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9,639 approved · 434 refused · 561 withdrawn.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 Counts reflect the last collected status; some records may be out of date.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
- Decided15/333/AMC
Erect 21 houses with air source heat pumps and create access (following permission on principle - 14/269/PIPMAJ)
Walliwall (Land Near), Old Finstown Road, Kirkwall, Orkney
Received 3 Jul 2015 - Decided15/334/APN
Erect a GP shed
Fiddlerhouse, Sandwick, Orkney, KW16 3JF
Received 6 Jul 2015 - Decided15/335/PP
Install an air source heat pump
11 Torness, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1UU
Received 6 Jul 2015 - Decided15/336/PP
Install an air source heat pump (retrospective)
Swannay Brewery, Birsay, Orkney, KW17 2NP
Received 6 Jul 2015 - Decided15/337/PP
Extend a house
Newfield, Scorradale Road, Orphir, Orkney, KW17 2RE
Received 7 Jul 2015 - Decided15/338/PP
Extend a shop and install an air source heat pump
17 Bridge Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1HR
Received 8 Jul 2015 - Decided15/339/LB
Install timber windows and doors, Welsh slates, stone skews, metal rainwater goods, lime harling, and timber balustrade, display an advertisement, erect single storey rear extension with timber cladding and install air source heat pump
17 Bridge Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1HR
Received 10 Jul 2015 - Decided15/340/PP
Extend a house
7 Cromwell Road, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1LH
Received 10 Jul 2015 - Decided15/341/LB
Extend a house
7 Cromwell Road, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1LH
Received 10 Jul 2015 - Decided15/342/PP
Replace guttering and rooflights and install lead flashing
34 Albert Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1HQ
Received 10 Jul 2015 - Decided15/343/PN
Erect a substation
Linburn (Land Near), Ireland Road, Stenness, Orkney, KW16 3LB
Received 9 Jul 2015 - Decided15/344/PP
Install 5 air source heat pumps
Wilderness (Land Near), Holm, Orkney
Received 10 Jul 2015 - Decided15/345/PP
Erect a detached garage
8 Faravel, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3DT
Received 10 Jul 2015 - Withdrawn/Returned15/346/PP
Import soil for agricultural benefit and alter an access (part retrospective)
Cuppin, (Land Near), Appietown Road, Harray, Orkney, KW17 2LQ
Received 13 Jul 2015 - Decided15/347/TPP
Erect a 6kW wind turbine (max height 17.8m)
Whitehall Farm (Land Near), Whitehall Road, Stronsay, Orkney, KW17 2AT
Received 13 Jul 2015 - Decided15/348/PP
Demolish garage, erect a replacement integral garage and extend a house (amendment to approval of 14/209/PP)
Kiruna, Stenness, Orkney, KW16 3HQ
Received 13 Jul 2015 - Decided15/349/PP
Install replacement windows
Flat 1, Ivy House, 1 Bridge Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1LD
Received 13 Jul 2015 - Decided15/350/LB
Install replacement windows
Flat 1, Ivy House, 1 Bridge Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1LD
Received 13 Jul 2015 - Decided15/351/LB
Install metal rainwater goods, remove roof lights and block opening
Stromness Library, 2 Hellihole Road, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3DE
Received 13 Jul 2015 - Decided15/352/PN
Install a telecommunications box
Telephone Exchange (Land Near), Loch House Road, Holm, Orkney, KW17 2RT
Received 13 Jul 2015 - Decided15/353/PN
Install a telecommunications box
St Margarets Hope Telephone Exchange (Land Near), Church Road, St Margarets Hope, Orkney, KW17 2SR
Received 13 Jul 2015 - Decided15/354/PP
Erect a fence on top of existing wall (max height 2m)
20 Hordaland, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1UN
Received 13 Jul 2015 - Decided15/355/PP
Change of use from library to artist workshops (Class 4), install metal rainwater goods, remove roof lights and block opening
Stromness Library, 2 Hellihole Road, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3DE
Received 14 Jul 2015 - Decided15/356/TPP
Erect a 6kW wind turbine (max height 17.8m) (resubmission following withdrawal of 15/191/TPP)
Stensigarth (Land Near), Sandwick Bay Road, South Ronaldsay, Orkney, KW17 2RJ
Received 15 Jul 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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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