Desk Based Assessment at Land Surrounding Wymington Road. Podington, Bedfordshire

A Cultural Heritage Desk-Based Assessment was instructed by ABEI Energy in support of an application for a solar scheme on land at and surrounding Wymington Road, Podington, Rushden, NN10 9FT. The Site presently comprises a series of eight fields, currently under pasture. ABEI Energy have requested an Environmental Screening Opinion from Bedfordshire Borough Planning Authority (23/01111/EIASRC). The site is approximately 94 ha. It is anticipated that the site will produce 49MW of electricity. It is adjacent to a smaller parcel of land, approximately 27.5 ha, upon which is planned a smaller solar array of 25MW. The East Midlands railway line running from Bedford to Kettering splits the land in two, and this Desk-Based Assessment represents the larger of the two areas, to the south-west of the train line An examination of data held by the BBHER suggest that there is a high potential for below ground multi period archaeological deposits of potential regional importance to be present within the Site, particularly those relating to the Bronze Age through to the Romano-British Periods. These were discovered via aerial photography, and, depending on the placement of the solar array, these may obscure remains from view, and obscure any further cropmarks that have yet to be identified, particularly those that may reveal themselves in the coming years due to the changing climate. The geophysical survey highlighted a number of previously unknown potential archaeological anomalies, in addition to those already identified, including potential pit alignments, boundaries, anomalies associated with agricultural activity and animal husbandry. Therefore, it is recommended that further investigation of the site, following discussion with the archaeological advisor to the local planning authority, would be necessary in order to determine the extent of archaeological remains within the site, and any mitigation necessary. This intervention can be undertaken post-determination and secured via an appropriate Planning Condition.