Land At Grove Farm And Land East Of The Railway Line, Bentley
UPDATE!
The inquiry has been extended and will continue at Wherstead Park from 10.00 am on Wednesday 11th and Thursday 12th February and finishing on Thursday 19th February.
31st January 2026
Development Description: Construction of a solar farm (up to 40MW export capacity) with ancillary infrastructure and cabling, DNO substation, customer substation and construction of new and altered vehicular accesses.
Grove Farm Solar - Public Inquiry
Following an appeal by Greenswitch Capital against the decision by Babergh District Council to refuse the application, a public inquiry will be held.
The inquiry will be held at Wherstead Park, The St, Wherstead, Ipswich IP9 2BJ from 10:00am on Tuesday 20 January 2026.
It will continue on 21 –22 January 2026 and 27 – 28 January 2026 with 29 January 2026 in reserve.
Full details and documents can be viewed on the Babergh website - https://www.babergh.gov.uk/w/current-appeals
N.B. Since the Council issued its decision notice, the Bentley Conservation Area has been designated. This site falls within the new Conservation Area boundary.
Inquiries are open to members of the public, and although you do not have a legal right to speak, the Inspector will normally allow you to do so. Local people are encouraged to take part in the inquiry process as local knowledge and opinion can often be a valuable addition to the more formal evidence given. Most people prefer to read out a brief statement giving their views.
If you want to speak at the inquiry, it is important that you are there on 20th January because this is when the Inspector will tell everyone about the timetable.