Poyle Park Manor Solar Farm

Appendix A Statement of Community Involvement

Stratus Environmental Limited 4245 Park Approach Thorpe Park Leeds West Yorkshire LS15 8GB

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Project Quality Assurance Information Sheet

Proposed Solar Farm, Park Manor Statement of Community Involvement

Report Number: SBC1044/SCI Report Status: FINAL

Report Date: May 2015

Prepared for: Sirius SBC Renewables LLP

Prepared by: Stratus Environmental Ltd 4245 Farm Approach Thorpe Farm Leeds LS15 8GB

Written and Francesca Wray prepared by: Graduate Planner

Reviewed and Rachel Gillen approved by: Development Planner

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POYLE PARK MANOR SOLAR FARM STATEMENT OF COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT

CONTENTS 1.0 INTRODUCTION ...... 1 1.1 Proposed Development ...... 1 1.1 Statement of Community Involvement ...... 1 2.0 PLANNING POLICY OVERVIEW ...... 3 2.1 Central Government ...... 3 2.2 Localism Act ...... 3 2.3 National Planning Policy Framework ...... 3 2.4 Borough Council Statement of Community Involvement ...... 4 3.0 COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT ...... 5 3.1 Approach ...... 5 3.2 Pre-Application Engagement ...... 5 3.3 Public Exhibition ...... 5 3.4 Summary of Public Exhibition Feedback and Responses ...... 7 3.5 Conclusions ...... 8

List of Annexes

Annex Title A Public Exhibition Advertising Material B Public Exhibition Display Material C Parish Council & Resident Correspondence

Poyle Park Manor Solar Farm Statement of Community Involvement

1.0 INTRODUCTION

1.1 Proposed Development

1.1.1 Sirius SBC Renewables LLP (the applicant) is seeking planning permission to construct and operate a solar photovoltaic (PV) farm on approximately 12ha of land on the former Poyle Manor North Landfill Site to the south-west of the village of Poyle and approximately 550m to the south-east of the village of on approximate National Grid Reference NGR E 502959, N 176586.

1.1.2 Solar PV currently accounts for 14.9% of renewable electricity capacity in the UK and 3.8% of renewable electricity generation1. At the end of March 2015, there was 5.71GW installed capacity of solar within the UK2 and the UK Renewable Energy Roadmap (updated 2014) states that there is “significant potential for further deployment…with 20GW being our current estimate of the technical maximum level of solar PV deployment by 2020”.

1.1.3 The proposed solar farm would have the capacity of up to 4.5MWp of electricity, providing enough to power over 1,000 homes3 per year and offset up to 2,000

tonnes of CO2 every year. Following construction of the solar farm, the site will be seeded with an appropriate grassland mix.

1.1 Statement of Community Involvement

1.1.1 This report summarises community engagement activity undertaken prior to the submission of proposals for the solar farm at the former Poyle Manor North Landfill Site by Stratus Environmental Ltd (Stratus) on behalf of Sirius SBC Renewables LLP.

1 DECC (2014) Digest of UK Energy Statistics 2 DECC (2015) Solar Photovoltaics Deployment 3 Based on an average annual domestic usage of 4.170 kWh/year

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2.0 PLANNING POLICY OVERVIEW

2.1 Central Government

2.1.1 The previous UK Government’s reform of the planning system in and Wales, introduced through the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 placed emphasis on public consultation and engagement in the planning and development process.

2.2 Localism Act

2.2.1 The Localism Act gained Royal Assent in November 2011. It contained much information on changes to the planning system, including an emphasis on Neighbourhood Planning.

2.2.2 The Act seeks to empower local communities in influencing planned development in their area. Therefore, community engagement is a crucial part of the development process to establish the wishes of the local community.

2.2.3 It emphasises the importance of developers consulting with local communities before an application is made to allow the views of locals to be taken into consideration whilst development proposals are still evolving.

