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This service is managed by Performance and Business Support

Contact us

There are several ways to get in touch with us. The quickest is through our MyOrkney online portal, which is available 24 hours a day. You can also contact us by phone, email or in person at our offices in Kirkwall and Stromness during opening hours.


How you can contact us

Online

The quickest way to contact us is online through MyOrkney. You can also use MyOrkney to pay a bill, report a problem, book a service or track a request, any time, day or night.

By phone

If you'd like to contact us by phone, please use the numbers below. If you're not sure who you need to speak to, our customer services staff will be happy to help and will put you through to the right service. If you know the extension number you need, you can call the main number, listen to the message prompt, and enter the extension.

Customer Services

  • Kirkwall Service Point: 01856 873535
  • Stromness Service Point: 01856 873535, extension 3033

Opening times - Kirkwall

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  • Monday: 9am to 5pm
  • Tuesday: 9am to 5pm
  • Wednesday: 10am to 5pm
  • Thursday: 9am to 5pm
  • Friday: 9am to 5pm

Opening times - Stromness

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  • Monday: 9am to 6pm
  • Tuesday: 9am to 5pm
  • Wednesday: 10am to 5pm
  • Thursday: 9am to 5pm
  • Friday: 9am to 5pm
  • Saturday: 11am to 4pm

If you need to contact us urgently outside these hours, see our Out of Hours section below.

By email

If you'd like to contact us by email, please use the address below. All enquiries go through customer services which makes sure they reach the right people in the right department.

Email: customerservice@orkney.gov.uk

In person

Our Customer Services Reception Centres in Kirkwall and Stromness are your first port of call for information or advice about the council, whether you'd like to pay a bill, collect an application form, report a repair, or ask about any of our services.

Kirkwall Customer Service

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Council Offices, School Place, Kirkwall, KW15 1NY

  • Monday to Tuesday: 9am to 5pm
  • Wednesday: 10am to 5pm
  • Thursday to Friday: 9am to 5pm

Stromness Customer Service

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Warehouse Buildings, 2-12 Victoria Street, Stromness, KW16 3AA

  • Monday: 9.15am to 5.45pm
  • Tuesday to Friday: 9.15am to 4.45pm
  • Saturday: 11am to 3.45pm

Accessibility: 

Both centres have full disabled access. Kirkwall has extensive hearing loop facilities and subscribes to the Royal National Institute for the Deaf's Typetalk system. Kirkwall has an open-plan environment with a relaxed, friendly atmosphere, and meeting rooms are available for more sensitive discussions.

However you choose to get in touch, our trained reception staff will be friendly, approachable and keen to help.

Related resources

  • Our Customer Service Charter

    This document contains Orkney Islands Council’s customer service standards and explains what customers can expect when contacting the Council by phone, in person, online, by email or in writing. It covers accessible, fair and friendly services, response times, customer responsibilities and ways to provide information in different formats. It also explains how to give feedback, make a complaint or compliment staff, and how to contact the Council.

    Please be aware that this summary has been generated using AI.

  • Our Customer Service Charter (poster)

    This document contains Orkney Islands Council’s customer service charter, setting out the standards customers should expect when contacting the Council by phone, visiting offices, or writing by email or letter. It covers response times, accessibility, plain English, contact information and support, as well as expectations that customers treat staff and others with respect. It also explains how to give feedback, make a complaint or compliment, and contact the Council online, by email, phone or in person.

    Please be aware that this summary has been generated using AI.


By post

If you'd like to contact us by post, please make sure your correspondence is addressed correctly. Where possible, include the relevant name, service and function (if known), followed by our postal address:

Orkney Islands Council, Council Offices, School Place, Kirkwall, KW15 1NY

This helps us direct your correspondence to the right person as quickly as possible.

If you're dropping off documentation at our Kirkwall office, please use the letterbox at the main door or the red post box just inside it. Please don't post cash through either letterbox.


Out of hours

If you need to contact us urgently outside our normal opening hours - after 5pm and before 9am Monday to Friday, and all day Saturday and Sunday - please use the numbers below.

Orkney Health and Care - Call 01856 888000 for out of hours assistance with:

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  • Adult social care
  • Child protection
  • Older people's services
  • Mental health services
  • Adult support and protection

Neighbourhood Services and Infrastructure - Call 01856 873535, extension 4249, for out of hours problems involving:

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  • Cemeteries
  • Drainage
  • Environmental cleansing
  • Flooding
  • Refuse collection
  • Roads
  • Street lighting

Council properties - Call 01856 886308 for out of hours emergencies involving:

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  • Council-owned houses
  • Other council-owned properties
  • Building cleaning

Homelessness - Call our duty officer on 07921 582962.

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If you become homeless outside office hours.


British Sign Language

contactSCOTLAND BSL is a free Video Relay Service funded by the Scottish Government, letting Deaf and Deafblind people across Scotland contact public, third sector and voluntary organisations using British Sign Language. Running since March 2015, it's unique in the UK. Since 1 December 2025, the service has been provided by Sign Solutions.

How to access the service

If you're calling a Deaf BSL user back

Dial 0141 530 8113 and provide the user's email address or SMS details.


Complaints, compliments and feedback

If you would like to make a complaint, pay a compliment or share feedback about our services, please visit our Complaints, Compliments and Feedback page.

Find out more about complaints, compliments and feedback