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9,643 approved · 434 refused · 561 withdrawn.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 Counts reflect the last collected status; some records may be out of date.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
- Decided22/421/PP
Convert a domestic outbuilding to a self-catering unit and install an air source heat pump (resubmission of application 22/260/PP)
Ivanhoe, Bigswell Road, Stenness, Orkney, KW16 3LA
Received 8 Nov 2022 - Withdrawn/Returned22/422/PP
Erect two dome based greenhouses and associated access track (retrospective)
Millcroft (Land Near), Mill Bay Road, Eday, Orkney, KW17 2AB
Received 9 Nov 2022 - Decided22/423/PP
Realign 850m section of road, including culvert and attenuation basin
A961 Between Kirkwall And St. Mary's, Orkney
Received 9 Nov 2022 - Decided22/424/HH
Erect a shed
Tus Nua, Biggings Road, St Andrews, Orkney, KW17 2QG
Received 9 Nov 2022 - Decided22/425/PP
Erect 4 houses and create 3 accesses (including shared access)
8 - 10 Moar Drive, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1FS
Received 9 Nov 2022 - Withdrawn/Returned22/426/PP
Erect a replacement house with air source heat pump (one for one), garage, polytunnel and carport, reinstate redundant house as an outbuilding, and create an access
Eastbigging (Land Near) Roundadee Road Sandwick Orkney Islands KW16 3LP
Received 11 Nov 2022 - Decided22/427/PN
Install 2 telecommunication poles (1 x 9m and 1 x 8m)
Tofts (Land Near), St Ola, Orkney, KW15 1SE
Received 14 Nov 2022 - Decided22/428/PN
Install 2 telecommunication poles (1x9m, 1x8m)
Chinglebraes (Land Near), Orquil Road, St Ola, Orkney, KW15 1SE
Received 14 Nov 2022 - Decided22/429/TC
Fell 5 trees, and prune a tree
1 Logie Drive, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1ZT
Received 14 Nov 2022 - Decided22/430/HH
Erect a timber fence, pave a courtyard and erect a polytunnel (part retrospective)
80 Victoria Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1DQ
Received 15 Nov 2022 - Decided22/431/LB
Erect a timber fence (part retrospective)
80 Victoria Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1DQ
Received 15 Nov 2022 - Decided22/432/LB
Alterations to gravestones to meet repair standards
St Magnus Cathedral, Broad Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1DH
Received 16 Nov 2022 - Decided22/433/LB
Install 12 replacement timber windows and upgrade 8 existing windows (retrospective)
The Royal Bank Of Scotland, 1 Victoria Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1DP
Received 16 Nov 2022 - Decided22/434/PN
Install two telecommunications dishes on existing tower
Wideford Hill, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1TS
Received 15 Nov 2022 - Decided22/436/PP
Change of use of land from agricultural to domestic
Westerhouse, Wattle Road, Birsay, Orkney, KW17 2LS
Received 16 Nov 2022 - Decided22/437/PP
Install 12 replacement timber windows and upgrade 8 existing windows (retrospective)
The Royal Bank Of Scotland, 1 Victoria Street, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1DP
Received 16 Nov 2022 - Decided22/438/MARCON
Remove a cable at a location below the level of Mean High Water Springs
Eday, Orkney
Received 16 Nov 2022 - Decided22/439/HH
Extend a house
Wasdale, Courquoy Road, Rousay, Orkney, KW17 2PR
Received 17 Nov 2022 - Decided22/440/PP
Erect a house (one for one) with an integral garage and an air source heat pump
Viewfield, Midhouse Road, Harray, Orkney, KW17 2LD
Received 18 Nov 2022 - Decided22/441/TPO
Crown lift and crown reduction of mature horse chestnut
Marnoch, Finstown, Firth, Orkney, KW17 2EG
Received 17 Nov 2022 - Decided22/443/MARSS
Screening and scoping request to create a fish farming site (replacement of existing equipment)
Quanterness, Wide Firth, St Ola, Orkney
Received 18 Nov 2022 - Decided22/444/MARSS
Screening and scoping request to create a fish farming site (replacement of existing equipment)
Meil Bay, St Ola, Orkney
Received 18 Nov 2022 - Decided22/446/PP
Install air source heat pumps, solar panels and replacement windows, paint walls and other external alterations
Stronsay Hotel, Lower Whitehall Road, Whitehall, Stronsay, Orkney, KW17 2AR
Received 22 Nov 2022 - Decided22/447/LB
Repair and replace stone, re-point walls, and install replacement doors
Stromness Town Hall, Church Road, Stromness, Orkney
Received 23 Nov 2022
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