A parish council has expressed dismay after being "left in the dark" about a huge £6 million solar farm plan.

The Shadoxhurst solar farm scheme will see a 50-acre field - equivalent to 20 football pitches - producing power from the sun and is expected to generate £7 million over a 25-year period, according to a council report.

Agreed at a full Ashford Borough Council (ABC) cabinet meeting last week, the £5.94 million project will see a nine megawatt hour facility - producing enough energy for 90 cars to run for an hour - built on a site used for grazing since the council purchased it in 2017.

A planning application is yet to be submitted but the farm, to be built and run by ABC, would feed the National Grid directly if constructed.

But Shadoxhurst Parish Council's David Ledger says the plan was not mentioned to the village’s council ahead of the cabinet debate.

He said: “We are extremely disappointed we have not been approached by ABC at all.

“We were made aware only through a borough member - not in our ward - asking us if we were aware."

At the January parish meeting we therefore raised the issue with our ward members, one ABC and Kent County Council member, who attended and we were simply told it was likely to come forward.

“When we asked when we would be consulted, the reply was that we could make our comments at the planning application stage.

“We thus have no knowledge about the scale, size, land take, impact on residents during construction.

“We would like to see ABC operate in a more transparent way with regards to this matter and planning applications in general.”

Cllr Graham Galpin, portfolio holder for corporate property, says the authority will be carrying out a "comprehensive local consultation".

He said: “At Ashford Borough Council we are proactively seeking ways in which we can secure funding in order to continue providing the services our residents need.

“We also feel it is our duty to take the lead on improving air quality by producing electricity through greener, more sustainable means.

“Of course, we will be carrying out a comprehensive local consultation as part of the planning process and, should the project come to fruition I am confident that this project will enable us to secure income in a way that actually has a positive effect on our borough’s carbon footprint.”

In response to the criticism from Shadoxhurst Parish Council, an ABC spokeswoman says the project is “in the very early stages”.

She said: “The project was taken to cabinet as an aspiration to deliver this type of project and to initially seek its approval.

“Now we have that approval the project can be taken further.

“This will fully involve Shadoxhurst parish council as we consult with them along with the local community.

“The parish council will be able to have an influence on the design of the plan going forward.”

In a report prepared for last week’s cabinet meeting, it said: “The type of installation will be rows of frames each holding several panels.

“Each frame will have a single stanchion and foundation pile to secure.

“This means there is minimal damage to the ecology of the field and grazing can continue after the installation.

“There is not a substantial financial barrier to changing the use of the field sometime in the future."