Lower solar panels proposed near listed farmhouse in Partridge Green
Revised plans for a solar panel array in Partridge Green have been submitted, after an earlier application was refused over its impact on two listed buildings.
The application proposes a 44.64kW ground-mounted solar array, arranged in two rows, on land south of Need’s Farm House, off Steyning Road.
A planning statement accompanying the application says: “The proposal has been developed to help reduce the carbon footprint of our property, as well as our energy bills.”
The applicants say the scheme would build on earlier work to replace oil-fired heating with heat pumps. They expect the panels to generate more electricity than the property uses for five months of the year, while reducing reliance on grid electricity during the remaining seven months.
According to the statement, the previous application, reference DC/24/1566, was refused because of its visual impact on the West Grinstead War Memorial and Need’s Farm House.
The revised scheme moves the panels to a location the applicants say was previously suggested by the conservation officer, further from the war memorial and screened from the farmhouse by the Stables building.
The proposed mounting system would also be lower, reducing its height from 1,450mm to 877mm – a reduction of about 40 per cent.
The statement says: “This will dramatically reduce the visibility of the site from all relevant angles.”
Underground cables would connect the array to the plant room in the nearby Stables building, which is used as a holiday let. The cable route would go around the end of an existing hedge to minimise ecological impact.
A small battery array is also planned within the existing plant room. The statement says this would involve no external alterations or change of use and does not form part of the planning application.
The applicants argue that the revised location and lower mounting system would mean any remaining effect on the setting of the two listed buildings would be negligible.
They conclude: “We therefore consider that the planning balance falls decisively in favour of this application, and ask that it be approved.”
The application, reference DC/26/1498, has been advertised because it affects the setting of a listed building.
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