diff --git a/.github/workflows/docker.yaml b/.github/workflows/docker.yaml
index 91e4752b9..2b903e689 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/docker.yaml
+++ b/.github/workflows/docker.yaml
@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@ on:
     paths: ['docker/**']
 
 env:
-  NEEDS_VERSION: 8.1.0
+  NEEDS_VERSION: 8.1.1
   DEPLOY_IMAGE: ${{ github.event_name != 'pull_request' }}
 
 jobs:
diff --git a/docs/changelog.rst b/docs/changelog.rst
index d7d9990d8..d5a2d6123 100644
--- a/docs/changelog.rst
+++ b/docs/changelog.rst
@@ -4,13 +4,50 @@
 Changelog
 =========
 
+.. _`release:8.1.1`:
+
+8.1.1
+-----
+
+:Released: 20.05.2026
+:Full Changelog: `v8.1.0...v8.1.1 <https://github.com/useblocks/sphinx-needs/compare/8.1.0...6d0c7c071db3ecec49580dccbaece18d56624301>`__
+
+This is a patch release with bug fixes and a minor performance improvement.
+
+Performance
+...........
+
+- ⚡️ Add ``NeedItem.is_in_document()`` (:pr:`1709`)
+
+  Replace direct ``need["docname"] == docname`` comparisons with a method on
+  ``NeedItem`` and ``NeedPartItem``, encapsulating the document membership
+  logic behind a single access point. Speeds up document purges on projects
+  with many needs.
+
+Bug fixes
+.........
+
+- 🐛 Fix ``needs_schema_definitions`` triggering full rebuilds (:issue:`1710`, :pr:`1712`).
+  ``resolve_schemas_config`` mutated the schemas dict in place after Sphinx's
+  ``config-inited`` checkpoint, so the pickled config diverged from the config
+  loaded on the next build — causing Sphinx to detect a spurious change and
+  rebuild every document on every incremental run. The resolved schemas are
+  now stored on the env via ``SphinxNeedsData`` accessors, leaving the config
+  object byte-equal across builds.
+
+- 🐛 Fix Docker build by switching PlantUML source to GitHub releases (:pr:`1708`).
+  The Dockerfile hardcoded a Sourceforge mirror that became unreachable,
+  breaking the ``Docker-Image`` workflow. The download URL now points at the
+  official ``github.com/plantuml/plantuml/releases/latest/download/plantuml.jar``
+  endpoint.
+
 .. _`release:8.1.0`:
 
 8.1.0
 -----
 
 :Released: 20.05.2026
-:Full Changelog: `v8.0.0...v8.1.0 <https://github.com/useblocks/sphinx-needs/compare/8.0.0...8745a55e24b2ed17b7e8048340a262c9767b14ae>`__
+:Full Changelog: `v8.0.0...v8.1.0 <https://github.com/useblocks/sphinx-needs/compare/8.0.0...8.1.0>`__
 
 This release focuses on **filter performance improvements** and bug fixes.
 
diff --git a/sphinx_needs/__init__.py b/sphinx_needs/__init__.py
index f0a176275..000899334 100644
--- a/sphinx_needs/__init__.py
+++ b/sphinx_needs/__init__.py
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 """Sphinx needs extension for managing needs/requirements and specifications"""
 
-__version__ = "8.1.0"
+__version__ = "8.1.1"
 
 
 def setup(app):  # type: ignore[no-untyped-def]