and install an air source heat pump
19 Victoria Street, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3AA
Received 27 Aug 2013 - Decided13/352/PP
Erect a slatted court and underground slurry store
Stank, Heatherybrae Road, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3JP
Received 27 Aug 2013 - Decided13/353/LB
Reinstate window openings and install timber windows
Viera Lodge, Rousay, Orkney, KW17 2PT
Received 29 Aug 2013 - Decided13/354/PIP
Demolish redundant agricultural building and siting of a house
Tufta (Land Near), Sandwick, Orkney, KW17 2JF
Received 29 Aug 2013 - Decided13/355/AMC
Erect a house and install an air source heat pump (following permission in principle - 11/731/PIP)
35 Hillside Road (Land Near), Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3HR
Received 29 Aug 2013 - Decided13/356/PP
Erect two feed silos
Vetquoy Farm, Sandwick, Orkney, KW17 2JF
Received 2 Sept 2013 - Decided13/357/PP
Erect a slatted court and extend an existing building to create a calf creep
Muckle Ocklester, Holm, Orkney, KW17 2SB
Received 2 Sept 2013 - Decided13/359/VR
Vary condition 1 of planning permission 10/577/PP to allow permanent retention of a lorry park
Rothiesholm (Land Near), Stromness, Orkney
Received 3 Sept 2013 - Decided13/360/VR
Vary condition 1 of planning permission 08/454/PPF to extend consent to erect a replacement house and retain existing building as an outbuilding
Houton Head (Land Near), Orphir, Orkney
Received 4 Sept 2013 - Decided13/361/MARSS
Screening and scoping request to increase the current cage sizes and increase the storage capacity of biomass and extend beyond the existing site grid size
Meil Bay, St Ola, Orkney
Received 5 Sept 2013 - Decided13/362/MARSS
Screening and scoping request to increase the current cage sizes and increase the storage capacity of biomass and extend beyond the existing site grid size
Carness Bay, St Ola, Orkney
Received 5 Sept 2013 - Decided13/363/S36SCO
Scoping opinion request for proposed Section 36 application for the Brims Tidal Array
Brims, Hoy, Orkney
Received 5 Sept 2013 - Decided13/364/PP
Extend a byre and incorporate a slurry store
Swartland, Twatt, Orkney, KW17 2JQ
Received 5 Sept 2013 - Decided13/365/PP
Remove existing roof, build up gable walls and construct a new roof
Hillcrest, Sandwick, Orkney, KW16 3LU
Received 5 Sept 2013 - Decided13/366/MAR
Create a salmon farming site, comprising 12 x 100m circumference cages, 2 x 6 in a 60m grid and include a feed barge
Gairsay Sound, Wyre, Orkney
Received 6 Sept 2013 - Decided13/367/PP
Erect a children's house
Watersfield (Land Near), Kirkwall, Orkney
Received 9 Sept 2013 - Decided13/368/PP
Install an air source heat pump
8 Queen Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1JE
Received 10 Sept 2013 - Decided13/369/PN
Install a substation (amendment to approval of 13/111/PN)
Berstane Loan (Land Near), Kirkwall, Orkney
Received 2 Aug 2013 - Decided13/370/APN
Extend an agricultural shed
Oaklea, St Ola, Orkney, KW15 1SX
Received 11 Sept 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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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