Planning application · Battery storage · Swindon

B and Q Distribution Centre Highworth Road

OperationalApplication S/18/0856Submitted 29 June 2018Granted 21 August 2018

In the evidence packnearest refused scheme •• kmShown in the pack

The application

Application number: S/18/0856
Planning authority: Swindon
County or area: Wiltshire
Nation: England
Technology: Battery storage (Stand-alone Storage)
Status: Operational
Operator or applicant: Kingfisher / Solar Century
Location: Unit 1, B and Q Distribution Centre, Milne Way, Swindon, Wiltshire, SN3 4AJ
First operating: 2018

Timeline

29 June 2018 Planning application submitted
21 August 2018 Planning permission granted
1 September 2018 Construction started
1 October 2018 Operational

Preview of the planning evidence pack for this site

The pack for this site lists 5 comparable battery incidents in the United Kingdom, grid-scale only, nearest first. The nearest is EIR-0058, Fire in two battery containers at Cirencester Hybrid Solar Farm, Gloucestershire, 18 km from this site.

Reference	Year	Incident	From the site	Severity
EIR-0058	2025	Fire in two battery containers at Cirencester Hybrid Solar Farm, Gloucestershire	18 km	Significant
EIR-0109	2025	Fire in single battery unit at Thurrock BESS under construction	150 km	Significant
EIR-0249	2026	Smoke and fire incident at Battery Box, Pinhoe Road, Exeter	154 km	Significant
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The first 3 rows as the pack shows them. The other 2 are in the pack, each with its distance, sources and the fire service guidance it bears on.

The map

Summary for this site

This part of the pack is written for this site and opens with the pack. This part of the pack is written for this site and opens with the pack. This part of the pack is written for this site and opens with the pack.

Paragraphs for the planning statement

In the full pack

What the planning evidence pack adds for this application

The pack is made for B and Q Distribution Centre Highworth Road from the register and the government planning database: every comparable incident, nearest first, with its sources; the schemes refused, withdrawn or taken to appeal within 40 km, your council first; and the fire service guidance each incident bears on. One fixed, dated file, as a PDF, a web page and a Word document.

Incidents within 50 km: •••
Nearest recorded incident: ••••••
UK grid-scale incidents, with NFCC notes: ••••
Schemes refused within 40 km: •••
Nearest refused scheme: ••••••••••••
Appeals within 40 km: •••
Decisions in Swindon: ••••••••
Sites of a similar size, worldwide: ••••
NFCC guidance points: ••••••••
Sources and citations: ••••••••••

Launch price: £145 until 31 October (normally £295). By email in minutes. The order form arrives filled in from this application.

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Want to see a pack first? Download a sample pack (PDF). It is an example pack for a 50 MW battery project in Lincolnshire, with every section and the first rows of each table.

The site's own page has its map, the energy sites around it and anyone can follow it for changes. Every planning application. Every application in Swindon.

Data updated 3 August 2026 from the Renewable Energy Planning Database (DESNZ), published quarterly.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0 (Renewable Energy Planning Database, Department for Energy Security and Net Zero). The dataset. The register adds only the incidents and the counts.