BCP Council say they were unable to prevent an 18metre 5G phone mast which has been put up on a grass verge at Canford Heath, Poole.

Vicky Spence told a full council meeting on Tuesday evening that residents in Culliford Crescent knew nothing about the mast until it was too late. She claimed neighbours to the site had not been notified by the council, although council records show letters were sent out.

“Residents were not informed and now the area has been blighted by an 18-metre mast just yards from people’s homes,” she said, complaining that a council weblink for the application went to a blank page and a telephone number for residents to ring was an old Poole Borough Council number.

Read more: 5G mast 'put up without planning permission'

Deputy council leader Cllr Philip Broadhead said he would investigate what had happened but believed that the property advertising had taken place and said that the ward councillor, Sandra Moore, had responded to the proposal.

Cllr Broadhead said that the application, from CK Hutchison Networks, came under the category of ‘prior approval’ for permitted development where the council had to agree the application for the mast and three cabinets as it complied with the rules.

A planning report on the application says that letters were sent to neighbouring properties and a public notice put up at the site on June 8th with an expiry date of July 2nd.

In her letter Cllr Moore suggested that BCP Children’s Services should be consulted because the mast is near a children’s centre, attached to an NHS clinic.

“ I am unhappy about this proposal due to its proximity to housing and would point out there is already a huge mast sited on a grass verge in Culliford Crescent near the pedestrian crossing and junction with the Canford Heath Road. Would it not be possible for this to go there as it is slightly further away from people’s houses, although near to Ad Astra Infant School. In addition, there is already a proposal for one of these masts to go on a site at nearby Vantage Way. How many of these things are being proposed for Canford Heath? Have you considered sites at the Nuffield Industrial Estate which is further away from houses,” said Cllr Moore in her comments.

The same meeting heard of concerns about the growth of new 5G masts across the BCP area from Dr David Young. He asked the council to monitor the masts to ensure they complied with EU standards for non-ionizing radiation.