2.3 National Planning Policy Framework

2.3.1 The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) was published in 2012 as part of the coalition Government’s commitment to overhaul the Planning System. Its aim is to allow the Planning System to provide development that is suitable for the future of communities and the country as a whole, providing for economic growth coupled with social and environmental needs.

2.3.2 The NPPF places great emphasis on sustainable development to ensure these objectives are met. The NPPF states that a key component of sustainable development is the need for community involvement. This will allow for a greater engagement in the planning process to prevent exclusion of stakeholders and ensure that economic, social and environmental needs are adequately considered. This ensures that social sustainability is taken into account in the planning process as part of sustainable development.

2.3.3 Paragraph 66 states that:

“Applicants will be expected to work closely with those directly affected by their proposals to evolve designs that take account of the views of the community.”

2.3.4 The above extract has been considered in the consultation process for this development.

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2.4 Statement of Community Involvement

2.4.1 Slough Borough Council’s Statement of Community Involvement, adopted December 2006, states that the Council believes that “The benefits of involving a wide range of people and organisations throughout the planning process include:

 More focus on the priorities identified by the local community;

 Increased understanding of the process;

 Consensus and ownership of the process; and

 Influencing site specific proposals” (Paragraph 1.2.1).

2.4.2 Paragraph 6.1.5 states that “…the Council proposes that potential applicants or applications classified as a major application should, at pre-application stage, contact the Local Planning Authority to discuss the level of community involvement and the preferred method(s) of consultation…”.

2.4.3 The Council sets out the possible consultation techniques which it considers appropriate to differing levels of development. “It is considered that the normal means of consultation should be either an exhibition or public meeting at a suitable public venue or by letter with accompanying plans where more appropriate…” (Paragraph 6.1.7)

2.4.4 As set out below in Section 3.3, a public exhibition was held which was advertised to the local parish council, ward members, in the local press and by way of a leaflet drop containing information of the proposal, exhibition and Stratus’ contact details. It is therefore considered that an appropriate level of pre-submission consultation has been undertaken with the local community.

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3.0 COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT

3.1 Approach

3.1.1 Sirius SBC Renewables is committed to open and honest dialogue and engagement with the local community and stakeholders regarding its development proposals. The main aims of the consultation activity undertaken were to inform the local community, elected representatives and interested parties about the proposals, and respond to feedback. A range of consultation tools were employed including letters, leaflet drop, public notice, posters and a public exhibition.

3.2 Pre-Application Engagement

3.2.1 Pre-application advice was sought from Slough Borough Council in March 2015 to ascertain the Council’s general thoughts on the suitability of the site for the proposed development. Slough Borough Council issued their pre-application advice in May 2015 which highlighted that assessment work would be necessary to accompany the application.

3.2.2 A Screening Request was submitted on the 5th of May 2015 to establish whether the Council considered that the proposed development would require an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). The Council issued their screening opinion on 27th May 2015 and confirmed an EIA would not be required.

3.3 Public Exhibition

3.3.1 The public exhibition was organised to ensure that all members of the public were able to take part if they chose to:

 The chosen venue for the public exhibition (Colnbrook Village Hall, Colnbrook) was situated close to the proposed development site to ensure residents did not have to travel far to find out about the proposals;

 The venue was wheelchair accessible;

 The venue was located in a location easily accessible on foot, cycle or by public transport;

 The public exhibition was held from 14.30 to 19.30, mid-week and not during the local school holidays - allowing those at work during the daytime to attend in the evening; and

 The public exhibition was advertised via a wide range of methods, as set out below.

3.3.2 A public exhibition was held on Thursday 30th April 2015 between 14.30 and 19.30 in Colnbrook Village Hall, Colnbrook. The public exhibition was publicised in the following ways:

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 Emails were sent to the following Parish Council Clerk and the following Council Ward Members on 17th April 2015, providing information on the proposal, the public exhibition and providing Stratus’ contact details should they require more information prior to the exhibition:

 Councillor Avtar Cheema (Colnbrook with Poyle Ward);

 Councillor Dexter Smith (Colnbrook with Poyle Ward); and

 Clerk Jones (Colnbrook with Poyle Parish Council).

