Do I Need Planning Permission to Install Solar Panels?

Thinking about installing solar panels but worried about planning permission? You’re not alone. Many UK homeowners wonder if they need to jump through bureaucratic hoops to harness the sun’s power. The good news is, in most cases, you don’t! Let’s explore the details.

When You Don’t Need Planning Permission

Thanks to recent changes in UK planning rules, homeowners can install solar panels without needing planning permission under certain conditions. This is known as permitted development rights. Here are the key points:

Roof-Mounted Panels: If your solar panels are mounted on the roof and don’t protrude more than 20cm (200mm / 8 inches) from the roof surface, you usually don’t need planning permission.
Flat Roofs: Solar panels on flat roofs are also generally exempt, as long as they don’t exceed the roof’s height.
Conservation Areas: Even in conservation areas, you might not need planning permission, but it’s always best to check with your local planning authority to make sure.

When You Might Need Planning Permission

There are exceptions to these rules. You might need planning permission if:

Your property is a listed property or is in a conservation area.
You’re installing solar panels on a flat roof that exceeds the height of the roof.
You’re installing solar panels on a building other than your home, like a garage or shed.

How NXTGEN Energy Can Help

NXTGEN Energy specializes in the installation of solar panels and battery storage systems in Essex, Kent, London, and the surrounding areas. We can guide you through the process, ensuring you meet all necessary requirements and make the solar panel installation as smooth as possible.

Conclusion

Installing solar panels is a fantastic way to reduce your energy bills and carbon footprint. While planning permission isn’t usually required, it’s always a good idea to check with your local planning authority to be sure.

Ready to take the next step towards a greener future with solar energy?

NXTGEN Energy is your trusted partner for solar panel systems and solar battery storage solutions. We can help you design and install a solar PV system tailored to your specific needs, ensuring you get the most out of your investment.

If you are interested in getting a solar panel system installed for your home or business, you can Contact Us, call us on 01268 928 690 or click on the ‘Enquire Now’ button below and we will be in touch with you shortly.

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FAQs: Do I Need Planning Permission to Install Solar Panels?

Do I need planning permission to install solar panels on my roof?

In most cases, you don’t need planning permission thanks to permitted development rights. However, there are specific conditions your installation must meet.

What are permitted development rights for solar panels?

Permitted development rights allow homeowners to install solar panels without planning permission if the panels do not protrude more than 20cm (200mm / 8 inches) from the roof surface and meet other criteria.

Do I need planning permission for solar panels on a flat roof?

Generally, you don’t need planning permission for panels on a flat roof as long as they don’t exceed the roof’s height. Always check with your local planning authority to be sure.

What if my property is listed or in a conservation area?

If your property is listed or in a conservation area, you may need planning permission to install solar panels. Consult your local planning authority for guidance.

Can I install solar panels on buildings other than my home?

You may need planning permission to install solar panels on buildings like garages or sheds. It’s best to check with your local planning authority for specific requirements.

How can NXTGEN Energy assist with solar panel installation?

NXTGEN Energy specializes in the installation of solar panels and battery storage systems in Essex, Kent, London, and the surrounding areas. They can guide you through the process and ensure compliance with all necessary regulations.

Have more questions about planning permission for solar panels? Reach out to us to make your switch to solar energy smooth and efficient! ☀️🔋

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P P

17:58 02 Dec 24

Really happy end to endReally happy with the end to end process with Bobby art the start and Kelly keeping me informed al the way through.The panels are working albeit that we are now in December.Looking forward to higher power generation once the days start to get longer and lighter!

Philip Lennard

14:36 15 Aug 24

I recently ordered a 12 panel Solar system plus Inverter and iBoost plus Car Charger. All went really well except for a couple of, what I would call very minor hiccups.As soon as superstar Kelly got involved, hiccups went away. As if by magic!!!The whole team, to include Conner, Ben, the install team were excellent.They did everything that was "on the tin", thanks, Phil

Bob “Mkbob” James

12:22 05 Aug 24

The installation was quick and efficient. The installation of the inverter and battery in the garage was very neat.The team were very friendly and quick to answer all the questions I asked.They explained the process from start to finish and gave me great confidence in the Company.My contact at the company had an excellent customer centred manner and went the extra mile to ensure a smooth process.I would strongly recommend this company.

