Yes to green energy

NO to the industrialisation of our countryside

“We are all in favour of green energy. However, what is being proposed by these 'green energy' companies is the mass destruction of farmland for minor, inefficient, energy gains motivated by quick profits for multinationals and wealthy individuals. It is opportunism, not sustainability.”

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Claydons Solar Action Group

Yes to green energy

NO to the industrialisation of our countryside

“We are all in favour of green energy. However, what is being proposed by these 'green energy' companies is the mass destruction of farmland for minor, inefficient, energy gains motivated by quick profits for multinationals and wealthy individuals. It is opportunism, not sustainability.”

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Claydons Solar Action Group

We’ve created the below video to show the shocking scale and potential devastation the Rosefield project could bring, and the serious consequences we may face if it goes ahead.

Fighting the cumulative impact in the Claydons

Since Rosefield Solar Farm announced its proposal in September 2023, there has been a growing wave of energy infrastructure developments targeting the Claydons — projects that we, as a community, must challenge in the strongest possible terms before our area turns in to one large powerstation. We are now confronted with an additional THREE battery energy storage sites and the doubling in size of East Claydon National Grid Substation. None of these developments belong in this beautiful part of north Buckinghamshire, none will benefit our community, and all will lead to the loss of over 3,000 acres of important agricultural land.

It is, therefore, imperative that we seize every opportunity to oppose these projects. The impacts of construction alone, as seen with the HS2 and East West Rail nearby, have been devastating — from damaged roads to reckless lorry drivers and intolerable light and noise pollution. Now, we are facing the prospect of multiple construction projects occurring simultaneously in the same area, with no apparent coordination between them.

We must prevent these large corporations from believing they can trample over our rural community.

Rosefield Solar Farm proposal

  • 2,471 acres (1,000 hectares).
  • 471,000 solar panels (500 Mw).
  • Battery storage (500 Mw BESS) inverters - 296 shipping containers in the Botolph area alone. More will be added.
  • Substation - 60,000sq m, which will be 15m high.
  • A collector compound with transformers and cables, with the boundary being up to 6m high.
  • 2.5m high security fencing with CCTV and security lighting at 3.5m high (double decker bus is 4.5m high!).
  • Approximately 2.5 years of construction, including hundreds of HGV movements per day.
  • A new hedgerow is proposed along the length of Brentwood Jubilee Way to screen views!
  • Project cost: circa £760m

Live Generation, Demand & Emissions

Real-time electricity data for Great Britain - updated every 5 to 30 minutes.

Track generation, demand, and carbon intensity across the GB grid in real time. Explore the full generation mix or focus on specific categories such as renewables, fossil fuels, low-carbon, or other sources. Compare generation and demand trends alongside carbon emissions through interactive charts to better understand the current state of Great Britain’s electricity system.

Greg Smith MP

I stand alongside local residents in opposing the 2,000-acre Rosefield Solar proposal in the Claydons. It is totally wrong to take this volume of land from food production, displacing tenant farmers who have farmed this land for generations and devastating our beautiful Buckinghamshire countryside that powers the tourism economy. It’s also totally confused science as 2,000 acres of solar will only power around 50,000 homes on current usage. But just two football pitches are required using small modular reactors that would power 1 million homes - there is just no case for ground-based solar. Large-scale energy infrastructure has no place in the countryside. This is the message that I am taking to National Grid, which plans to more than double the size of its existing substation, despite the highly speculative nature of Rosefield and BESS sites. I will never give up the fight against unwanted and unneeded energy infrastructure.

Greg Smith, MP

Our key concerns

Sheer Size

Visual Impact

Solar inefficiency

LOSS OF HABITAT

LOSS OF AMENITY

NOISE IMPACT

CONTAMINATION

TOXIC FIRES

LOSS OF TENANT FARMER'S LIVELIHOODS & over 100 local jobs under threat

Loss of Food Producing Land

MORE CONSTRUCTION & DAMAGE ON TOP OF HS2 & EWR

Traffic Impact and poor country roads

acres (1,214 hectares) for all proposals on agricultural land

News & updates

Rosefield Solar Farm – your voice matters!

3 December 2025

1,668 acres of agricultural land will be taken for a huge Solar ‘Industrial’ farm with associated BESS (Battery Energy Storage […]

A nightmare on the marshes: Could Rosefield be our grim reality?

6 November 2025

What was promised as a beacon of green progress has become, for many locals, a living nightmare. The construction of […]

Rosefield planning application SUBMITTED – your action is needed

9 October 2025

We have been informed by Buckinghamshire Council that the planning application from Rosefield has now been submitted to the Government’s […]

Open letters to the Government

24 September 2025

The letters below were sent by the ‘Stop Oversized Solar (SOS) campaign group’ to the Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, […]

Our community unites for National Walk Day against industrial solar and BESS developments

10 June 2025

We were thrilled by the incredible response to National Community Walk Day, held on Sunday 8th June, to raise awareness […]

National Grid notifies East Claydon Parish Council of ground investigation works for proposed Substation Site

6 June 2025

National Grid has formally notified East Claydon Parish Council of upcoming ground investigation works on a proposed site earmarked for […]

Claydon Solar Action Group invited to Houses of Parliament

13 March 2025

As part of our ongoing fight against the Rosefield proposal, Jamie and I had a trip to the Houses of […]

Proposals for Longbreach Solar Farm 

21 February 2025

Local residents have received a letter from Noventum Power informing them of their proposals to build a 49.9MW solar farm […]

Exposing the Battery Backup con

14 February 2025

In the video below, Paul Burgess challenges the government’s statistics on relying on battery storage to meet the UK’s energy […]

Li-BESS Safety Concerns

23 January 2025

Below is an email sent by UK SOLAR ALLIANCE to all campaign groups concerned about BESS. It is unfortunate to […]

Statera BESS Planning Application – REJECTED!

20 January 2025

At the Statera BESS Planning hearing at Buckinghamshire Council on Thursday 19th December 2024, there was a turnout of approximately […]

UK Solar Alliance Solar Rally & Solar debate in Parliament

18 April 2024

The UK Solar Alliance (of which the Claydons Solar Action Group are a part) felt the time was right to […]

A local child concerned about our countryside sends in his objection

8 February 2024

Message of support and to ‘keep up the fight’

5 February 2024

Our local MP for Buckingham, Greg Smith, sent East Claydon Parish Council a letter of support for our campaign against […]

An objection letter for Statera’s planning application by our MP, Greg Smith

5 February 2024

Greg Smith MP has been a strong supporter of our communities in opposing the Statera BESS application as well as […]

A trip to an operating Statera BESS site

18 January 2024

Some of the CSAG were invited to visit a Statera BESS site in operation. The sound in the background is […]

Today’s Green creds all seem wrong

4 December 2023

I do like the idea of stopping burning fossil fuels. Today December 3rd the temperature is -1 degree C in […]

Buckingham News visited the villages and spoke to CSAG

28 November 2023

After a lot of campaigning to ask concerned residents to send their letters to Rosefiled Solar Farm before 11th November […]

Farmland Classification – “poor quality and not very fertile land” is a myth!

25 November 2023

Much is being made of the fact that the land proposed for Rosefield Solar Farm is grade 3b and therefore […]

Our MP, Greg Smith, shows his opposition

9 November 2023

I have formally responded to the public consultation on proposals for a 2,100 acre solar industrial installation in the Claydons, […]

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