A planning application (20/03255/FUL) for the erection of a 23.4m monopole at Larkhall Sports Club was permitted by Planning Committee on 10th February.

Councillors acknowledged the visual impact to the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and Green Belt, however a slimmed down monopole design was felt to be an improvement and less visually invasive. Councillors agreed that visual harm would be outweighed by public benefits such as improved connectivity and the removal of the temporary mast on Colliers Lane.

The applicant emphasised that the monopole would be used to provide 2G, 3G, and 4G services, although it would be capable of upgrades to 5G provision in future.

You can read BPT’s coverage of the meeting on our Twitter page.

We commented on the application, and took the view that monopole design is slimmer and less fussy, and would be less visually harmful than the previous design refused at Planning Committee in December 2020 (19/05534/FUL)

However, we retained concerns regarding continued absence of a design and landscape strategy or operations plan regarding ongoing upgrades within and around Bath, despite increasing numbers of similar applications being submitted within and around Bath.

We appreciate the necessity for the upgrade of the existing provision of access to 5G networks in rural areas that are often not as well serviced as our urban centres.

You can read our initial comment here.

You can read our revised comment here.