EP have been working on a large number of renewable energy schemes over the past couple of years, including applications for planning permission, listed building consent, lawful development certificates and prior approval. One such suite of approvals was working in conjunction with an national energy supplier to retrofit renewable energy interventions on academies within the Greater London area. We are delighted that all applications have now been approved.
These renewable energy initiatives were delivered through the Re:fit programme, the procurement initiative for public bodies that wish to implement energy efficient measures and local energy generation projects on their assets. EP provided planning advice throughout this process, as well as assembling, submitting and managing the determination of 7 lawful development certificates, 1 prior approval and 6 planning applications for the installation of solar panels, air source heat pumps, and erecting new flues to facilitate modern boiler systems. During the process, EP planners liaised with Case Officers and energy engineers to ‘translate’ the planning process and overcome challenges.
One such challenge was understanding the interrelationship between the stipulations of the General Permitted Development Order and the Energy Act. Jo Rogers, Chartered Planner, said:
I’ve enjoyed expanding my knowledge of how planning legislation relates to other legislation – and we are now guiding local authority planning departments on this too. On one project, I researched the relationship between the maximum generation capacity restrictions outlined in the Energy Act and permitted development rights for photovoltaic panels on non-domestic buildings. We were then able to coach the local authority Case Officer through this to demonstrate that the proposals counted as microgeneration. This led to a lawful development certificate being issued for the proposals, giving the client legal comfort that the installation was not only making a positive contribution to reducing the estate’s carbon footprint – but that it was also fully ‘signed off’ by the local planning authority.
Renewable energy is clearly a critical and growing area of planning legislation, policy and practice. If we are to meet out climate goals as a nation – and globally – we need to ensure we invest in renewable energy projects and continue to evolve legislation and policy to keep up with improvements in the technology. We were delighted to work with our partners at NJD Environmental who provided expert support on air quality and acoustic mitigation, demonstrating the far-reaching benefits of the proposals in improving the immediate site and the local environment.
Matthew Creedy, Director at EP, explains more:
Through working on a variety of complex renewable energy schemes, we’ve learned that it’s critical to challenge assumptions about the impact of renewable energy generation on heritage buildings and townscapes, as well as on local residents and businesses, by making strong arguments from local and national policy documents – and by working closely with other professionals to demonstrate that mitigation can minimize impacts on the local area. We’ve had great feedback from our clients and project partners – they appreciate our work and our approach to problem solving.
The team are working on further renewable energy schemes and projects, helping schools, local authorities and individuals around the country to reduce their carbon footprint.
If you are interested in renewable energy schemes and need help understanding this area of legislation, please do get in touch! You can contact us here or reach out to us on LinkedIn or Twitter.