Is there enough sun around Horsham to make this work?

Modelled at 935 kWh per kWp a year for a shallow-pitched roof at this latitude, which puts a 500 kWp array at roughly 468,000 kWh a year before shading. That array needs about 1,485 sqm of clear roof once ridge vents and walkways are allowed for. Source: EU PVGIS v5.2, SARAH3, 10 degree pitch, 14 percent system loss.

Do we need planning permission in Horsham?

In most cases no, because panels on the roof of an agricultural building usually sit within permitted development. The exceptions are listed buildings, conservation areas, protected landscapes and arrays that stand proud of the roof. We check with Horsham either way.

Has anyone near RH12 already done this?

The planning database records 2 ground mounted and 3 roof mounted solar schemes in this postcode district. That matters less as proof it works and more as evidence of how the local network has treated export applications. Roof arrays under a megawatt often never appear in the database, so the real figure is higher. Source: Renewable Energy Planning Database, Q1 2026.

Solar panels for farms in Horsham

Farm buildings around Horsham carry broad, shallow roofs that were put up for storage and stock, not for generation. Each survey records the sheet type and condition, the usable area once rooflights and vents come out, and whether the supply is single or three phase.

935 kWh per kWp a year at this latitude, so a 500 kWp array models at about 468,000 kWh. Source: EU PVGIS v5.2, SARAH3, 10 degree pitch, 14 percent system loss.

Book a roof survey in Horsham

Drawing Horsham unit

Roof 96 x 62 m

Array 500 kWp

Yield 468,000 kWh/yr

Scale 1:500 / Rev A / RH12

Illustrative layout for a unit of this size. Your own figures come from the roof survey.

Horsham / Sussex

South East farmland with solar arrays on farm buildings — Industrial stock of the kind we survey across South East.

Farm building solar PV across Sussex

What a farm roof near Horsham generates

Modelled irradiation at this latitude is 1201 kWh per square metre a year in the plane of a shallow-pitched roof, which works out at 935 kWh for every kWp installed (EU PVGIS v5.2, SARAH3, 10 degree pitch, 14 percent system loss). That is around 6 percent above the mean across the areas we cover, which is as strong as UK farm rooftop gets outside the south coast.

The planning record lists 2 ground mounted solar schemes in this postcode district, which is a fair guide to how the local network has treated field arrays. The typical consented scheme in this district is about 0.5 MW. Source: Renewable Energy Planning Database, Q1 2026.

3 roof mounted schemes are on record nearby. Roof arrays under a megawatt frequently never reach that database at all, so the real number of farm roofs generating around Horsham is higher than the record shows.

We survey holdings across the RH postcode area, starting from RH12.

Horsham is the planning authority for most holdings here, and it is the authority that decides whether an array on an agricultural building falls inside permitted development.

FIG. 1 What a Horsham roof makes, month by month

Jun produces 5.7 times what Dec does on the same roof. A 500 kWp array here models at about 468,000 kWh across the year, but it arrives unevenly, which is why we size against your summer daytime load and then look at whether storage is worth adding for the shoulder months.

Monthly figures as a table

Month	kWh per kWp	500 kWp array
Jan	26	13,000
Feb	40	20,000
Mar	76	38,000
Apr	109	54,500
May	124	62,000
Jun	130	65,000
Jul	130	65,000
Aug	109	54,500
Sep	85	42,500
Oct	53	26,500
Nov	31	15,500
Dec	23	11,500

Source: EU PVGIS v5.2

FIG. 2 Horsham against the rest of Sussex

Lewes1028
Eastbourne1017
Brighton1015
Bognor Regis1000
Worthing999
Hastings989
Haywards Heath957
Horsham935
Crawley915

Horsham ranks 9 of 10 towns we cover in Sussex on modelled yield, against a national mean of 886 kWh per kWp. The county runs from 915 to 1028, a spread of 113 kWh per kWp. On a 500 kWp array that is about 56,500 kWh a year between the strongest and weakest town in the county.

Bars are zero based, so length is proportional to the figure. Where a county is flat, that is the finding: location is not the lever, consumption is. Source: EU PVGIS v5.2, modelled per town

Solar already consented near RH12

From the government's Renewable Energy Planning Database, Q1 2026. These are the schemes on record in this postcode district, which is a fair guide to how the local network has been treating export applications.

Scheme	Operator	Capacity	Mounting	Status
St Peters Hall	Peter Williams Locke King House	1.7 MW	Roof	Operational
Broadlands Business Campus, Langhurst Wood Road - Solar Panels Phase 3	Schroder Corporate Services Limited	0.48 MW	Ground	Awaiting Construction
Broadlands Business Campus, Langhurst Wood Road - Solar Panels Phase 2	Schroder Corporate Services Limited	n/a	Ground	Awaiting Construction
Skylark House, St Marks Lane - Solar Panels	Skylark House Care Home Care UK	0.15 MW	Roof	Awaiting Construction
Sainsburys Supermarket, Worthing Road - Solar Panels	Sainsburys Supermarkets Limited	0.65 MW	Roof	Application Submitted

Book the survey

Send us the postcode

Tell us where the unit is and roughly how big the roof is. We come back with what it can carry, what it would generate against your consumption, and the three ways to pay for it.

Lenzie Consulting Ltd arranges the survey and passes your details to our MCS-certified installation partner so they can quote.

Questions about solar in Horsham

Is there enough sun around Horsham to make this work?: Modelled at 935 kWh per kWp a year for a shallow-pitched roof at this latitude, which puts a 500 kWp array at roughly 468,000 kWh a year before shading. That array needs about 1,485 sqm of clear roof once ridge vents and walkways are allowed for. Source: EU PVGIS v5.2, SARAH3, 10 degree pitch, 14 percent system loss.
Do we need planning permission in Horsham?: In most cases no, because panels on the roof of an agricultural building usually sit within permitted development. The exceptions are listed buildings, conservation areas, protected landscapes and arrays that stand proud of the roof. We check with Horsham either way.
Has anyone near RH12 already done this?: The planning database records 2 ground mounted and 3 roof mounted solar schemes in this postcode district. That matters less as proof it works and more as evidence of how the local network has treated export applications. Roof arrays under a megawatt often never appear in the database, so the real figure is higher. Source: Renewable Energy Planning Database, Q1 2026.

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