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9,643 approved · 434 refused · 561 withdrawn.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 Counts reflect the last collected status; some records may be out of date.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
- Unknown17/111/NMV/01
Build concrete block gables with window instead of wooden slats all round and create a turf roof instead of using profile sheeting
Easthouse (Land Near), Toab, Orkney, KW17 2QG
Received 12 May 2020 - Decided20/180/PP
Erect a polytunnel
Papay Development Trust Community Market Garden, Morven House, School Road, Papa Westray, Orkney, KW17 2BU
Received 13 May 2020 - Decided20/181/HH
Extend a house
The Anchorage, Stoneyhill Road, Harray, Orkney, KW17 2JS
Received 13 May 2020 - Decided20/182/PP
Remove cement and lime harl chimney stack
33 Albert Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1HL
Received 15 May 2020 - Decided20/183/LB
Remove cement, and lime harl chimney stack
33 Albert Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1HL
Received 15 May 2020 - Decided20/184/PP
Erect a house with an air source heat pump and a detached garage and upgrade an access
East Serrigar (Land Near), South Ronaldsay, Orkney
Received 15 May 2020 - Decided20/185/HH
Install replacement windows and doors and an air source heat pump, render walls of existing extension, internal alterations and erect a fence
9 Balfour, Shapinsay, Orkney, KW17 2DX
Received 18 May 2020 - Decided20/186/LB
Install replacement windows and doors and an air source heat pump, render walls of existing extension, internal alterations and erect a fence
9 Balfour, Shapinsay, Orkney, KW17 2DX
Received 18 May 2020 - Decided20/187/PIP
Siting of three houses and create accesses
Braemor (Land Near), Downies Lane, Stromness, Orkney
Received 18 May 2020 - Decided20/188/HH
Extend a house
7 Willowburn Road, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1NE
Received 19 May 2020 - Withdrawn/Returned20/189/HH
Extend a house, re-roof, alter accesses and install an air source heat pump
Ulva Cottage, Westray, Orkney, KW17 2BZ
Received 20 May 2020 - Unknown19/023/NMV/01
Change window arrangement. First floor of garage to be used as storage & domestic workshop
Westshore Road (Plot 7), Burray, Orkney, KW17 2SS
Received 20 May 2020 - Unknown20/041/NMV/01
Additional rooflight RF04
Carinya, 22 Franklin Road, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3DZ
Received 20 May 2020 - Decided20/190/TPP
Erect a house with an air source heat pump and a detached workshop, create an access, and erect a 6kW wind turbine (max height 14.4m) (resubmission of 20/110/TPP)
Furrowend (Land Near), Westhill Road, Shapinsay, Orkney, KW17 2DY
Received 22 May 2020 - Decided20/191/HH
Extend a house
Tirlybrekks, Gorseness Road, Rendall, Orkney, KW17 2EX
Received 25 May 2020 - Decided20/192/PP
Erect a house for a retiring farmer with a shed and polytunnel
Wheems (Land Near), Kirkhouse Road, South Ronaldsay, Orkney, KW17 2TJ
Received 25 May 2020 - Decided20/193/PP
Demolish a house and erect a house with an integral garage and an air source heat pump (resubmission of 19/414/PP)
The Rosary, Downies Lane, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3EP
Received 25 May 2020 - Decided20/194/PP
Extend a cemetery with boundary walls and create car parking
St Olaf's Cemetery, St Ola, Orkney
Received 25 May 2020 - Decided20/195/HH
Erect a domestic shed
Kyushu, Wardhill Road, Stromness, Orkney, KW16 3HS
Received 28 May 2020 - Decided20/196/HH
Extend a house
Highview, Scapa Brae, St Ola, Orkney, KW15 1SG
Received 29 May 2020 - Decided20/197/PP
Subdivide a house to two flats, form opening, demolish porch and remove shed roof, harl walls and install staircase and replacement windows and doors (resubmission of 20/097/PP)
12 Albert Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1HP
Received 29 May 2020 - Decided20/198/PP
Demolish pottery and change of use from pottery (Class 4) to residential, extend a house, alter access and install an air source heat pump (resubmission of 20/189/HH)
Ulva Cottage, Westray, Orkney, KW17 2BZ
Received 1 Jun 2020 - Decided20/199/VR
Vary condition 02 (permitted noise) of planning permission 15/454/TPP
Springfields, Berstane Lodge Road, St Ola, Orkney, KW15 1SZ
Received 1 Jun 2020 - Unknown18/033/NMV/01
Alterations to first floor layout and North East and South West Elevations
22 High Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1AZ
Received 29 May 2020
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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Read planning drawings, floor plans, elevations and sections. Use labelled diagrams, a drawing comparison table and revision checks to understand a proposal.
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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