Originally, a large car park site located near Heathrow Airport, with neighbouring farm-land and a cemetery. Planning permission was required to develop the site into storage units, with minimal working light – while still providing enough light to be safe and secure for employees and visitors, and to create a pleasant and welcoming place to work and visit.
We were approached by planning consultant BERRYS to provide a site survey and develop a lighting strategy that would be sympathetic to this balance, and to meet the need for low light pollution impact on the local environment. We carried out a photographic site survey, light level LUX readings, and produced a lighting scheme with isolux contour maps which illustrated where we would plan to limit the impact of light pollution from the proposed artificial light. All of our plans followed reduction of obtrusive light guidelines, and limited light spill into the adjacent biodiverse habitats in the cemetery and farmland.
Planning permission was granted, with our lighting scheme included.
This 12 house development is located within a rural and very quiet E1/E2 environmental zone. This was treated as an effective dark sky area of the Surrey countryside. This former chicken farm site is surrounded by a protected ancient woodland with a roosting bat population, therefore any scheme needed to be fully lighting compliant before being able to discharge the planning condition.
SKR were brought into the project by Ecology Consultants and bat report experts Ecology-by-Design to work with the client, developer and planning consultant to create a sensitive lighting scheme to limit the impact of light pollution from artificial light on nature conservation to satisfy the planning conditions.
SKR carried out a detailed day and night lighting survey of the existing site, which included analysis of the existing agricultural buildings and current lighting, measuring light levels, light spill and all current light pollution on the site and taking note of problematic light pollution from some neighbouring properties for the record.
We provided the client with a full lighting strategy that would be sensitive to the surrounding wildlife and roosting bats, that included an Isolux contour map showing light spillage down to 1LUX, a schedule of lighting equipment and lighting control guidance. This covered all the house plots, garages, gardens, pathways, and parking.
The new scheme would provide a safe, welcoming feeling for the future new residents, while still being a safe dark zone for bats, all other wildlife and enhance the biodiversity.
This was the testimonial from our client David Jacobs, Director at St John Homes (Thames Valley) Ltd
“We were introduced to Neil Skinner at SKR Lighting Design through recommendation. The Local Planning Authority requested an external lighting survey to assess the impacts of our residential development proposal on a former chicken farm site in a sensitive landscape and ecological setting (inclusive of ancient woodland on part of the site boundaries). Neil undertook a thorough review of the site measuring the current external lighting impacts and designed a sensitive external lighting scheme in conjunction with our appointed ecologists Ecology by Design for our proposed scheme. The follow up report resulted in the LPA being satisfied with the proposals and the external lighting scheme.
Neil was a pleasure to work with and successfully addressed the issues raised in a prompt and thorough manner. I would highly recommend SKR for this skillset which we are now seeing as a more common requirement on our future projects.”
This Five Star historic manor hotel, located in the Hampshire countryside, is an elegant country house rich in history and set in 35 acres of gardens. The owners were carrying out a major refurbishment of the entire site, and required a detailed external lighting project to support their application for planning permission.
There were many ecological elements to consider. SKR Lighting Design worked closely with ecologist consultancy Tyler Grange, who presented a bat report; and with landscape architects Bramhill Design, lead architects Krause, and project managersRPA, to put together a sensitive exterior lighting design scheme. The final plans take measures to avoid disturbance to wildlife and biodiversity, aquatic life and commuting and foraging bats.
This was a major piece of work for the owners, and the planning application had to be right for them, for the local area, and for the local wildlife. Our expertise in lighting ensured that the planning application was approved, and the new lighting schemes will enhance and elevate these ambitious renovations, without impacting negatively on the local environment in any way.
The prestigious UK Atomic Energy Authority visitor centre in Oxford: a UK Government scientific research facility, which required support from us for the lighting elements of a major planning application.
The site sits on the edge of a brightly illuminated area, however there are also significant rural and dark sky areas to the east and west of the site, as well as a recently surveyed area of trees with an active bat population. Isolux contour maps were included within the lighting report, with special consideration for where equipment would be placed throughout the site, and what specific equipment would be used.
There is plenty of activity and traffic in and around the site, with car parks, security checks, pedestrian access, and cycle routes all requiring illumination. Links to the railway station and congregation zones also had to be factored in. Each area required a considered lighting approach, whilst limiting the impact of artificial light spillage and pollution.
Working in close collaboration with architects Ridge and landscape architects LDA, we produced a lighting design concept and full detailed lighting design package for the exterior entrance and landscapes – plus a lighting strategy planning document, which formed part of the overall planning application which was coordinated by Ridge.
We’re proud to have supported this complex planning application – which was approved.
A village tennis club with three courts needed to add a floodlighting scheme for club tournaments, and it needed to meet Lawn Tennis Association requirements. They had previously had multiple planning applications refused due to the perceived light pollution the proposal would create.
At SKR, we reviewed the project to find a solution. The club is located on the edge of a rural village, and it needed a precise scheme approach for its lighting plan to limit the light spill, as there were neighbours who lived very close to the courts who would be affected.
The final solution we came up with was to light two out of three courts at any one time, and to use lower columns and better floodlighting with exact light cut-off requirements.
With these measures confirmed, we were able to demonstrate a much lower perceived light pollution impact on local wildlife, and neighbours as well – and with this in place, the scheme was passed by the local authority.
Located within a suburban area of the town of Liversedge, this project was within a E3 Environmental Zone, of medium district brightness. This two-dwelling development required a lighting design strategy before occupation. The site was previously residential, with two dwellings, prior to client demolition.
We were brought on board by the developer, to work alongside ecologist VW Verity Webster, to survey the existing site and plan an exterior lighting strategy. The existing site had a small bungalow with a mixture of old and non-compliant floodlighting which was to be removed to make the site better.
Bat and bird boxes were to be installed on the exterior facades of the new buildings, from which lighting restrictions were in place so not to disturb the nocturnal wildlife.
We provided the client with a full lighting strategy that would be sensitive to the surrounding wildlife, whilst providing safe and functional illumination for the residents and visitors of the new dwellings. This included an Isolux contour map showing light spillage down to 1LUX, a schedule of lighting equipment, and control guidance.
The new scheme would provide a safe, welcoming environment for the premises – this satisfied the condition for lighting for biodiversity within the original planning consent.