A DEVELOPER has been allowed to go ahead with the build of a solar farm next to one of Britain’s best-preserved Roman ruins, despite residents calling for a review of the decision.

The site in Minchens Lane, known as Bramley Frith, is more than 81 hectares and spans six fields to the north of Bramley.

Initial plans, submitted by energy developers Enso Energy, would have seen more than 100,000 solar panels placed on the land. Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council (BDBC) rejected them in April last year as councillors were worried about the scale of the development.

They said plans would “adverse impact on the landscape and character of the area” and would “result in harm to the local historic environment”.

READ MORE: Bramley solar farm: Controversial plans approved following appeal

Basingstoke Gazette:

Following a two-month appeal hearing new plans which will see a small reduction in the number of panels and enhanced screening were approved by a planning inspector. 

The solar farm will also have a battery pack, 16 transformer stations, 7km of security fencing, power 17,000 homes and save 8,000 cars’ worth of carbon dioxide.

After this news, campaigners from Bramley Solar Farm Residents Group, who have been against the project since plans were made public, called for a judicial review. A judicial review is a type of court proceeding in which a judge reviews the lawfulness of a decision or action made by a public body.

The review took place from Tuesday, October 17 to Thursday October 19 during which the judge deemed the decision to be justified.

The campaign group previously said that while it supports the principle of solar farms, the proposal for Bramley is “the wrong size, wrong type, wrong place and wrong company”.

They said the solar farm would “dominate the landscape between Bramley and Silchester, changing the land from rural to industrial”.

The site at Silchester features the “best-preserved Roman town defences in England,” according to English Heritage. It is home to ruins, a bathhouse, and the remains of an amphitheatre; experts believe there are discoveries that are yet to be made.

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In the report Mrs Justice Lang DBE said that the inspector's decision was "adequate".

She said: "I conclude that the inspector made a lawful exercise of planning judgment when he found that the modifications were minor. The claimant disagrees with the inspector’s judgment, but that is not a sufficient basis for a legal challenge. In my view, the claimant has not met the high bar for a successful irrationality claim."

The group has been contacted for a comment.