The public have been invited to have a say on proposals for a huge solar farm in the Norfolk countryside on the outskirts of a tiny hamlet. 

Albanwise Synergy is hoping to build thousands of solar panels in Pettywell, near Reepham, on 173 acres of farmland. 

It has launched a public consultation into the scheme prior to submitting a full planning application to Broadland Council this summer. 

The project would generate energy for the equivalent of around 12,000 homes and last for 40 years - after which time all equipment would be removed from the site. 

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A spokesman for Albanwise Synergy said: "Broadland Council has declared a climate change crisis. To address the threat to national energy security each part of the UK needs to play its role in the rapid transition away from fossil fuels.

"This development is considered temporary and entirely reversible."

Pettywell is a small hamlet near the town of Reepham - home to a combined population of roughly 3,000 people.

The renewables company has invited local people to comment on the draft proposals via its website before the public consultation closes on July 3.