Turbines Tree

Do I Need Planning Permission For Installing Solar Roof Panels?

Up until April 2008 it was necessary to apply for planning permission in order to install solar panels. The government however wants us all to use more renewable energy and so in 2008 it changed the planning rules in order to make it easier to do so.

Planning rules are however often open to interpretation and it falls on the local authority to interpret them. Some councils it seems did not appreciate the spirit of the rules and chose to interpret them in such a way as to effectively re-impose the obligation apply for permission.

The situation has thankfully been clarified thanks to a recent appeal decision.

The Law on Planning Permission

Section 57 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 imposes a requirement to obtain planning permission for “development” of land. Development is defined in section 55 as “the carrying out of building, engineering, mining or other operations in, on, over or under land, or the making of any material change in the use of any buildings or other land.” That section goes on to define building operations as:

(a) demolition of buildings;
(b) rebuilding;
(c) structural alterations of or additions to buildings; and
(d) other operations normally undertaken by a person carrying on business as a builder.

Solar panels are take to be an addition to a building and as such are caught by the definition at paragraph c, so solar panels can’t be installed without planning permission.

General Permitted Development Orders

The Town & Country Planning Act goes on to say, in sections 59 – 61, that the Secretary of State can make orders which automatically grant permission for certain types of development. Such an order, which is still in force today, was made in 1995 and is known as the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) Order 1995.

Many amendments have been made to this order subsequently, so as to introduce other types of development for which permission is deemed to be granted automatically. In terms of solar panels (and other microgeneration equipment) the relevant amendment was made in the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development)(Amendment) (England) Order 2008, which came into force on 06 April of that year.

Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Amendment) (England) 2008

This order (which as the title suggests relates only to England) introduced a new part 40 to the 1995 Order.

It states that..

“The installation, alteration or replacement of solar PV or solar thermal equipment on—
(a) a dwellinghouse; or
(b) a building situated within the curtilage of a dwellinghouse” is classed as permitted development and does not require specific permission, however it goes on to set out the following exceptions:

“Development is not permitted by Class A, in the case of solar PV or solar thermal equipment installed on an existing wall or roof of a dwellinghouse or a building within its curtilage if –

(a) the solar PV or solar thermal equipment would protrude more than 200 millimetres beyond the plane of the wall or the roof slope when measured from the perpendicular with the external surface of the wall or roof slope;
(b) it would result in the highest part of the solar PV or solar thermal equipment being higher than the highest part of the roof (excluding any chimney);
(c) in the case of land within a conservation area or which is a World Heritage Site, the solar PV or solar thermal equipment would be installed—
(i) on a wall forming the principal or side elevation of the dwellinghouse and would be visible from a highway; or
(ii) on a wall or roof slope of a building within the curtilage of the dwellinghouse and would be visible from a highway; or
(d) the solar PV or solar thermal equipment would be installed on a building within the curtilage of the dwellinghouse if the dwellinghouse is a listed building.”

So these exceptions mean that if the panels protrude outwards more than 200 millimetres (which is 20cms or around 8 inches), they are higher than the apex of the roof, they are to be installed on a building within a conservation area or World Heritage Site and will be visible from the road or they are to be installed anywhere on a listed building, an application for planning permission will be needed.

Conditions Attached to the General Permitted Development Order

So far then everything seems straightforward; however the 2008 Order imposes conditions on the automatic grant of permission, as follows:

“Development is permitted by Class A subject to the following conditions—
(a) solar PV or solar thermal equipment installed on a building shall, so far as practicable, be sited so as to minimise its effect on the external appearance of the building;
(b) solar PV or solar thermal equipment shall, so far as practicable, be sited so as to minimise its effect on the amenity of the area; and
(c) solar PV or solar thermal equipment no longer needed for micro generation shall be removed as soon as reasonably practicable.”

Some councils have looked at points a and b and taken the view that planning applications are required to ensure that the panels are not too large or too visible from the highway. This was a disappointing approach since it seemed to be at odds with the spirit of the new legislation. Fortunately, the planning process incorporates a right of appeal, and such an appeal was made against a decision in Poole earlier this year.

The 2010 Poole Council Appeal Decision

Following a decision by Poole council that a homeowner was obliged to make an application for planning permission to install solar panels, the home owner decided to appeal to the planning inspector. On 21 July 2010 the planning inspector ruled in favour of the homeowner, i.e. that Poole council were mistaken and in fact no planning application was required to install the solar panels in question.

On the subject of the size of an installation, the planning inspector said “As to size, plainly a smaller array would have a lesser effect, but that could be said of any installation; condition (a) is concerned with siting, not size. Had Parliament intended to impose a size limitation it would have been a simple matter to do so.”, and on the subject of visual amenity “Condition (b) is that solar PV or solar thermal equipment shall, so far as practicable, be sited so as to minimise its effect on the amenity of the area. In this case the only effect on amenity is visual – the appearance of the building – and accordingly I conclude that this condition also would be met.”

