Solar farm approved for land at historic estate near Codsall

Chillington Hall, north of Codsall, has been owned by the same family for more than 800 years and the Grade I Listed hall building is set in a Grade II* Listed park.

On Tuesday, South Staffordshire Council’s planning committee approved plans for ground-mounted solar panels and a battery energy storage system to be installed on around 65 hectares (160.6 acres) of farmland on the estate, located to the north of the M54.

The application had been recommended for approval by planning officers and a member of the public wrote to the council to support the proposals for sustainable electricity generation.

Brewood and Coven Parish Council objected “most strongly” to the development however, a report to the district council’s planning committee said, describing it as inappropriate industrial development on Green Belt land.]

Concerns were also raised about the development’s impact on ancient woodland known as the Big Wood and the Capability Brown-designed estate and park, as well as the Staffordshire Way and Monarch Trail.

Councillors heard on Tuesday the development would connect to the nearby Bushbury substation via underground cabling and be in place for around 40 years.

A committee report said: “At the end of this period, the site could be restored to agricultural land.

“The application will provide financial benefits to Chillington Hall and the wider estate. The hall is significant for being in the same family ownership since the 1180s – an extensive tenure matched by few estates.

“The solar farm is not a permanent feature within the landscape and can be removed at the end of its lifespan returning the fields to their current state. The income generated by this scheme for the estate will allow essential maintenance to be carried out on the significant Grade I listed Hall and associated listed buildings, as well as maintaining elements of the Grade II* registered park.”

Councillor Christopher Steel raised concerns about lack of detail of fire safety measures submitted for a different battery energy storage site in Featherstone approved by the committee at its meeting last month. He also questioned the proposed distance between battery units in relation to fire service guidance.

The report to this month’s meeting said the submitted information for the Chillington Hall application “demonstrates that the proposals would meet the necessary guidance in relation to fire safety and BESS”.

Councillor Steel, who abstained from voting on the application on Tuesday, said: “I do feel I’m banging my head against a brick wall.”

Committee chair Councillor Mark Evans added: “The points you raise are valued. It’s just with the application we have this evening we have no alternative but to go ahead with the recommendation of the fire service and they have raised no objection.”