Owners of a remote and historic Herefordshire farm formerly used for holiday lets have been told they will have to remove solar panels installed on a listed barn without permission.
Herefordshire Council served an enforcement notice on owners of Mainoaks Farm Cottages, beside the river Wye between Goodrich and Symonds Yat, over “unauthorised erection of 28 solar panels attached to curtilage-listed barn”.
Historic England’s website shows four separate buildings at the farm, at the end of a cul-de-sac, are grade II listed – a farmhouse dating from the 15th century, a 17th-century granary, 18th-century barn and mid-19th-century cider mill.
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The enforcement notice says the panels, fitted to the south-facing roof of the barn, “are very visible within the group but less so from wider views”, though they can still be made out from a public footpath and river bridge.
These “adversely impact on the character and appearance of the barn itself and the setting of the other listed buildings”, the notice says, adding that the “small public benefit to the environment” of the solar panels “does not outweigh the harm”.
It gives the owners three months from May 15 to remove the panels, along with wiring and an inverter, from the barn.
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A spokesperson for the council said it was not aware of the owners having submitted an appeal against the enforcement, adding: “A site visit isn’t due until after the compliance date.”
It appears six cottages at the farm ceased to be offered for holiday accommodation in 2012, despite favourable online reviews.
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