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Opportunities Beyond Solar
Engagement with local groups
Botley West Solar Farm is committed to establishing an environmental and longstanding legacy across the area. We are committed to working with the community to inform what a package of community benefits could look like.
During and since the last phase of consultation, the project team has been in discussion with a number of local groups to understand how best the project can benefit the local community. We have engaged with:
Local Agricultural Groups
– allocating areas of the site for community arable farming and community allotments.
Local Farmers
– understanding the opportunities for sheep to graze the land.
Cherwell Collective
– an organisation looking to empower those who may struggle to live sustainably by providing locally grown food to communities.
Cutteslowe Community Larder
– seeking to provide food to the community at low or no cost to combat food poverty and reduce food waste.
On-site benefits
We are proposing to deliver benefits to local communities through the design of the project, such as by increasing connectivity through new footpaths and providing areas for community food production.
We are exploring various on-site benefits that Botley West could deliver to local communities.
Blenheim Estate
becoming the environmental steward for the site to maintain the legacy of the area and ensure that environmental benefits are delivered. The Estate has a well-established track record of delivering green projects and their own Green Report reflects the same visions as the project. The findings from the Estate’s monitoring data will ensure the accountability of any environmental commitments.
Biodiversity Net Gain
- aiming to create a standard-setting environmental legacy with a minimum biodiversity net gain of 70%. More details about our biodiversity plans can be found in the Community Consultation Leaflet.
Increasing Recreational Use
– Botley West is exploring improvements to connectivity across the site through working with Blenheim and new proposed footpaths and cycle tracks. More details about our recreational plans can be found in the Community Consultation Leaflet.
Supporting the Local Community
As part of our approach to deliver community benefits, we are committed to supporting the local community by:
Exploring Community Energy Opportunities
The team also appreciate that energy bills are becoming a real burden for many people. Botley West is exploring the creation of a retail energy company to sell part of the energy generated by Botley West to the local community at a discounted rate.
Establishing a Community Benefit Fund
As part of Botley West's objective to establish a legacy across the area through working with the community, we are committed to exploring making a fund available that will be similar in size to Blenheim's bursary fund of £50,000 a year. We are seeking feedback on the potential projects and initiatives that this fund could support.