Huge telephone masts are to be built on two sites in Coventry

Giant telephone poles are to be built in Coventry despite the council refusing the plans. The 20-metre poles plus antennas and cabinets received the go-ahead from a government inspector last week.

They will walk in the car park of a locally listed pub in Tile Hill and on a grass verge next to houses in Finham. The schemes were applied by different companies.

Both were refused permission in separate rulings by the council last year. Reports from council officers said the masts would harm the amenity of neighbors – meaning the enjoyment of an area – and would be out of keeping with the surroundings.

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But a planning inspector ruled on Tuesday (May 21) that the masts could be built, following appeals from the companies. In both decisions, he found the structures would cause “moderate injury” to the character and appearance of the areas.

The Tile Hill mast would also “erode” the setting of the Newlands pub, a local landmark, he added. But he said the principle of developing both areas had already been demonstrated.

The companies also showed there were no other “less harmful” locations where the masts could go, he added. He found that the harm would be outweighed by the need for the mast, given the lack of other places he could go.

Its reports also added that the search area for 5G cells is “constrained” and that this is “often the case” for these types of plans. It covers a “densely populated residential area” with many two-story buildings, he said.

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