Plug-in solar relies on the existing permitted development rights for microgeneration solar PV. That right did not stay still. It was rewritten as the product arrived, and it now singles plug-in solar out by name.
| Case | Limit |
|---|---|
| Surface abutting a highway | 200 mm projection |
| Other surfaces | 400 mm projection |
| Pitched roof | Below the highest part of the roof, 200 mm maximum projection |
| Flat roof | 600 mm above the roof |
| Conservation area or World Heritage Site | Not on a wall fronting a highway |
| Wooden wall, balcony or timber cladding | Not permitted for plug-in solar |
| Listed building or scheduled monument | Planning permission and listed building consent |
The conditions are close but not identical. A pitched roof installation must sit below the ridge with no more than 200 mm projection, a flat roof installation no more than 600 mm above the roof, nothing on a highway-fronting wall in a conservation area or World Heritage Site, and the same prohibition on wooden wall, balcony and timber-clad installation.
A twelve month transitional period runs to 27 August 2027.
For those twelve months an English household may work to either set, old or new, and pick whichever covers what it wants to do. On 28 August 2027 that choice disappears and only the rewritten version is left standing.
Know that you are, and know when that stops being possible. Anyone advising you on a timber installation should be able to tell you which set of rules they are using.
Source: Planning Portal, read 13 September 2026. These are the England rules only. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland each set their own.
Not sure which side of these your home falls on? Send us the postcode and the surface.
Give us a postcode and the surface you have in mind. We will confirm which operator covers you, run the generation figures for your actual location rather than a regional city, and tell you whether the planning rules cover your surface.