Search
07 Feb 2026
The latest news as it happens in Dartmoor covering Okehampton, Tavistock, Bovey Tracey, Ashburton & Surrounding Mid Devon areas.
Get the latest in Local Dartmoor News, information, important updates and local opinions from across Okehampton, Tavistock, Bovey Tracey & Ashburton.
Get the latest on Dartmoor sports news, Golfing, Cricket, Football, Cycling and more local Dartmoor Sports News.
View the latest Dartmoor property news, opinions, property sales & property of the week including Okehampton, Tavistock, Bovey Tracey & Ashburton.
Breaking local council & politics news, opinions & analysis from Dartmoor, Okehampton, Tavistock, Bovey Tracey & Ashburton & Beyond.
Hear from our local columnist, news & pictures from Dartmoor, Okehampton, Tavistock, Bovey Tracey & Ashburton & Beyond.
Local Dartmoor property news, house prices and opinions on Dartmoor’s property market including Okehampton, Tavistock, Bovey Tracey & Ashburton.
Local area spotlights & features across Dartmoor, Okehampton, Tavistock, Bovey Tracey & Ashburton.
Dartmoor national park is 368 miles of beautiful English countryside, find out what green issues are affecting Dartmoor here at The Moorlander.
What is it like to live on Dartmoor? Get local news & council updates for across Dartmoor including Okehampton, Tavistock, Bovey Tracey & Ashburton.
Showcasing and celebrating the incredible independent businesses of Dartmoor, Okehampton, Tavistock, Bovey Tracey & Ashburton.
Find and view pictures of Dartmoor, Okehampton, Tavistock, Bovey Tracey, Ashburton & Surrounding areas from the local community & our reporters.
Get the latest Weather news, official weather advisories, warnings, and severe weather alerts for Dartmoor, Okehampton, Tavistock, Bovey Tracey & Ashburton.
Get your local Dartmoor traffic & travel reports, road closures, train delays, in and around Okehampton, Tavistock, Bovey Tracey & Ashburton.
Please allow ads as they help fund our trusted local news content.
Kindly add us to your ad blocker whitelist.
If you want further access to Ireland’s best local journalism, consider contributing and/or subscribing to our free daily Newsletter .
Support our mission and join our community now.
To continue reading this article, you can subscribe for as little as €0.50 per week which will also give you access to all of our premium content and archived articles!
Alternatively, you can pay €0.50 per article, capped at €1 per day.
Thank you for supporting Ireland’s best local journalism!
Devon CPRE Director Penny Mills urges people to sign the petition (photo by Sharon Goble)
Reporter:
Ella Sampson
06 Feb 2026 1:33 PM
Email:
ella.sampson@clearskypublishing.co.uk
Plans for a proposed large-scale solar development on farmland near Holsworthy have been put on hold while further technical assessments are carried out.
The company behind the Beacon Solar project has withdrawn from the Planning Inspectorate’s pre-application service, pausing its consultation process. 
An update confirming the move has been published on the Planning Inspectorate’s website.
The Beacon Solar scheme is a proposed solar park seeking development consent. 

ABOVE: Devon CPRE Beacon Solar – Chairman Steve Crowther addresses the meeting (photo by Sharon Goble)
The project has been in development for around 18 months and has involved environmental and technical assessments.
In a statement to the Gazette, Beacon Solar said: “Following the collection of environmental and technical data over the last 18 months, the proposed Beacon Solar farm is undergoing further assessment in terms of its layout, scale and detailed design. While this process is ongoing, there will be a pause to the consultation process and as such the project has been withdrawn from the NSIP process. Further updates will be issued in due course following the completion of the various technical assessments.”
The proposal, which remains at a pre-application stage, had outlined plans for a solar array covering around 2,700 acres of farmland in north-west Devon, with a generating capacity of more than 100 megawatts. 
Due to its scale, it would have been classed as a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project, meaning any final decision would be made by the government rather than local planners.
The plans have faced opposition from Devon CPRE. 
Devon CPRE is an independent local charity which says it campaigns to protect rural landscapes and prevent what it describes as poor planning and policies that could harm Devon’s countryside.
The charity held a public meeting at Holsworthy Memorial Hall in October 2025 and launched an online petition opposing the scheme.
Torridge and Tavistock MP Sir Geoffrey Cox and members of the Stop Beacon Solar residents’ group attended the meeting and spoke against the proposals. 

ABOVE: Devon CPRE Beacon Solar meeting in Holsworthy, 31 October 25 (photo by Sharon Goble)
Devon CPRE said its petition has received 4,399 signatures to date.
Commenting on the project update, Devon CPRE chairman Steve Crowther said: “We are pleased to see that Beacon Solar have withdrawn their application for a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project – a gigantic 2,700-acre solar farm which would produce no energy for more than a decade – across the landscape at Holsworthy.
“We hope that they have noted the reaction from thousands of residents of the area and members of the wider public who cherish this landscape; and will now redirect their investment into brownfield or rooftop renewable energy projects.
“If all the developers now eyeing up our green fields would do that, we could exceed the government’s solar targets for 2050 without ruining landscapes and taking millions of pounds worth of food production out of our economy. We will watch very closely what this developer – a Swiss-based group with many fingers in the renewables pie – does next. And we will be ready and waiting if they come this way again.
“In the meantime, we urge Devonians to keep signing and circulating our petition, at devoncpre.org.uk, to help us defend Devon’s unique landscape assets from mega-solar speculators.”
Beacon Solar said further updates would be provided once its assessments are complete.
Related topics:
Devon , North Devon
4
To continue reading this article,
please subscribe and support local journalism!
Subscribing will allow you access to all of our premium content and archived articles.
To continue reading this article for FREE,
please kindly register and/or log in.
Registration is absolutely 100% FREE and will help us personalise your experience on our sites. You can also sign up to our carefully curated newsletter(s) to keep up to date with your latest local news!
Most Popular
Around Devon
The South West Devon MP says railcards for veterans and serving personnel need statutory protection
Local News
CCTV footage shows suspects arriving in stolen vehicles before ramming the store and fleeing the Plympton area (Credit- D&C Police)
Local News
Arthur Askey, one of Britain’s most recognisable comedy stars of the 20th century (Image courtesy of: Robert Rice, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)
Around Devon
Around Devon
Sponsored Content
Sponsored Content
Sponsored Content
Symptoms can all affect our daily lives, but treatment is available!
Sponsored Content
Shamilla with her sons Zakir and Zain
Sponsored Content
Sponsored Content
Multimedia
CCTV footage shows suspects arriving in stolen vehicles before ramming the store and fleeing the Plympton area (Credit- D&C Police)
Local News
Local News
The area subject to the Zitherixon Quarry proposal at Kingsteignton (Image courtesy- Stop The Quarry Expansion – Save Our Trees)
Local News
The A38 near Plymouth is facing severe westbound congestion (Image: Ella Sampson)
Local News
Miniature Shetland pony Sir Didymus, experiencing the Northern Lights for the first time (Image- The Mare and Foal Sanctuary)
Local News
Subscribe or register today to discover more from DonegalLive.ie
Buy the e-paper of the Donegal Democrat, Donegal People’s Press, Donegal Post and Inish Times here for instant access to Donegal’s premier news titles.
Keep up with the latest news from Donegal with our daily newsletter featuring the most important stories of the day delivered to your inbox every evening at 5pm.
ClearSky Digital Titles
ClearSky Print Titles

source