Council solar farm partially offline due to criminal damage
UPDATE 20/11/25: Telford & Wrekin Council has issued the following statement following theft and criminal damage at the Council-owned solar farm.
“The Telford & Wrekin Council-owned solar farm at Wheat Leasows remains safe and secure. The recent break-in involved the theft of cabling, which has temporarily affected part of our operations. The site continues to function and generate renewable energy, but currently at a reduced capacity.
“We have already implemented additional security measures while progressing with repair works and have also submitted a planning application for a new, more secure perimeter fence. Our priority is to restore the site to full operational capacity as soon as possible.”
Original story:
More robust security fences are planned at a council-owned solar farm in Telford which has suffered ‘criminal damage’, preventing the array generating electricity.
In an effort to boost defences, Telford & Wrekin Council has applied to its own development controllers for planning permission to replace 2m-high (6ft) fences around its site in Wheat Leasows with a new 3m-high (9 ft) security weldmesh fence.
The existing fence is made of timber posts and pig wire netting according to information on the planning portal.
“The existing fencing will be removed and replaced with Securimesh 3m-high close mesh panels and posts at 2.44m centres which will be concreted to c80cm deep.
“The fence needs to be installed as soon as possible to enable the solar farm to become operational again following criminal damage.
“It is understood, subject to planning permission, this will be carried out in January 2026.”
Telford & Wrekin Council’s 4MW solar farm was completed at the end of 2014.
The income that more than 15,000 panels on the 11.7 hectare site generates helps support the council’s revenue budget.
Officials at the council have run the rule over the plan’s environmental impact.
They have concluded that “there will be no harm to protected species and/or important habitats providing standard avoidance measures are taken”.
“We also advise that the application is exempt from Biodiversity Net Gain as less than 25 sq m of habitat will be affected, because all areas impacted will fully recover in under two years.”
The fence line is to be “exactly the same as the one currently installed” but could be “pulled into” the site by one metre to “avoid more significant vegetation and ease of installation”.
Among a list of individuals and organisations being consulted on the plans are Telford & Wrekin borough councillor Steve Bentley and Hadley & Leegomery Parish Council.
A public consultation exercise on the plans has been launched on the council’s planning portal with the reference TWC/2025/0788
(The headline on this story was changed on 20/11/25)
