The short answer
The town’s history and conservation detail come from Cheshire East’s 2010 Moody Street appraisal, its appraisal index and Historic England’s risk register; households from the 2021 Census; output from PVGIS runs for Congleton and five other towns; prices and take-up from government statistics. None of it is a survey or a planning decision.
The town and its buildings
| Source | Used for |
|---|---|
| Moody Street, Congleton: conservation area appraisal (2010) Cheshire East Council | The silk mill of 1755 and the town’s growth, weaving garrets, building materials, Moody Street’s designation and the Article 4 proposal. |
| Heritage at Risk: Congleton West Street, Town Centre Historic England | West Street on the Heritage at Risk register: condition, trend and 23 listed buildings. |
| Index of conservation area appraisals Cheshire East Council | Designation dates for West Street (1969) and Moody Street (1980), and the Park Lane area. |
| Conservation areas with Article 4(2) directions Cheshire East Council | Which Cheshire East areas have confirmed Article 4(2) directions. |
| About conservation areas in the borough Cheshire East Council | The borough’s 76 conservation areas. |
| Listed building search Historic England | Whether a building is listed. |
Homes and output
| Source | Used for |
|---|---|
| Ward statistics from the 2021 Census ONS, via the Nomis service | House type, tenure and heating for the 2 Congleton wards and the borough. |
| PVGIS 5.3 grid-connected PV calculator European Commission Joint Research Centre | 56 yearly figures for Congleton (53.163° N, 2.213° W) by direction and pitch, 14% losses, PVGIS-SARAH3 2005-2023; the same settings for five other towns; a terrain check. |
| Small-scale solar cost data for 2025/26 Department for Energy Security and Net Zero | Price per kW paid in 2025/26. |
| Local authority solar sites, 2014 to 2025 Department for Energy Security and Net Zero | Solar sites in Cheshire East year by year. |
Rules and schemes
| Source | Used for |
|---|---|
| Schedule 2, Part 14 of the 2015 permitted development order legislation.gov.uk | Permitted development for solar on homes. |
| The Town and Country Planning amendment, SI 2026/896 legislation.gov.uk | The 2026 changes, including plug-in panels. |
| The Warm Homes: Local Grant in Cheshire East Cheshire East Council | Who can get the Warm Homes: Local Grant in Cheshire East, until when and for what. |
| Applying for the Warm Homes: Local Grant GOV.UK | The national grant application. |
| Switch Together, Cheshire and Warrington Cheshire East Council | The council group-buy and its 2026 dates. |
| Neighbouring council’s page with ECO4 and GBIS dates Cheshire West and Chester Council | ECO4 running only to 31 December 2026 for work under way, and the earlier GBIS date. |
| VAT relief on installed energy-saving materials HM Revenue and Customs | The zero rate and when it ends. |
| Export tariffs: how the SEG works Ofgem | What suppliers must offer for exports. |
| Government factsheet on the Warm Homes Loan Scheme GOV.UK | The Warm Homes Loan Scheme note. |
| Postcode search for your electricity network operator Energy Networks Association | Which company runs your local network. |
| Certified installer search MCS | Checking certification. |
| Look up a company Companies House | Checking a firm’s record. |
Notes on method
- The town comparison. All six towns were run on the same day with identical settings: 1 kWp, south at 35°, 14% losses.
- Terrain. We ran Congleton with and without PVGIS’s terrain horizon; the difference is under one kWh a year.
- Article 4. The 2010 appraisal said a direction would be considered; the council’s list of confirmed directions (reviewed 2018) does not include Congleton. We report both.
- Prices. National and regional figures, never a Congleton quote.
What we left out
The West Street appraisal itself, which we could not retrieve in full; we rely instead on the council index and Historic England for that area. Any statement naming the network operator for Congleton.
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