Tom Wood

11:13 30 Jul 24

Fantastic company to deal with. Contacted them on the strength of positive reviews left by others and was thankful I did. I dealt with Steve who was extremely helpful and attentive throughout in guiding me to the correct (and not the most expensive) setup to meet our needs. The team had the DNO done, scaffolding up and job fully completed within 2 weeks of ordering despite my location being some 2.5hrs away from their base in Essex. Highly recommended if you’re thinking of going solar like we did. Thanks Nxt Gen!

Kerrie Bolingbroke

20:30 12 Jul 24

Great customer service from pre-sale to after sale. Competitive prices and friendly fitters.

graham young

17:48 17 Jun 24

If you are considering installing a solar panel and battery system you should definitely give this company ago. My faith in getting great service has been restored when I used NXTGEN energy.From the very beginning talking to steve the consultant in my area who was very knowledgeable and offered to quote like for like so I could compare systems and prices fairly. The purchasing on line was easy and straightforward. Once the permissions were received the installation date was agreed and a few days later Nxtgen scaffolding team arrived bright and early and put up the scaffolding ( on a Saturday). They were great and within 2 hours had the complete scaffold erected. On the Monday the electrical team and panel team arrived to install the system, 11 panels, inverter and 2 batteries and water booster. Harrison,Louie,Craig and Aden worked as a team and installed the complete system in one day. Harrison was very helpfuland commissioned the system and explained how the system worked. These teams are a credit to Nxtgen and were true expert tradesmen. I can highly recommend NXTGEN.

Daniel

12:43 23 May 24

Faultless from start to finish. Couldn't have received a better service!I started looking into solar panels and a battery and stumbled across NXTGEN from Facebook. I reached out to them and dealt with Bobby, Bobby is incredibly knowledgeable and a genuinely nice guy. He answered lots of questions, designed multiple options for me, but most of all he listened and offered his professional opinion.Unlike other companies I spoke to Bobby understood why we wanted solar, why we wanted the givenergy battery and our budget to design a system that would work brilliantly.NXTGEN offered a personal service rather than the generic 4 bed hour is 12 or 16 panels etc, they listen and come up with the best solution.After we settled on the set-up we were passed to Kelly. Kelly handled all the admin side and seemed to always want to help. There were no delays on NXTGENs side and managed to get all our certificates etc quicker than expected.Once it was all agreed, deposit paid etc it came onto the installation.NXTGENs scaffolding arm came and put up the scaffolding on Wednesday, lovely chaps all very polite , respectful and friendly.Thursday the solar team turned up and set straight to work fitting the 20 panels, inverter and battery. Yet again, a lovely bunch of guys who were all polite, respectful and friendly. It was a two day install and they completed it on Friday. They showed me the whole system got it all up and running, apps connected etc.I would genuinely recommend them to everyone and have already passed on their details to my work and friends. They offer a great service at a very competitive price.Solar feels like the new double glazing sales where you get pestered and pushed into options. However that is completely not how NXTGEN operate, they are the complete opposite.We opted for 20 panels, 5kwh inverter and a 9.6kwh battery. While the inverter is slightly undersized, we achieve great energy even in cloudy conditions, we only lose out on super sunny days and it wasn't worth for us to get the bigger more expensive inverter.

Brian Ainger

08:43 01 May 24

Choosing a solar installer is a nightmare, we are so glad that we found NXTGEN. From the initial contact with Steve, the quote from Bobby and the installation by Connor and his team this has been seamless and stress free. They supplied quality equipment at a reasonable price, excellent technical knowledge and advice, all supplied and installed on time. As anyone knows its so difficult to choose a company as there are so many pitfalls , we cannot recommend NXTGEN highly enough so pleased we chose you.

Marcin Gajdowski

21:36 08 Apr 24

I am very happy with the solar panels and battery system. Excellent customer services, Instalation. Highly recommend

Martin Yeung

11:14 31 Mar 24

Fantastic experience from start to finish ! Bobby was extremely helpful and always available to answer any questionsThe guys that came to fit were polite and tidied up after themselves, we couldn't have asked for more.From start to finish it was done within a week... so no hanging about like waiting weeks or months and getting stressed.. so all in all, im very happy to have chosen NXT GEN

Martin Pattinson

15:09 26 Mar 24

We initially used NxtGen for our consultation and this went really well. NxtGen then subcontracted to Cozy Energy, which again was fine. The installation went well. It was then that things started to go awry. Cozy failed to supply us with a guarantee, MPAN or MCS certificate. Over a period of approximately six months, we were promised that "this was being dealt with", or "someone would get back to us", but nothing was resolved. It was then that we re contacted NxtGen and they could not have been more helpful. Whilst it did take a while, all of the issues have been resolved and Kelly at NxtGen could not have been more helpful. I would thoroughly recommend NxtGen.

