Councillor Elliott Jayes (Vice-Chair) took the chair for this meeting and would be referred to as ‘Chair’ for the remainder of these minutes.

Visitors and members of the public who are unfamiliar with the building and procedures are advised that:

(a)      The fire alarm is a continuous loud ringing. In the event that a fire drill is planned during the meeting, the Chair will advise of this.

(b)      Exit routes from the chamber are located on each side of the room, one directly to a fire escape, the other to the stairs opposite the lifts.

(c)      In the event of the alarm sounding, leave the building via the nearest safe exit and gather at the assembly point on the far side of the car park. Do not leave the assembly point or re-enter the building until advised to do so. Do not use the lifts.

(d)      Anyone unable to use the stairs should make themselves known during this agenda item.

The Chair outlined the emergency evacuation procedure.

Councillors should not act or take decisions in order to gain financial or other material benefits for themselves, their families or friends.

The Chair will ask Members if they have any disclosable pecuniary interests (DPIs) or disclosable non-pecuniary interests (DNPIs) to declare in respect of items on the agenda. Members with a DPI in an item must leave the room for that item and may not participate in the debate or vote. 

Aside from disclosable interests, where a fair-minded and informed observer would think there was a real possibility that a Member might be biased or predetermined on an item, the Member should declare this and leave the room while that item is considered.

Members who are in any doubt about interests, bias or predetermination should contact the monitoring officer for advice prior to the meeting.

Councillor Kieran Golding declared a Disclosable Non-Pecuniary Interest on the item being considered as he was a member of the Faversham Society who had made representations on the application.

Councillor Andy Booth declared a Disclosable Non-Pecuniary Interest on the item being considered as he was a previous board member at Kent Fire and Rescue Service (KFRS).

The Chair said that although he was employed by one of the statutory consultees, he would consider the application with an open mind.

Tabled updates added 23 February 2024.

Second tabled updates added 28 February 2024.

The Area Planning Officer introduced the application as set out in the report.  He referred to the two updates which had been emailed to Members and added to the website.

The Area Planning Officer gave an overview and some history of the application, noting that permission for a large-scale solar park had been approved by the Secretary of State in 2020.  A Development Consent Order (DCO) was made in May 2020 and came into force in June 2020.  He explained that the development was currently under construction.  There were nine main elements of works within the DCO.  Requirement no. 3 of the DCO related specifically to the submission of a Battery Safety Management Plan (BSMP) and this application sought approval of the Plan.

The Area Planning Officer presented plans and photographs of the site.  He drew Members’ attention to paragraph 6.1 in the report and said Members needed to be clear on the nature of the application in front of them, that an energy storage facility had already been approved as part of the DCO, and that this application specifically related to the acceptability of the BSMP that had been submitted.  The Area Planning Officer acknowledged that this was a highly specialised topic and he explained that the Council had employed Paul Gregory, Battery Safety and Testing Consultant to advise on the subject.  The Council had also received expert advice from KFRS.

The Consultant was invited to speak.  He gave an overview of the BSMP which was broken down into three phases:  construction; operation; and de-commissioning and he said that, following some revisions, he was fully satisfied with its content. 

Parish Councillor Mike Newman, representing Graveney with Goodnestone Parish Council, spoke against the application.

Parish Councillor Jeff Tutt, representing Dunkirk Parish Council, spoke against the application.

Sir David Melville, representing the Faversham Society, spoke against the application.

A visiting Ward Member spoke against the application.

A visiting Member spoke against the application.

The Chair moved the officer recommendation to approve the application, and this was seconded by Councillor Andy Booth.

The Chair invited Members to make comments and points raised included:

·         Considered there were very limited parameters on how the Committee could make a decision on this application;

·         welcomed all the information that had been provided;

·         clarification sought on the evacuation plan for the site and surrounding area;

·         clarification sought on the Atkins report and why this had not been included within the paperwork for consideration;

·         there was a difference in opinion on the amount of firewater storage required on site;

·         disappointed that the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) had not responded to the consultation;

·         this was a very complex application with a lot of very technical information;

·         Members were being asked to use their planning judgement, but they had no experience of this type of application;

·         major concerns with the fire risk and the narrow lanes for emergency vehicles to access the site;

·         HSE had the technical ability to respond to the application, it was negligent of them not  ...  view the full minutes text for item 699.

The meeting was adjourned from 9.03 pm until 9.15 pm and from 10.01 pm until 10.25 pm.

At 10 pm and 10.30 pm, Members agreed to the suspension of Standing Orders in order that the Committee could complete its business.