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 dates31,672Searchable applications
266Recorded as pending
91%Approval rate · 28,890 approved or refused records
2,542Refused applications
26,348 approved · 2,542 refused · 1,684 withdrawn. Received dates in our records: 6 Jan 1992 to 30 Oct 2026. Most recent record check: 6 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 Counts reflect the last collected status; some records may be out of date.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/0893/H/97
Erection of a conservatory
21 Bughtknowes Drive, Bathgate
Received 20 Nov 1997 - DecidedLIVE/0889/A/97
Installation of an illuminated internal hanging sign
Unit 11 Almondvale Centre, Almondvale, Livingston
Received 20 Nov 1997 - DecidedLIVE/0887/FUL/97
Installation of new workshop door and provision of new escape door
29 Blackness Road, Linlithgow
Received 19 Nov 1997 - DecidedLIVE/0884/P/93
Outline planning permission for a residential development
Seafield Farm , Seafield, EH47 7AL
Received 15 Dec 1993 - DecidedLIVE/0884/FUL/96
Outline planning permission for the erection of 5 new houses
- Ormiston Farm, Kirknewton
Received 7 Oct 1996 - DecidedLIVE/0815/FUL/92
Extension to house
93/95 Main Street, Fauldhouse
Received 24 Nov 1992 - DecidedLIVE/0814/P/92
Outline planning permission for a house
Site At Mill Road, Harthill
Received 20 Nov 1992 - DecidedLIVE/0814/LBC/95
Listed building consent for installation of dormer windows
21 Whitemoss Road, Kirknewton, EH27 8AF
Received 23 Nov 1995 - DecidedLIVE/0814/FUL/96
Erection of a house and garage
Plot 6 Burngrange Court, West Calder
Received 12 Sept 1996 - DecidedLIVE/0150/A/98
Erection of various illuminated monolith, canopy and fascia signs
Filling Station, Edinburgh Road, Bathgate
Received 3 Mar 1998 - DecidedLIVE/0153/H/98
Erection of a garage with conservatory
24 Craigrigg Cottages, Bridgecastle
Received 3 Mar 1998 - DecidedLIVE/0174/H/98
Installation of a dormer
71 Marjoribanks Street Bathgate West Lothian EH48 1AL
Received 3 Mar 1998 - DecidedLIVE/0163/FUL/98
Erection of a 204 square metre office building
- Greendykes Industrial Estate, Broxburn
Received 2 Mar 1998 - DecidedLIVE/0146/A/98
Erection of a free standing signboard
- Simpson Parkway, Kirkton Campus, Livingston
Received 2 Mar 1998 - DecidedLIVE/0965/FUL/97
Erection of storage units
2 Nairn Road, Deans Industrial Estate, Livingston
Received 10 Dec 1997 - DecidedLIVE/0942/FUL/97
Erection of two semi detatched houses
Plot 3 Willow Park, Fauldhouse
Received 10 Dec 1997 - DecidedLIVE/0949/H/97
Demolition of a storeroom and erection of a single garage
3 Armadale Road, Whitburn
Received 9 Dec 1997 - DecidedLIVE/0983/FUL/97
Formation of a pitched roof over existing flat roof
Lodge Lord Bruce, Bathgate Road, Blackburn
Received 9 Dec 1997 - DecidedLIVE/0939/H/97
Internal alterations and erection of a garage
Hillside House -, Ecclesmachan
Received 9 Dec 1997 - DecidedLIVE/0938/FUL/97
Installation of a new shop front
19/21 Hopetoun Street, Bathgate
Received 9 Dec 1997 - DecidedLIVE/0903/FUL/94
Change of reception to taxi base control and erection of antenna
Motherwell Bridge Thermal Limited Middleton Hall, Uphall
Received 1 Dec 1994 - DecidedLIVE/0903/FUL/93
Extension to house
62 Bailielands, Linlithgow, EH49 7SX
Received 21 Dec 1993 - DecidedLIVE/0887/FUL/96
Infrastructure works, with associated woodlands, amenity open space for the development of 14 houses (1st Amendment)
Murieston South R6 Murieston Road, Livingston
Received 7 Oct 1996 - DecidedLIVE/0887/FUL/94
Construction of access road
- Mill Road, Linlithgow Bridge
Received 24 Nov 1994
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