As a result of this very welcome decision local authorities around England have little choice but to reconsider their policies on solar panels and refrain from insisting on a specific application being made except where the exceptions at Part 40 Class A (1) of the 1995 Order (as amended by the 2008 Order) apply or where the installation is significantly larger than a typical domestic installation or is otherwise unusual in appearance.

The Situation in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland Regarding Planning Permission for Solar Panels

Planning legislation is a devolved responsibility therefore the law in other parts of the UK is often different to the law in England, however the Scottish Parliament have introduced the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Domestic Microgeneration) (Scotland) Amendment Order 2009 and the Welsh Assembly the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Amendment) (Wales) Order 2009, both of which are very similar in effect to the English Order and will presumably therefore produce the same results.

The Northern Irish have the matter under review and legislation is expected shortly but for the time being, an application will need to be made before installing solar panels in Northern Ireland.

9 Comments to Do I Need Planning Permission For Installing Solar Roof Panels?

  1. Chris.'s Gravatar Chris.
    October 30, 2011 at 10:27 pm | Permalink

    Where you have said ——

    “The installation, alteration or replacement of solar PV or solar thermal equipment on—
    (a) a dwellinghouse; or
    (b) a building situated within the curtilage of a dwellinghouse” is classed as permitted development and does xxxx require specific permission, ———

    ———– You have omitted the vital word NOT ——– Rather alters the case !!

  2. gill's Gravatar gill
    January 27, 2012 at 10:09 am | Permalink

    Longwood engineering prides itself on re-cycling within the company so we were very surprised to find out we needed planning permission to install solar panels which will not be seen from the road you would think the local council would want to in courage businesses to install solar panels not dis-courage them by prolonging the issue with having to apply for permission and having that as an added cost i have had conflicting information from 3 companies who came in to give us quotes at to weather we need permission or not.

  3. Jim's Gravatar Jim
    April 26, 2012 at 9:14 am | Permalink

    So…..what are the exact requirements in law to fit PV on a domestic building.

  4. Jim's Gravatar Jim
    April 26, 2012 at 9:22 am | Permalink

    I guess that the government is pushing solar energy and allowing the councils to become “Budget Airlines” pleasing themselves what and how to charge, to make up for their ongoing financial losses imposed by the same said government(s) who are pressurising councils to become more efficient. Councils across the land each year are receiving less in government aid and; hence annually are having to cutback and find any means of recovering themselves financially. In fact, the green eco thing is a con; it is necessary, but government money; taxpayer’s money does not appear to have been spent in the right areas; Wind Turbines, for example; now not so good as they thought; millions of pounds; as usual wasted. This present government tells us all it is going to cutback on red tape and regulations; the nation is still waiting; nothing definate; always grey; as usual; it’s politics and can change with the weather. It is time that; in plain English, that we all knew exactly what is required by law to fit Solar Panels.

  5. Jim's Gravatar Jim
    April 26, 2012 at 9:30 am | Permalink

    I live on the borderline between two local authorities; Solar PV, a mystery it seems. One council does not seem to know much about Solar PV and suggests that a letter is sent to them at a cost of £120- to find out about permissions.

    37The other council has a charge listing of: Planning charge for PV £170- includes inspection. Total Full Plans charge for PV £170-. Building Notice charge for PV £150- ALL plus 20 percent VAT.

  6. Jim's Gravatar Jim
    April 26, 2012 at 9:42 am | Permalink

    People are opting for Solar PV; in many cases, because Energy prices have rocketed and out of control; many of these same energy companies are; wait for it, how has this been allowed to happen…..Foreign owned. I blame the government(s) for allowing foreign firms to buy up Britain; in effect; blackmailing us all and imposing continuously increasing energy charges; It’s called GREED, that now contribute to a state of austerity; hard times for most people. When you consider that a few thousands pounds in the building society is earning you around 4 percent interest; and if you are not relying on that account; then Solar now is a good return and investment. Unfortunately for all of us; while these foreign shareholder controlled energy firms who have to make a good profit control Britian’s energy needs, we are all treading water trying not to sink as; inevitably, energy prices will continue to rise out of control while the government goes off on anothter tangent that is politically correct for them at a time to suit them all. Now is a good time to go Solar; both as an investment and to ease the ever increasing energy charges to come.

  7. Minh's Gravatar Minh
    February 14, 2013 at 12:52 am | Permalink

    Well said, but people need to appreciate that adding Solar to their house is an asset that should boost the longer term worth of their residence if / when they choose to sell. With the environment the way it is going we are unable to dismiss any system that gives free energy at no cost to both the client and more significantly the world!

  8. July 11, 2014 at 10:14 am | Permalink

    For other option that I meet such as LED worklight this is one option of Dewalt.
    Also many homeowners’equity values have actually taken a hit so lenders and banks have tightened up their mortgage availabilities.
    When you do a home improvement addition there is much more to it than just throwing some walls up
    and then calling it a day, adding rooms and other features to your home
    require a great deal of planning on your part to not only
    make sure that the home improvement addition you are doing
    is up to code but that it is also going to mix well with
    the rest of your home.

Leave a Reply to Jim

Download Our Free E-book

Ebook - 50 Energy Efficiency Measures

Categories

Archives