Following Swale Borough Council’s Planning Committee refusal of the Battery Safety Management Plan on 28 February, the Developer submitted an appeal to the Secretary of State for Energy Security & Net Zero on 10 April.
Swale Borough Council received notification that the start date of the appeal was 15 May and only representations from them, Kent Fire & Rescue and the Health & Safety Executive would be allowed. These representations had to be submitted by 30 May 2024.
We were very grateful that Swale Borough Council invited the Parish Council, GREAT and The Faversham Society to submit their representations via them, which were included with their own submission.
Swale Borough Council were advised on 31 May that Kent Fire and Rescue Service have not provided a response or representation to the appointed person. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) confirmed they have no comments to make.
The Developer has until 13 June to submit their comments to the submissions made by Swale Borough Council. The appeal will be decided by an appointed person on behalf of the Secretary of State for Energy Security & Net Zero.
All submissions are on the Swale’s Planning Portal and can be found at: https://pa.midkent.gov.uk/online-applications/applicationDetails.do?activeTab=documents&keyVal=RZL0W6TY0XI00
A tremendous amount of work has gone into writing these submissions, and we are keeping our fingers crossed in the hope that we get the desired outcome.
It is rather insulting I feel, to the many people who are concerned about the safety of the proposed battery storage, that Kent Fire and Rescue responded beyond the deadline and then when they did respond it was one line, which was signed off by a trainee!