Planning appeal decision
Land East of Stenson Lane, DE73 7HL
Planning appeal 3366962 at Land East of Stenson Lane, DE73 7HL (South Derbyshire District Council) was allowed on 27 October 2025 by Inspector Hughes L, by written representations. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: The effect of the proposed development on Best and Most Versatile Agricultural Land.
the installation and operation of an Energy Storage System (ESS), including energy storage units, substation, site access, cable connection, landscaping and ancillary infrastructure
- Authority
- South Derbyshire District Council
- Appeal type
- major · Planning Appeal
- Procedure
- Written Representations
- Development
- utilities-energy · Other Major Developments
- Inspector
- Hughes L
- Postcode
- DE73 7HL
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- The effect of the proposed development on Best and Most Versatile Agricultural Land
What decided it
The loss of 3.5 hectares of Grade 3a BMVAL, representing only 0.03% of South Derbyshire's agricultural land and not permanent due to decommissioning and soil restoration conditions, does not constitute a significant impact individually or cumulatively, and no viable alternative sites with lower quality soils were available within the necessary cable connection radius.
What the Inspector cited
- Development plan policies
- Policy BNE4Policy SD6(A)(i)Policy BNE5(v)
- National Planning Policy Framework
- Paragraph 11Paragraph 57Paragraph 161Paragraph 168Paragraph 187Paragraph 188
How the Inspector dealt with each one is set out in the app, in order: the development plan, national policy, housing land supply, other considerations and the planning balance, beside the letter.
See how each was appliedThe decision letter
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What an account adds to this decision


More decisions in South Derbyshire
The authority’s record since 2016 · every decision in 2025
- Allowed23 September 20266011093Land Adjacent to 7 & 8 Slade Close, Etwall, DE65 6JH
- Notice varied and upheld3 September 20263378427Land to the South of Woodville Road, Swadlincote, DE12 6LY
- Allowed6 January 20263368728Land South of Kings Newton Lane, Melbourne, Derbyshire, DE73 8DD
- Dismissed30 December 20253365001Land North of Twyford Road, Twyford, Derbyshire, DE73 7HJ
- Allowed15 December 20253369340Fairfields Farm, Rosliston Road, Walton-On-Trent, Swadlincote, DE12 8LR
The main issues, what decided it, the planning balance and the policies and judgments listed as cited are read from the published letter by Town Planner Pro and are our summary, not the Inspector’s words; the letter itself is the record. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Research, not advice.
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