®Planning appeal decision
Land to the north of the Culham Science Centre, Culham, OX14 3ES
a Battery Energy Storage System (BESS), comprising a 500 megawatt (MW) battery storage facility with associated infrastructure, access and landscaping, with a connection to the Culham Jet National Grid connection
- Authority
- South Oxfordshire District Council
- Appeal type
- major · Planning Appeal
- Procedure
- Inquiry
- Development
- utilities-energy · Other Major Developments
- Inspector
- Braithwaite J
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- The level of less than substantial harm that would be caused by the proposed development to the setting and significance of the RPG
- Whether the site is grey belt land and whether the proposed development otherwise complies with Green Belt policy in the NPPF
- The effect of the proposed development on the character and visual amenity of the landscape
What decided it
The significant weight required to be given to the need for the BESS and its contribution to renewable energy generation and net zero far outweighed the low-end less than substantial heritage harm, moderate/minor landscape and visual harm, and temporary loss of BMV land.
The significant weight afforded to the benefits of the BESS (renewable energy need, net zero contribution) and the partial restoration of the RPG parkland outweighed the low end less than substantial heritage harm, the moderate/minor adverse effect on landscape character and visual amenity, and the temporary loss of 5 hectares of BMV land, so the appeal was determined otherwise than in accordance with the development plan.
Framework references: 143, 153, 154, 155, 161, 168, 187, 212, 215
Plan policies cited: Policy STRAT6, Policy STRAT8, Policy STRAT9, Policy ENV1, Policy ENV2, Policy ENV6, Policy ENV10, Policy ENV12, Policy DES1, Policy DES2, Policy DES6, Policy DES7, Policy DES9, Policy STRAT1, Policy TRANS5, Policy EP1, Policy EP4
Judgments cited: Bramley Solar Farm Residents Group v SSLUH&C and others CO/1120/2023
The main issues and the deciding factor are read from the published letter by Town Planner Pro; the letter itself is the record. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Research, not advice.