Solar panels WILL BE installed on the roof of the iconic King’s College Chapel as residents blast the college

An iconic chapel roof is to be covered with solar panels after a Cambridge college “surrendered to eco-warriors”.

Solar panels will be installed on the roof of the landmark chapel at King’s College in Cambridge after councilors approved a controversial planning application on Tuesday.

Organizations such as Historic England and the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings opposed the plan, while officials’ instructions said it should be rejected.

Local residents were also unimpressed by the plans, saying the college has bowed to climate protests.

But the plans passed unanimously on Tuesday after city councilors claimed it would “send a message” to world leaders, inspiring them to invest in renewable energy plants to combat climate change, the “biggest emergency we face.” , to support.

Work on King’s College Chapel, one of Britain’s most famous buildings, began in the late 15th century

A solar array on the roof of the Guildhall with King’s College Chapel in the background. Panels will also be installed on the roof of the college chapel

A total of 492 solar panels are to be installed on the 300-foot-long lead roof of the listed late Gothic building.

The panels will produce up to 105,000kWh of energy annually – they provide all of the electricity used by the chapel, with the surplus being sold to the National Grid.

Local residents ridiculed the decision as a “virtue signal” – pointing out that it came after Extinction Rebellion protesters caused chaos by blocking city streets and stripping naked at King’s College to protest the university over the “£400m to shame it invested in the fossil fuel industry. .

One said: “They basically capitulated to so-called eco-warriors by agreeing to demolish our most famous building.”

Another previously said: “They wouldn’t put them on the Taj Mahal or the Pantheon.”

Speaking at the Cambridge City Council Planning Committee meeting, Michael Proctor, Provost of King’s College, said: “In the context of the climate emergency, these actions are not only beneficial, they are essential.”

A bird’s eye view of the array of solar panels on the roof of the south aisle of Great St Mary’s Church in central Cambridge

Plans show the planned construction and scaffolding. Residents said college ‘surrendered to so-called eco-warriors’

Extensive repair work is also being carried out on the roof of the chapel. The building is one of the most famous in Cambridge

Historic England had defied the plaques, warning that they would be “terrifying and inharmonious” on the city’s “most beautiful building”.

Cllr Simon Smith, one of seven members who voted in favor of the motion, said: “Climate change is causing catastrophic and irreversible changes on Earth.

“We must not allow ourselves to be sidetracked from our mission by considering insignificant damage to the appearance of this roof.”

The planning officer’s report warned that the proposal “would create a radically different character and appearance than the traditional lead roof”.

It added: “It would visually detract from the architectural character of the roof and skyline and would be inconsistent with the architectural composition of this extraordinary and historically iconic building.”

Historic England had defied the plaques, warning that they would be “startling and discordant” on the city’s “finest building”.

The application was approved with the understanding that a glint and glare assessment will be carried out at the request of Cambridge City Airport.

The airport also rejected the bodies on the grounds that they could affect operations.