Development Management (Planning Permission)

Apply for Planning Permission

Applications for planning permission and related consents can be made electronically through E-Planning Scotland following registration for an account. PDF versions of application forms related to each application type and guidance notes for their completion are also available on E-Planning Scotland. Currently, the payment facility within e-planning is not available. Payments can be made through Online Payments quoting the application reference.

View Planning Applications

The on-line public access system that previously allowed planning applications to be viewed online for the statutory consultation and publicity period is not currently available due to a criminal Cyber incident which occurred on 7 November 2023 and affected IT systems including planning. The application information displayed on the website is a temporary solution to allow online access to key information on an application. For each planning application there is a summary of the application details followed by plans sufficient to explain the development which is the subject of the application. The plans for each application are arranged in order of the date they were advertised in the press and/or subject to neighbour notification. The plans displayed should be sufficient to allow the public and consultation bodies to understand the proposed development. We require to minimise file sizes to ensure they can be accessed. This temporary arrangement does not have the functionality of the public access system. Cases other than planning applications that do not have a statutory requirement for publicity or neighbour notification will not be available to view online.

During this period of disruption to the Planning IT systems, the complete files for current Planning Applications may be examined in person at the offices of Comhairle nan Eilean Siar in Stornoway or Balivanich between 09:00 and 17:00 hours Monday to Friday excluding public holidays. An appointment should be made before arriving at the office. Please note that information and documents on previously determined planning applications are not available to view currently.

Comment on Planning Application

Representation comments on an application should be submitted within 14 days of the advertised date or if neighbour notified within 21 days of the date the neighbour notification notice was issued. Representation comments can be submitted via email to planning@cne-siar.gov.uk or in writing to the postal address below. The reference number and address of the proposed development should be quoted in any submission. To be considered legitimate, all representation comments must contain the name, postal address and email address (and ideally a contact telephone number) of the person submitting the comment.

Planning (Development Management)
Comhairle nan Eilean Siar
Sandwick Road
Stornoway
Isle of Lewis
HS1 2BW

National, Major and/or EIA Development Applications

Applications where Comhairle nan Eilean Siar is the determining authority

Applications where Comhairle nan Eilean Siar is a Statutory Consultee

Weekly and Extant Lists

Weekly List

The Weekly List contains details of planning applications which have been validated within the last week. This list is statutory and contains only applications for planning permission, planning permission in principle and matters specified in conditions. It does not contain other types of application or notification for which the planning authority is the determining authority.

Extant List (Applications)

The Extant List (Part 1) contains details of applications which are live applications and pending consideration. This list is statutory and contains only applications for planning permission, planning permission in principle and matters specified in conditions. It does not contain other types of application or notification for which the planning authority is a statutory consultee or the determining authority.

View Extant List

Extant List (Proposal of Application Notices)

The Extant List (Part 2) contains details of all live Proposal of Application (PAN) Notices. These are a statutory requirement for development proposals in the category of National or Major development. These notices advise how a developer intends to engage with the community about their proposal, pre-application. These are not planning applications. A Proposal of Application Notice (PAN) requires to be submitted to the Planning Authority by a prospective applicant or developer, at least 12 weeks before any application for planning permission can be submitted. The developer is required to advertise and undertake at least two public consultation events relating to the proposed development.

View Extant PAN List

Determined List

The ‘Determined List’ is a non-statutory list that provides a list of all applications, notification and statutory consultations determined by the Planning Authority, since 7 November 2023, when the IT systems of Comhairle nan Eilean Siar were impacted by a cyber incident.
Due to capacity constraints, decision notices are not currently displayed on our interim website, but these are held on our internal temporary files, and each will be uploaded to the Online Planning System once available. Work to rebuild the Planning IT systems is ongoing and at present we estimate that Online Planning (Public Access) will be available during September/October 2024.

View Determined List

Pre-application Advice

Comhairle nan Eilean Siar as the planning authority for the Western Isles offers a pre-application advice service for parties who plan to carry out building or engineering work, change the use of a building or land, or undertake any other type of development.

Please refer to the Development Management pages of the Scottish Government website for initial information. Planning circular 3/2022: development management procedures explains the statutory planning application procedures.

To obtain site specific advice please fully complete our enquiries form. The Development Management team will aim to provide a response by email within three weeks.

Note: Pre-planning advice is given without prejudice to the determination of a subsequent application for the development, by Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, and is based on the level and detail of information known at the time of advice. Pre-application advice does not generally include consultation with statutory or internal consultees.

Planning Enforcement

Planning Enforcement Charter