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 dates11,981Searchable applications
138Recorded as pending
96%Approval rate · 10,078 approved or refused records
434Refused applications
9,644 approved · 434 refused · 561 withdrawn. Received dates in our records: 24 Sept 1979 to 5 Oct 2026. Most recent record check: 16 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 Counts reflect the last collected status; some records may be out of date.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
- Unknown25/126/PN
Install a pole
Seatter, Denwick Road, Deerness, Orkney
Received 8 Apr 2025 - Decided25/128/PP
Install a garden room, shed, and polytunnel, re-roof a shed, prune a tree and other landscaping works
54 Victoria Street, Kirkwall, Orkney KW15 1DN
Received 9 Apr 2025 - Decided25/129/PP
Change of use from a building to a house (retrospective)
Yarpha, Halley Road, Deerness, Orkney KW17 2QL
Received 14 Apr 2025 - Unknown25/130/PN
Install a pole
South Keigar (Land Near), Keigar Road, Deerness, Orkney KW17 2QL
Received 9 Apr 2025 - Decided25/131/HH
Erect a domestic garage
Vardabreck, Old Finstown Road, St Ola, Orkney KW15 1TR
Received 14 Apr 2025 - Decided25/132/PP
Change of use of land from agriculture (Class 18) to storage or distribution (Class 6), create hardstanding, and bunding (retrospective)
Orkney Auction Mart (Land Near), Grainshore Road, St Ola, Orkney
Received 15 Apr 2025 - Decided25/134/PP
Change of use from a shop to a shop and hot food takeaway, and siting of a mobile kitchen unit
Garson Food Park, Garson Industrial Estate, Stromness, Orkney
Received 7 Apr 2025 - Decided25/136/PP
Install two air source heat pumps and a roof mounted solar array
Foveran Hotel, St Ola, Orkney KW15 1SF
Received 16 Apr 2025 - Decided25/137/LB
Remove roof covering and windows, and install replacement roof covering, lead on skews, replacement windows, rainwater goods, and garage door, and internal alterations (part retrospective)
Watergate House, Watergate, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1PD
Received 17 Apr 2025 - Withdrawn/Returned25/138/HH
Extend a house
Aria, 8 Seafield, Finstown, Firth, Orkney KW17 2EW
Received 18 Apr 2025 - Decided25/139/PP
Install a bird hide and footpath
Old Toab School (Land Near), Greenfield, St Andrews, Orkney
Received 18 Apr 2025 - Decided25/142/PPMAJ
Construct mountain bike trails (4.6 kilometres), excavate borrow pits and retain for water attenuation, and associated engineering and landscaping works
The Pickaquoy Centre (Land Near), Muddisdale Road, Kirkwall, Orkney KW15 1LR
Received 22 Apr 2025 - Decided25/135/SCO
Scoping opinion request to create a fish farming site (expansion, relocate and reconfigure existing equipment)
Bay Of Cleat North Westray, Orkney
Received 9 Apr 2025 - Unknown25/143/PN
Install 0.3 meter dish on existing tower
Faraclett (Land Near), Scockness Road, Rousay, Orkney KW17 2PR
Received 16 Apr 2025 - Decided25/144/TC
Fell a tree
Burnlea, 13 Church Road, Stromness, Orkney KW16 3BA
Received 18 Apr 2025 - Decided25/145/PN
Install ERS rack and six RRU's
Upper Stove (Land Near) Stove Road Deerness Orkney Islands KW17 2QJ
Received 23 Apr 2025 - Decided25/147/HH
Erect an outbuilding (summerhouse) with an air source heat pump
Roshaven, Evie, Orkney KW17 2NJ
Received 24 Apr 2025 - Decided25/148/PP
External alterations
Karrawa Guest House, Inganess Road, St Ola, Orkney KW15 1SP
Received 24 Apr 2025 - Decided25/149/HH
Extend a house
Lochmailing, South Ronaldsay, Orkney KW17 2RW
Received 23 Apr 2025 - Decided25/150/PP
Change of use of part of house to an office (Class 1A), replace roof covering, install lead on skews, install replacement windows, rainwater goods, and garage door (part retrospective)
Watergate House, Watergate, Kirkwall, Orkney KW15 1PD
Received 24 Apr 2025 - Decided25/151/PP
Temporary siting of storage container
UHI Orkney, East Road, Kirkwall, Orkney KW15 1LX
Received 25 Apr 2025 - Unknown25/152/APN
Erect a GP shed
Vart Tun (Land Near), Stromness Orkney KW16 3LL
Received 16 Apr 2025 - Decided25/154/SCO
Scoping opinion request to create a fish farming site (relocate and configure existing equipment)
Kirknoust Fish Farm, Rousay, Orkney
Received 23 Apr 2025 - Decided25/155/PP
Erect a production building (food) (Class 4), construct parking and hardstanding, and create an access
Brae Villa, Rendall, Orkney
Received 29 Apr 2025
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
All planning guides
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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