Campaign over Shropshire solar panels gathers pace

And they have met with other protesters from across Shropshire who are also unhappy about similar plans in their neighbourhood.

The Keeping Tasley Green pressure group has stepped up its campaign by holding a series of fundraisers to help fight the development.

Residents fear their village is being targeted after plans for the solar panels in Tasley, near Bridgnorth, were revealed.

The plans for the solar farm, drawn up by Green Switch Developments Ltd, for High Trees Farm, includes an electricity sub-station and covering 20 acres with panels.

The solar farm, which could also include a mounted CCTV system and security fence, could power up to 1,200 homes.

Campaigner John Jenkins said more than £400 was raised during a table top sale and the sale of a recipe book in Tasley Village Hall last weekend.

He said: "The final figure is not certain yet but I am expecting it to be about £425.

"The recipe book has raised a little more and there is also a quiz night planned for next month.

"We are waiting for a reply from the applicant to some questions that were posed by the planning officer.

"We have sent the officer lots of information about land ownership and other details.

"We have also met with the other groups fighting solar farms in South Shropshire and we met Philip Dunne at Neen Sollars.

"He cannot interfere with the planners but I'm sure that he will have some influence."

Battle lines have been drawn across the county with the Save South Shropshire Countryside campaign group fighting plans for solar farms at Whitton, near Ludlow, Cleobury Mortimer and Church Stretton.

Plans for 20,000 solar panels on Hadley Farm, Wrexham Road, in Whitchurch, have been submitted to Shropshire Council.

A giant solar farm could also be built at Charity Farm, Burlton, near Wem, which would see about 66,000 panels installed on 68 acres, generating power for about 4,350 homes.

And there are separate plans for solar farms in both Telford and Shrewsbury.

The firm behind the Tasley project, said the farm would take four months to build and be used for about 25 years.

The solar farm in Tasley would see cabling feed into the control building from across the site, which would be housed within the cavities of the building's foundations.

Materials for the solar farm could see 100 lorries making deliveries for up to four months while construction work was under way.

The components would be carried from a track bordering the site, off Church Lane.

The agents said that the road would be suitable to support the vehicles using the local road network during construction.

Josh Hellawell, a planner at Green Switch, said although the electricity would not directly benefit people living locally, the solar farm could supply power for up 1,200 of homes.

But he said that supplying power to homes locally was not an option because it would involve building several expensive power sub-stations.

The quiz night, organised by Keeping Tasley Green, will take place in the village hall on September 10.