Appeal against decision to reject plans for large solar farm near Leamington

An appeal has been made against the decision to reject permission for plans to build a large solar farm to the south-east of Leamington.

An appeal has been made by Staffordshire Solar 1 Ltd to the Secretary of State against the decision made by Warwick District Council’s (WDC) planning committee earlier this year.

Objectors to the solar farm plans stand outside Leamington Town Hall before the planning meeting in May. Among them is Warwick District Councillor Rebecca Davidson (Green, Radford Semele) who was one who spoke at the meeting. The district council's planning committee voted to reject the plans by a majority of 8/1. Picture supplied.

placeholder image — Objectors to the solar farm plans stand outside Leamington Town Hall before the planning meeting in May. Among them is Warwick District Councillor Rebecca Davidson (Green, Radford Semele) who was one who spoke at the meeting. The district council's planning committee voted to reject the plans by a majority of 8/1. Picture supplied.

The appeal will be determined on the basis of a hearing at a venue and on date which are yet to be confirmed.

The company wants to build the solar farm and battery storage together with all associated works, landscaping, equipment and necessary infrastructure on 86 hectares of agricultural land on the outskirts of Radford Semele.

The appeal can be responded to here https://tinyurl.com/4vtza7nw using reference number 6000932.

Comments can also be made by post to The Planning Inspectorate, Temple Quay House, 2 The Square, Bristol, BS1 6PN.

The plans were recommended for approval by WDC’s planning experts, their view being that the benefits outweighed the harms, but eight out of nine elected officials tasked with the final call said no at the planning meeting in May.

The proposals elicited a huge backlash from locals with more than 300 objections, including a petition signed by more than 1,200 people.

MP Matt Western (Lab, Warwick & Leamington), Radford Semele Parish Council and Warwickshire County Council’s landscape professionals all objected with the arguments against based on landscape harm, the loss of good quality agricultural land, open space and the cumulative impact of so many solar farms popping up locally.

The deadline to respond to the appeal is December 12.

The plans can be viewed on WDC’s planning portal using the reference W/24/1404