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Allowed21 May 20263373058

Land East of Cobham Road and South of the River Mole, Cobham Road, Bookham, Surrey, KT11 3QH

Planning appeal 3373058 at Land East of Cobham Road and South of the River Mole, Cobham Road, Bookham, Surrey, KT11 3QH (Mole Valley District Council) was allowed on 21 May 2026 by Inspector Ware P, following an inquiry. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: The effect of the proposal on the character and appearance of the area.

the installation of a ground mounted solar photovoltaic array together with associated infrastructure, stock fencing, CCTV, access gates, on-site biodiversity net gain and associated works

Authority
Mole Valley District Council
Appeal type
major · Planning Appeal
Procedure
Inquiry
Development
utilities-energy · Other Major Developments
Inspector
Ware P
Postcode
KT11 3QH

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

  • The effect of the proposal on the character and appearance of the area
  • The effect of the proposal on the setting of heritage assets
  • The extent of renewable energy and related benefits
  • Whether the proposal would represent inappropriate development in the Green Belt for the purposes of development plan policy and the National Planning Policy Framework ('the Framework')

What decided it

The very substantial weight attributed to the national and local need for renewable energy and the availability of a grid connection outweighed the limited landscape and less-than-substantial heritage harm, and the site's classification as Grey Belt meant the development was not inappropriate in the Green Belt.

The very substantial benefit of renewable energy provision, together with other benefits (agricultural, ecological/BNG, economic), outweighed the limited and localised landscape harm and the less than substantial heritage harm, tipping the overall balance in favour of granting permission.

What the Inspector cited

Development plan policies
EN8EN4S2EN6EN1
National Planning Policy Framework
Paragraph 187Paragraph 143Paragraph 155Paragraph 110Paragraph 115Paragraph 161Paragraph 165Paragraph 58

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 applied

The decision letter

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More decisions in Mole Valley District Council

The authority’s record since 2016 · every decision in 2026

  1. Dismissed20 October 20266013764
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  2. Dismissed19 October 20266011465
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  3. Dismissed18 September 20266011498
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  4. Dismissed16 September 20266008528
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  5. Allowed11 September 20266012763
    Fourays, Horsham Road, Capel, Dorking, RH5 5LF

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.

In the app this decision sits on the map beside every appeal around it, with its letter to read and the main issues, policies and judgments cited picked out.