 Leaflets including a site location plan, inviting residents to the event and providing some background information regarding the scheme, were distributed to approximately 300 properties surrounding the proposed development site on the 20th April, 2015. Addresses were taken from the national Council Tax Database website: http://www.voa.gov.uk/cti/InitS.asp?lcn=0.

 Posters, proving information on the public exhibition were sent to the Parish Clerk and displayed on notice boards on the Parish Council website.

 A public notice advertising the public exhibition was placed in The Slough Express on the 24th April 2015.

3.3.3 Copies of the leaflet distributed, poster and a copy of the public notice published in The Slough Express can be found in Annex A.

3.3.4 Exhibition boards were on display at the event containing information under the following headings:

 Why do we need renewable energy?

 Why solar energy?

 Will I be able to see the solar farm?

 Does it have to be sunny for the panels to work?

 Will the solar farm make a noise?

 What about the impact on the land?

 How long will the panels be there?

 How will the site be secured?

 How long will the solar farm take to build?

 Where is the proposed solar farm located?

 What size will the solar farm be?

 Why this location?

 What environmental assessments are being undertaken?

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 What are the project time scales?

3.3.5 Copies of the boards are contained within Annex B.

3.3.6 Representatives from Stratus Environmental and Sirius SBC Renewables LLP were on- hand during the event to explain the project proposals in further detail and answer any specific queries and concerns from attendees. A two-page information leaflet, summarising the exhibition boards was available to take away; this also contained Stratus’ contact information, should attendees have any additional questions. A copy of the information sheet is provided at Annex B.

3.3.7 Photographs illustrating a number of viewpoints different locations were displayed to enable attendees to gain an understanding of how the development would be viewed in the surrounding area.

3.3.8 Comment forms were available to the attendees for those who wanted to leave their comments on the proposals, a copy of which is provided at Annex B.

3.4 Summary of Public Exhibition Feedback and Responses

3.4.1 The public exhibition was attended by 25 members of the public. Key members of the project team were present throughout the day and every attendee had the opportunity to discuss the proposed solar farm development individually with a member of the project team. Members of the public were encouraged to express their views, both positive and negative regarding the proposed development and any queries they may have.

3.4.2 In total 3 comment forms were completed at the exhibition, two comments were positive with one negative comment. The comments are summarised below:

 Landfill contamination concerns were raised by a resident who attended the exhibition. In response to this concern, the mounting frames will be fixed to the ground employing a low penetration mounting system (‘Tree System’) or surface mounted ballasted system, depending on ground conditions. This will ensure stability of the panels and frames without interfering with the protective cap beneath the surface of the site.

 One resident was concerned with the impact the development will have on the Green Belt. In response, whilst the proposal is located within the Green Belt, there is limited potential to affect the openness of the Green Belt given the limited visual effects of the panels, the temporary nature of the proposal and the special circumstances of renewable energy proposals. In addition the site is a restored landfill site with little development prospects and given the significant biodiversity enhancements proposed and generation of renewable energy the proposal would constitute an efficient use of the site.

 A number of residents referred to a lack of financial gain for the local village. Whilst no direct financial benefits to the local community are proposed, the

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construction phase of the development is likely to generate income from local businesses.

3.4.3 Sirius SBC Renewables is pleased to note that the feedback received was relatively supportive of the proposed Poyle Park Manor Solar Farm.

3.5 Conclusions

3.5.1 Sirius SBC Renewables has pro-actively engaged with the local community to provide details of the proposed development and has provided an opportunity for members of the public to find out more information on the proposal, have their questions answered and give their views on the scheme. Furthermore, Sirius SBC Renewables has taken residents’ views and local knowledge and used them to develop and improve the proposals.

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Appendix A

Public Exhibition Advertising Material

Leaflet:

Poster:

Public Advert:

Appendix B

Public Exhibition Display Material

Appendix C

Parish Council & Resident Correspondence