Luke Brassington

11:27 26 Mar 24

Really happy to give the NxtGen team a 5-star review.Stuart on the sales team was fantastic in the build up, Kelly in the office was always there to support and the team who did the install were fantastic (and even interacted with my very interested children)Very happy with the whole process

Rob Jones

07:59 14 Mar 24

After some initial hiccups, really pleased with the service from nxtgen, specially Kelly who smoothed everything out

Malcolm Tait

10:51 08 Nov 23

Very good customer service all the way and they provide a great all round solar installation provision. Glad we used them from start to finish and after care👍.

Silnicorp Web Design

15:56 17 Oct 23

Excellent price and service. Would recommend for sure.

frank eden

08:24 02 Oct 23

If your in the market for a Solar installation then I can really highly recommend Nxtgen.We researched the technology and got several quotes from other companies most of which were located much closer to us.Nxtgen came out on top on price , specification and delivery.Once we made the decision to proceed the whole process took less than a week from placing the order to complete installation.The scaffold was erected at the front and back of our house on the Wednesday,on the Thursday the installation team arrived at 8.30 sharp , having driven from Essex to Oxfordshire, (which is about a 3 hour drive) and after a quick cup of tea the 3 chaps got straight to work, by the end of the day the whole system was in place and commissioned and up and running. To install 6 panels on front roof plus 6 panels on the back roof CW birdguard with the inverter and battery in the loft,They tidied up and left around 7 in the evening with another 3 HR drive in front of them I have to say they did a fantastic job , I take my hat off to them, they are a credit to Nxtgen.Darren and Kelley from the Sales and admin team at Nxtgen are very helpful and accomodating and made the whole process very easy with prompt responses to any queries we have had along the way,although it's early days and the system only 2 days old the savings are already racking up.Well pleased , I'd post 6 stars if I could, well done Nxtgen

Ash V

09:13 14 Jul 23

A wonderfully efficient installation with a genuine pre-quote discussion of my needs prior to offering advice on the best solution to meet them. Very happy with the service.

Matt Alexander

10:37 15 Jun 23

I chose NxtGen to install our solar and battery system having received 12 quotes from various companies and couldn’t be happier with either the service or the resulting system.I work in the renewables industry and so came to my own project with a reasonable amount of knowledge, not that I made that clear to any of the installers who called me back.I had spoken with 7 installers by the time Stuart at NxtGen called me, and it was immediately obvious that I was speaking to someone knowledgeable, honest and who was genuinely interested in designing a system specific to my own needs and preferences.Having reviewed all 12 quotes, NxtGen was jumped out above all others based on knowledge, helpfulness, quality of the kit being offered and even price. I wouldn’t have picked a quote based purely on price, but the fact NxtGen was also the most competitive of the 12 I had received meant a great deal.I was kept informed throughout the whole process, Stuart responding quickly and usefully to all my email queries. Once contracts had been signed, Kelly picked up the baton and gave me regular updates on our DNO notification, all the way through to the installation.With DNO approval in hand, we waited just 10 days for the scaffolding to be put up, which was done within a couple of hours and to a very high standard. Plenty of care was taken to protect our new patio, and I was left confident in a job well done.Installation happened just a few days later, and again, it couldn’t have gone any smoother. The 3 installers were all helpful, knowledgeable, friendly and keen to do a good job. The work has been completed to a very high standard, with all wiring very neatly finished and the panels tightly aligned to the exact centre of our roof. The inverter and batteries were also installed incredibly neatly, with all cables hidden. The installers did a great job tidying up on the day and the left us with nothing other than a very positive experience.I was genuinely hopeful that the brilliant first impression I got when I spoke with Stuart would be reflected throughout the entire install, and so I’m beyond delighted that proved to very much be the case.Stuart, Kelly, the scaffolders and the installers should take a great deal of pride in being part of such an excellent team.Thank you to the whole team, I couldn’t be happier and wouldn’t hesitate to recommend NxtGen.

