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9,639 approved · 434 refused · 561 withdrawn.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: 14 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 Counts reflect the last collected status; some records may be out of date.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
- Decided15/186/PP
Install an air source heat pump (retrospective)
17 Buttquoy Crescent, Kirkwall, Orkney KW15 1JH
Received 14 Apr 2015 - Decided15/188/TPP
Erect a 6kW wind turbine (max height 17.8m)
Braeland (Land Near), Stews Road, South Ronaldsay, Orkney, KW17 2RL
Received 15 Apr 2015 - Decided15/189/TPP
Erect a 6kW wind turbine (max height 17.8m)
Newton Farm (Land Near), South Ronaldsay, Orkney, KW17 2RL
Received 15 Apr 2015 - Withdrawn/Returned15/190/TPP
Erect a 6kW wind turbine (max height 17.8m)
Heatherhill (Land Near), Littlequoy Road, Burray, Orkney, KW17 2SX
Received 15 Apr 2015 - Withdrawn/Returned15/191/TPP
Erect a 6kW wind turbine (max height 17.8m)
Stensigarth (Land Near), Sandwick Bay Road, South Ronaldsay, Orkney, KW17 2RJ
Received 15 Apr 2015 - Decided15/192/PP
Demolish existing redundant buildings, erect a house with air source heat pump and create an access
Biggings (Land Near), Biggings Road, St Andrews, Orkney, KW17 2QG
Received 16 Apr 2015 - Decided15/193/APN
Erect a GP shed
Hillhouse, Westray, Orkney KW17 2DD
Received 16 Apr 2015 - Decided15/194/PP
Install 2 air source heat pumps (retrospective)
10 & 12 Taftingus Place, St Margarets Hope, South Ronaldsay, Orkney, KW17 2UD
Received 16 Apr 2015 - Decided15/195/PP
Change of use of land from agricultural to domestic, extend a house and erect integral garages
Heathfield House, Old Finstown Road, St Ola, Orkney, KW15 1TR
Received 17 Apr 2015 - Decided15/196/PP
Erect a shed
Damsay, Grimbust Road, Westray, Orkney, KW17 2DE
Received 20 Apr 2015 - Decided15/197/PN
Install a telecommunications box
St Margarets Hope Telephone Exchange (Land Near), Church Road, St Margarets Hope, Orkney KW17 2SR
Received 20 Apr 2015 - Decided15/198/PN
Install a telecommunications box
St Margarets Hope Telephone Exchange (Land Near), Church Road, St Margarets Hope, Orkney, KW17 2SR
Received 20 Apr 2015 - Decided15/199/PN
Install a telecommunications box
Holm Telephone Exchange (Land Near), Loch House Road, Holm, Orkney, KW17 2RT
Received 20 Apr 2015 - Decided15/200/PN
Install a telecommunications box
Holm Telephone Exchange (Land Near), Loch House Road, Holm, Orkney, KW17 2RT
Received 20 Apr 2015 - Decided15/201/PP
Change of use from house to dental surgery
22 John Street, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3AD
Received 20 Apr 2015 - Decided15/202/PP
Reinstate and convert existing non-domestic building to domestic, erect a house with an air source heat pump and create an access
Upper Hobbister (Land Near), Stenness, Orkney KW16 3HG
Received 20 Apr 2015 - Withdrawn/Returned15/203/TPP
Erect 2 x 6kW wind turbines (max height 17.8m)
Lyde (Land Near), Lyde Road, Rendall, Orkney, KW17 2PA
Received 20 Apr 2015 - Decided15/204/LB
Install replacement roof covering, lime harl, timber windows and doors, demolish existing extension, erect a timber clad extension and install an air source heat pump
St Clair Cottage, Pierowall, Westray, Orkney KW17 2DH
Received 20 Apr 2015 - Decided15/205/TPP
Erect a 6kW wind turbine (max height 14.8m)
Ebenezer Cottage (Land Near), Lower Whitehall Road, Whitehall, Stronsay, Orkney KW17 2AS
Received 20 Apr 2015 - Decided15/206/TPP
Erect a 6kW wind turbine (max height 17.8m)
Whitecleat (Land Near), Wattle Road, Birsay, Orkney, KW17 2LR
Received 20 Apr 2015 - Withdrawn/Returned15/207/PP
Install a mini roundabout junction
Tesco (Land Near), 18 Pickaquoy Road, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1RP
Received 20 Apr 2015 - Decided15/208/TPP
Erect a 6kW wind turbine (max height 17.8m)
Braebister (Land Near), North Bigging Road, Harray, Orkney, KW17 2HZ
Received 20 Apr 2015 - Decided15/209/PP
Create car parking area
Sheila Fleet Jewellery (Land Near), Gransetter Road, Tankerness, St Andrews, Orkney KW17 2QT
Received 20 Apr 2015 - Decided15/210/TPP
Erect 2 x 6kW wind turbines (max height 17.8m)
Westerbister (Land Near), Holm, Orkney, KW17 2RY
Received 21 Apr 2015
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