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
139Recorded as pending
96%Approval rate · 10,077 approved or refused records
434Refused applications
9,643 approved · 434 refused · 561 withdrawn. Received dates in our records: 24 Sept 1979 to 5 Oct 2026. Most recent record check: 15 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 Counts reflect the last collected status; some records may be out of date.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
- Decided21/075/HH
Install an air source heat pump
10 Alfred Street, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3DF
Received 22 Feb 2021 - Decided21/076/LB
Install an air source heat pump
10 Alfred Street, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3DF
Received 22 Feb 2021 - Withdrawn/Returned21/077/PP
Erect a house with an air source heat pump and create an access
Blossom (Land Near), Rousay, Orkney, KW17 2PR
Received 22 Feb 2021 - Withdrawn/Returned21/078/PP
Erect a house with an air source heat pump and an integral garage, install a borehole and create an access
Hunclett (Land Near), Rousay, Orkney, KW17 2PT
Received 22 Feb 2021 - Decided21/079/HH
Erect a detached garage (amendment to 20/441/HH)
Dalriada, Moss Road, Holm, Orkney, KW17 2SA
Received 23 Feb 2021 - Decided21/080/HH
Extend a house (amendment to 20/446/HH)
9 Jubilee Court, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1XR
Received 23 Feb 2021 - Decided21/081/HH
Extend a house
Cuil-Na-Mara, Heath House Road, Stenness, Orkney, KW16 3EZ
Received 23 Feb 2021 - Decided21/083/PP
Erect house with air source heat pump, install a borehole and create an access (amendment to 20/070/PP)
Brekkaby (Land To The East Of), Rousay, Orkney, KW17 2PU
Received 26 Feb 2021 - Decided21/084/PP
Change of use from restaurant (Class 3) and self-catering unit to a caf�, gallery, workshop, self-catering unit, a house and erect a domestic garage
The Commodore, St Marys, Holm, Orkney, KW17 2RU
Received 1 Mar 2021 - Decided21/085/HH
Extend a house
Pool Cottage, Aikerskaill Road, Deerness, Orkney, KW17 2QJ
Received 1 Mar 2021 - Decided21/086/TPO
Prune two mature sycamores
Grinnabrek, Finstown, Firth, Orkney, KW17 2EL
Received 25 Feb 2021 - Decided21/087/HH
Extend a house
12 Soulisquoy Place, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1TJ
Received 1 Mar 2021 - Decided21/088/PP
Temporary change of use of land to a bar and erect a gazebo (extension to existing bar) and temporary change of use of public footway to outdoor seating
The Standing Room, 18 Shore Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1LG
Received 1 Mar 2021 - Decided21/089/PP
Paint external walls and windows, install two air source heat pumps and demolish chimney stack
74 Victoria Street, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3BS
Received 2 Mar 2021 - Decided21/090/PP
Extend a cemetery, create an access, erect boundary walls and associated landscaping (amendment to 20/385/PP)
Finstown Cemetery, Finstown, Orkney
Received 3 Mar 2021 - Decided21/091/HH
Extend a house and erect a domestic garage
Hescombe, Holm Branch Road, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1RY
Received 4 Mar 2021 - Decided21/092/HH
Extend a house and erect a garage (amendment to Planning ref 20/341/HH)
Heatherlea, Wattle Road, Birsay, Orkney, KW17 2LR
Received 5 Mar 2021 - Decided21/093/PP
Erect an agricultural shed
Trenabie, Aikerness, Westray, Orkney, KW17 2DN
Received 5 Mar 2021 - Decided21/094/PP
Erect a house with an integral garage and an air source heat pump (part retrospective).
Vanskavaig (Land Near), Carness Road, St Ola, Orkney, KW15 1UE
Received 5 Mar 2021 - Withdrawn/Returned21/095/PP
Erect three houses with air source heat pumps and create an access
Plots 1A, 1B And 1C Eastbrae, Wardhill Road, Stromness, Orkney
Received 8 Mar 2021 - Decided21/096/PP
Erect a house with an integral garage, a detached garage and an air source heat pump and create an access
Lower Durrisdale (Land Near), Jubidee Road, Evie, Orkney
Received 8 Mar 2021 - Unknown15/003/NMV/02
Alteration to fenestration arrangement east elevation. Two windows omitted
Lower Nisthouse, Germiston Road, Stenness, Orkney, KW16 3HE
Received 8 Mar 2021 - Decided21/097/LB
Alteration to gravestone to meet repair standards
St Ninian's Church, Deerness, Orkney, KW17 2QJ
Received 9 Mar 2021 - Decided21/098/LB
Alterations to gravestones to meet repair standards
Hall Of Tankerness Cemetery, Tankerness Hall Road, Tankerness, Orkney, KW17 2QS
Received 9 Mar 2021
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