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
West Lothian planning applications
PlanningTrack collects planning applications and decisions from the public planning register of West Lothian. Search an address, application reference or proposal. Official West Lothian website
Collected application statistics
Collected records · All available dates31,669Searchable applications
269Recorded as pending
91%Approval rate · 28,885 approved or refused records
2,540Refused applications
26,345 approved · 2,540 refused · 1,684 withdrawn. Received dates in our records: 6 Jan 1992 to 29 Oct 2026. Most recent record check: 5 Nov 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 Counts reflect the last collected status; some records may be out of date.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 & Building StandardsLocal plan Local Development Plan (LDP 1)Pre-application advice Pre-Application EnquiryConservation areas Listed Buildings, Conservation Areas and Scheduled Monuments
Council contacts
- Planning enquiriescustomer.service@westlothian.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 areas10 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
- DecidedLIVE/0636/FUL/99
Change of use from restaurant to shop
Brambles Restaurant Gardeners Lane, Bathgate
Received 4 Aug 1999 - DecidedLIVE/0532/FUL/99
Conversion of offices to form 2 flats
60 Hopetoun Street, Bathgate
Received 5 Jul 1999 - DecidedLIVE/0525/FUL/99
Extend existing workshop to form MOT station
West End Garage Main Street, West Calder
Received 5 Jul 1999 - DecidedLIVE/0524/H/99
Erection of a conservatory
17 Craigs Court, Torphichen
Received 5 Jul 1999 - DecidedLIVE/0807/FUL/99
Change of use to plant building and re-cladding
- Braehead Road, Linlithgow
Received 15 Oct 1999 - DecidedLIVE/0808/FUL/99
Erection of a general storage building
- Braehead Road, Linlithgow
Received 15 Oct 1999 - DecidedLIVE/0799/H/99
Extension to house to form a garage/workshop and sunroom
Plot 7 Stoneheap Crofts, Bents, Stoneyburn
Received 14 Oct 1999 - DecidedLIVE/0800/FUL/99
Erection of a 3285 sqm industrial building with ancillary offices, car parking and service yard
- Starlaw Business Park, Livingston
Received 14 Oct 1999 - DecidedLIVE/0469/FUL/99
Waiver of condition No 5 of Planning Permission 0894/97 which allows no more than 8 houses to be constructed and occupied in any academic year
- Maclean Terrace, Blackridge
Received 11 Jun 1999 - DecidedLIVE/0468/FUL/99
Installation of an automatic telling machine
Shell Polkemmet Baillie Street, Whitburn
Received 11 Jun 1999 - DecidedLIVE/0732/H/99
Erection of a 2 storey extension
43 Martin Brae, Ladywell, Livingston
Received 23 Sept 1999 - DecidedLIVE/0737/FUL/99
Variations of conditions 2, 4g, 4j & 4k of planning permission 0081/P/99 relating to the phasing of the development, footpath width and landscaping
The New Inn, Auldhill Road, Bridgend
Received 22 Sept 1999 - DecidedLIVE/0416/H/00
Formation of a driveway
10 & 12 Lothian Street, Bathgate
Received 2 May 2000 - DecidedLIVE/0331/H/00
Erection of a conservatory
12 Redcraig Road, East Calder
Received 4 Apr 2000 - DecidedLIVE/0727/H/99
Erection of a conservatory
Capers Farm Hardhill Road, Armadale
Received 21 Sept 1999 - DecidedLIVE/0730/FUL/99
Sub-division and change of use to form a hot food take-away
23 Fernbank, Livingston
Received 21 Sept 1999 - DecidedLIVE/0788/FUL/99
Erection of a garage and workshop and change of use of workshop to commercial cabinet making operation (in retrospect)
12 Polkemmet Road, Greenrigg
Received 13 Aug 1999 - DecidedLIVE/0637/NID/99
Change of use and sub-division of factory unit to form separate archive storage and general storage units
4 Hutton Square, Brucefield Industrial Estate, Bellsquarry
Received 13 Aug 1999 - DecidedLIVE/0639/H/99
Erection of a conservatory
34 Ogilvie Way, Knightsridge, Livingston
Received 13 Aug 1999 - DecidedLIVE/0560/H/99
Loft extension to house
12C Falside Drive, Bathgate
Received 9 Jul 1999 - DecidedLIVE/0575/FUL/99
Extension and alterations to existing church building
- Quentin Rise, Dedridge, Livingston
Received 9 Jul 1999 - DecidedLIVE/0542/H/99
Extension to house to include integral garage and sun lounge
39 Main Street, Linlithgow Bridge
Received 9 Jul 1999 - DecidedLIVE/0398/FUL/99
Erection of a house, granny flat and garage
64 Marjoribank Street, Bathgate
Received 19 May 1999 - DecidedLIVE/0385/H/99
Erection of a garage
34 Newhouses Road, Broxburn
Received 19 May 1999
Records are ordered by application ID, not submission date. Use search to find a particular address or proposal.
View all applicationsApplications by postcode area
Get emailed about new planning applications in West Lothian
Area alerts send a daily or weekly email with new applications and decisions near a postcode, filtered by project type. £29 a month, up to 3 areas. Records are limited to the councils we collect.
Set up an area alertResearching a proposal in West Lothian
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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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 West Lothian, 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