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
137Recorded as pending
96%Approval rate · 10,076 approved or refused records
434Refused applications
9,642 approved · 434 refused · 561 withdrawn.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 Counts reflect the last collected status; some records may be out of date.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
- Decided18/323/HH
Extend a house
Sandola, Sandwick, Orkney, KW16 3JB
Received 20 Aug 2018 - Decided18/325/PP
Change of use from self-catering to domestic (retrospective)
New Breck, Beaquoy Road, Birsay, Orkney, KW17 2HY
Received 22 Aug 2018 - Decided18/326/HH
Re-roof with Welsh slate, install roof lights, paint walls and door, and install five replacement windows and rainwater goods (part retrospective)
83 Victoria Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1DQ
Received 22 Aug 2018 - Decided18/327/LB
Re-roof with Welsh slate, install roof lights, paint walls and door, and install five replacement windows and rainwater goods (part retrospective)
83 Victoria Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1DQ
Received 22 Aug 2018 - Decided18/328/PIP
Erect a house and create an access
Everybist (Land Near), Westside Road, Rousay, Orkney, KW17 2PS
Received 23 Aug 2018 - Decided18/330/PN
Install telecommunications box
Seafield, Finstown, Orkney, KW17 2EN
Received 23 Aug 2018 - Decided18/332/PP
Change of use from barn to ancillary domestic accommodation and extend dwellinghouse
Ness Of Redland, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3LN
Received 23 Aug 2018 - Decided18/333/PP
Extend a shed and erect a fence
Store, Pier Road, Burray, Orkney
Received 24 Aug 2018 - Decided18/334/PIP
Reinstate and extend a house, siting of a house (two for one) and create an access
Bridgend, Old Finstown Road, Firth, Orkney
Received 27 Aug 2018 - Decided18/335/HH
Extend a house and create an access
Tamarisk, 3 Viking Place, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1SH
Received 27 Aug 2018 - Decided18/336/PP
Erect a house with an air source heat pump and detached outbuilding.
Mistra (Land Near), Evie, Orkney
Received 27 Aug 2018 - Decided18/337/PP
Erect two GP sheds
Upper Cornquoy, Benshall Road, Holm, Orkney, KW17 2SD
Received 27 Aug 2018 - Decided18/338/APN
Erect an agricultural building
Rowland, Holm, Orkney, KW17 2RY
Received 27 Aug 2018 - Decided18/339/APN
Erect a GP shed
Stank, Heatherybraes Road, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3JP
Received 28 Aug 2018 - Decided18/340/PP
Erect a replacement house with an air source heat pump (one for one)
Millhouse (Land Near), Stromness, Orkney
Received 30 Aug 2018 - Decided18/341/PP
Change of use of agricultural land and domestic premises to a guest house and studio (Class 7)
Linkshouse, Linkshouse Road, The Palace, Birsay, Orkney, KW17 2LX
Received 30 Aug 2018 - Decided18/342/PP
Convert former dental practice to a house and two flats, and install three air source heat pumps, windows and doors.
Earls Palace Dental Practice, Watergate, Kirkwall, Orkney KW15 1PD
Received 3 Sept 2018 - Decided18/343/LB
Install three air source heat pumps, windows and doors, paint render, demolish stores, and internal alterations (part retrospective)
Earls Palace Dental Practice, Watergate, Kirkwall, Orkney KW15 1PD
Received 3 Sept 2018 - Decided18/345/HH
Erect a dormer
Strome, Berstane Loan, St Ola, Orkney, KW15 1TA
Received 4 Sept 2018 - Decided18/346/LB
Install replacement windows and doors and render wall
1 North Ness, North Ness Road, Hoy, Orkney, KW16 3NY
Received 4 Sept 2018 - Decided18/347/APN
Erect a GP shed
Farrivald, Noup Road, Westray, Orkney, KW17 2DW
Received 5 Sept 2018 - Decided18/348/SCO
Scoping opinion request to erect a 220kV/132 kV electrical substation
Stymilders (Land Near), Firth, Orkney
Received 5 Sept 2018 - Decided18/349/HH
Demolish and erect replacement porch, and install replacement doors and windows and air source heat pumps.
Hillside, Hillside Road, Hoy, Orkney, KW16 3PQ
Received 5 Sept 2018 - Decided18/350/AMC
Erect a replacement house with an integral garage and an air source heat pump (following permission in principle 17/467/PIP)
Muckle Twiness (Land Near), Toab, Orkney, KW17 2QT
Received 6 Sept 2018
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