Jill Harrison

18:09 08 May 23

We had Stuart as a project manager who was super. We had solar panels and a house battery fitted and they are excellent. The process was quick and professional and Stuart was super responsive to any questions or emails I sent. The electricians were also excellent. Thank you

Alastair Aston

12:26 24 Apr 23

Great experience on a 7KW solar installation in Hampshire. I sought quotes from many installers beforehand and this was one of the most reasonable. (theres a lot of opportunists out there who'll happily charge a few K more!) Really good decision - Sean managed the whole process end to end, great communication & a quality job that looks great and delivers ample power. Much recommended to anyone taking their first step on the Solar journey.

Joe Fletcher

17:36 04 Apr 23

Like most people I sat other fence for aged, I only wish I had jumped months ago. NXT GEN were by far te out competitive qoute that fulfilled my requirements.Sean arranged installation quickly without any hassle or pressure, the installation was done in one day by a very knowledgeable skilled team who just got on with installing the system.Totally happy with how it's been so far as it's only been 6 days sonce installation yet I've already seen substantial savings on electricity costs.My advice would be just give NXT GEN a call when seeking quotes.

Ronald Wagg

15:58 30 Mar 23

With the energy crisis starting to bite (autumn 2022). We did some research on the various options available we decided that we wanted to install solar panels to ease our energy bills. We obtained three quotes. Nxtgenenergy ticked all of the boxes as far as we were concerned and did happen to be the cheapest. We were helped all the way from quotation to the final installation by Stuart and Sean and at no time did we feel under any pressure. As the system was only installed two days ago we have yet to discover the full potential of the system, but we are encouraged by the performance seen so far. I will be honest and say that my prime concern is to save money, I am sure that my installation will not save the planet. From the projections given to me by Stuart I may be able to achieve a return on my investment of up to 10% per year compared to the small returns I could get if I kept my money invested elsewhere.I look forward to monitoring the system performance over the coming months / years.

Derek Southgate

20:26 23 Jan 23

Really positive experience with Nxtgen. In danger of becoming a solar power evangelist. We needed our roof replaced as well and they handled everything. New roof is first class and I can't stop looking at the app to see how much we are generating. Sean made the system selection clear. Already considering another battery!

Victor Simonis

15:06 05 Sep 22

I dealt with Sean at NXTGen over a six month period due to a complicated installation. I only have praise for Sean who kept to his word throughout the entire job which is now running satisfactorily. I recommend this company amidst the many that are in the same business knowing you will be supported through the planning and installation stages.

Clive West

13:00 24 Aug 22

In looking to install solar and battery this year, Nxtgen were by far the most responsive and helpful company. They had a lot of options compared to other companies, which is good but worth swatting up before so you know whats, what. Ended up with a good sized system, inc battery storage, installed quickly at a good price that so far is working well. This is impressive as demand is so high for this at present, some companies wait lists are months and months!

Geoff Doggett

14:19 25 Jul 22

I had a solar installation planned and installed in March 2022. The quotation was accurate and understandable and so I went ahead. The installers were quick and did a good job including the electrical work and inverter/battery installation. The system has been working well according to the app I have. I wholeheaartedly reccommend Next Generation - they are experienced and their customer care is excellent. Good to know I am in safe hands in the future!

Rick Exton

10:23 25 Jul 22

Great system installed and working perfectly as expected. System design was changed at my request numerous times effortlessly. On day of install engineer suggested better location (loft) for inverter and battery pack meaning no unsightly cables were seen. Great customer service throughout. Getting MCS certification was a bit slow but not the fault of the company. I would definately recommend. Great company and top spec system at a good price.

Dawn Morton

09:17 22 Jul 22

From start to finish this company's professional standards were excellent. Once the acquisition of the materials had been confirmed, the installation and customer service was fantastic and would highly recommend.

Do I Need Planning Permission to Install Solar Panels?

When You Don’t Need Planning Permission

When You Might Need Planning Permission

How NXTGEN Energy Can Help

Conclusion

Ready to take the next step towards a greener future with solar energy?

FAQs: Do I Need Planning Permission to Install Solar Panels?

Have more questions about planning permission for solar panels? Reach out to us to make your switch to solar energy smooth and efficient! ☀️🔋

You may also be interested in…

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