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9,639 approved · 434 refused · 561 withdrawn.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 Counts reflect the last collected status; some records may be out of date.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
- Decided13/396/LB
Form new openings in existing outbuilding; install new doors and replacement windows; erect two flat-roof extensions with timber cladding, curtain glazing and flues
Ness House, Pier Road, Longhope, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3PG
Received 25 Sept 2013 - Decided13/397/PP
Erect a house with an integral garage
5 Coplands Road (3b Land Near), Stromness, Orkney KW16 3BW
Received 25 Sept 2013 - Decided13/398/PP
Form new openings in existing outbuilding; install new doors and replacement windows; erect two flat-roof extensions with timber cladding, curtain glazing and flues
Ness House, Pier Road, Longhope, Orkney, KW16 3PG
Received 26 Sept 2013 - Decided13/399/TPP
Erect a 5kW wind turbine (max height 15m)
Canker (Land Near), Sanday, Orkney, KW17 2BW
Received 23 Sept 2013 - Decided13/400/TPN
Erect a 5kW wind turbine (max height 15m)
Little Ocklester (Land Near), Holm, Orkney, KW17 2SD
Received 27 Sept 2013 - Decided13/401/TPP
Erect a 6kW wind turbine (max height 17.8m)
Longhope Lifeboat Museum (Land Near), Brims, Hoy, Orkney KW16 3NZ
Received 27 Sept 2013 - Decided13/402/PP
Create an access and erect a fence (max height 1.8m)
Storage Area, Crowness Road, Hatston, St Ola, Orkney, KW15 1RG
Received 2 Oct 2013 - Decided13/403/PP
Erect a crane (max height 6.1m)
Billia Croo (Land Near) Outertown Road, Stromness, Orkney KW16 3JP
Received 2 Oct 2013 - Decided13/404/EB
Install a 11kV overhead electricity line
Woodside (Land Near), Tankerness, Orkney
Received 3 Oct 2013 - Decided13/405/AMC
Demolish existing house and erect a replacement house with integral garage and air source heat pump (following permission in principle - 12/739/PIP)
Millhouse (Land Near), Evie, Orkney
Received 3 Oct 2013 - Decided13/406/PP
Demolish existing redundant building and erect a house with integral garage and an air source heat pump
Glebe (Land Near), Scorradale Road, Orphir, Orkney, KW17 2RF
Received 4 Oct 2013 - Decided13/407/LB
Display a parking sign
76 Victoria Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1DQ
Received 4 Oct 2013 - Decided13/408/PP
Remove astragals and install double glazing in existing frames
31A & 33 Broad Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1DH
Received 4 Oct 2013 - Decided13/409/PIP
Siting of a house for a rural business
Tingwall Lobster Ponds (Land Near), Tingwall, Rendall, Orkney
Received 7 Oct 2013 - Decided13/410/PP
Erect a slurry storage tank
West Nistaben, Stenness, Orkney, KW16 3HE
Received 7 Oct 2013 - Decided13/411/PP
Demolish existing derelict house, erect a replacement house with air source heat pump and erect a detached garage
Crook Farm (Land Near), Rendall, Orkney, KW17 2HA
Received 7 Oct 2013 - Decided13/412/TC
Fell a dead elm tree
Barcelos, 20B Main Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1BU
Received 7 Oct 2013 - Decided13/413/PP
Install an air source heat pump (retrospective)
5 Buttquoy Crescent, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1JH
Received 7 Oct 2013 - Decided13/414/TPP
Erect a 5kW wind turbine (max height 17.8m)
Grind (Land Near), Stronsay, Orkney, KW17 2AN
Received 7 Oct 2013 - Decided13/415/TPN
Erect a 5kW wind turbine (max height 17.8m)
Balfour Cottage (Land Near), Stenness, Orkney, KW16 3HA
Received 8 Oct 2013 - Decided13/416/PP
Erect 4 semi-detached houses
Willowgrange (Land Near), Berstane Road, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1NA
Received 8 Oct 2013 - Decided13/417/PP
Install an air source heat pump
Heath Cottage, Berstane Road, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1SZ
Received 8 Oct 2013 - Decided13/418/PP
Change of use from workshop to dental practice and alter two doors to form two windows
Unit C, 11 Broad Street, Kirkwall, Orkney KW15 1DH
Received 9 Oct 2013 - Decided13/419/VR
Vary condition 1 of planning permission in principle 10/564/PIP to extend the consent
Geroin Cottage (Land Near), Harray, Orkney
Received 9 Oct 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