Land East Of Twinwood Road Oakley And Clapham And Land South East Of Thurleigh Road Milton Ernest And Thurleigh. Data via plota.co.uk

26/01266/M73 - Major S73 Variation of Condition Awaiting decision

Proposal

Solar farm with ancillary infrastructure, including variation of approved plans condition 1 attached to to allow for the substitution of three approved spare parts containers with three solar inverter cabins and, a minor realignment of the access track in Field B . Data via plota.co.uk

View original council record ↗Last checked

Application progress

✓
Received
3 Jul 2026
✓
Validated
13 Jul 2026
✓
Consultation
17 Jul 2026
Decision
Expected by 4 Oct 2026

Under consideration

No decision has been issued yet. Plota predicts a decision around 9 Oct 2026, from Bedford's recent commercial and major works.

The consultation period closed on 19 Aug 2026.

Associated applications 2

  • Part of

    Amendmentcouncil archive

    Conditions 1 variation sought

    • VariationSolar farm with ancillary infrastructure, including variation of approved plans condition 1…This application26/01266/M73

Site constraints 3

Agricultural land, grade 2
Best and most versatile land (grades 1, 2 and 3a). Source: the Predictive Agricultural Land Classification Map (Defra and Natural England, 2025; the Welsh Government's Predictive ALC Map 2 in Wales), a model rather than a site survey. A site survey can differ.
Where development of farmland is needed, policy prefers poorer land over the best and most versatile (grades 1, 2 and 3a). Three sources: Natural England's post-1988 field surveys, which are definitive where they exist; the Defra predictive map for England (2025) and the Welsh Government predictive map, modelled from the soil map with 3a and 3b split; and the 1970s provisional map, which planners and other services still show, coarser and with grade 3 undivided. Where the provisional and predicted grades disagree, treat the predicted grade as the current estimate and expect an application to carry its own survey.
Public bridleway 21 m away
Matters where it crosses or adjoins the site: obstructing a path without a diversion order is an offence, and work cannot start until the order is confirmed.
Compiled from highway authority data, not the legal definitive map. A few authorities have not published, so no path shown is not proof there is none.
Also on the record
National infrastructure project 1318 m away: East West Rail - Bedford to Cambridge and Western improvements, at pre-application.
Not affected
Outside flood zones 2 and 3 · Not green belt · No listed building at the site

Checked on 6 October 2026. Historic England, the Environment Agency, Natural England, the Planning Inspectorate and council datasets, Open Government Licence. A boundary can run through a site and the council holds the definitive record: confirm with the council before relying on this.

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Important details

Council
Bedford
Application type
Major S73 Variation of Condition
Received
3 Jul 2026
Validated
13 Jul 2026
Ward
Clapham & Oakley
Parish
Clapham
Case officer
Show
Target decision
4 Oct 2026
Applicant
Show
Agent
Harry Coles

Decision outlook

Day 88, past the statutory target. 71% of commercial and major works in Bedford are decided within thirteen weeks, which runs to 12 Oct 2026; extensions of time are common, and the council need not decide on the day. Last seen undecided on 7 Oct 2026.

Day 8832 days past the 56-day target
14%decided within 8 weeks
80%approved
6%go to committee

Plota live figures for commercial and major works decided by Bedford in the last twelve months, from validation. Bedford decision record →

Public comments

No public comments yet.

45 neighbours consulted · Last counted 7 Oct 2026

Read the comments on the council site ↗

Consultation & key dates

Alt. reference
PP-15049235
Planning Portal ref
PP-15049235
Neighbours
17 Jul 2026
Consultation
17 Jul 2026
Comments by
19 Aug 2026
Site or press notice
22 Jul 2026
Env. assessment
No
Bedford
Planning Authority Score
2.4/10
Poor
#253 of 296 councils
Relevant to this application:
Major dwellings

Bedford is slower than most councils at deciding householder applications, ranking #201 out of 296. 52% of applications have the time limit extended, above the 41% national average. Householder applications are slightly less likely to be approved here (86%) than the national average (90%).

Slower than most councils
for householder decisions
These figures are council-wide context, not a prediction for this application. View full council performance
Bedford decision statistics
Based on MHCLG data, the year to March 2026
80%
Overall approval rate
Below avg (87%) #259 of 296
86%
Householder approved
Below avg (90%) #239 of 296
56%
Decided in 8 weeks
Below avg (63%) #201 of 296
52%
Extended time limit
Above avg (41%) #233 of 296
52%
Minor dwellings approved
109 decided (1-9 homes)
69%
Major dwellings approved
26 decided (10+ homes)
67%
Change of use approved
57 decided
993
Total decisions
203 refused in the year to March 2026