Plans to erect a 20-metre 5G telecommunications mast next to St Luke’s CE Primary School and the Grade II listed St Luke’s Church in Moor Street South/Park Street South, Wolverhampton, have been refused by the City of Wolverhampton Council. The council’s planning team described the proposed mast as “obtrusive and incongruous,” stating it would be detrimental to the street scene due to its size and prominent position.
Despite the rejection, the applicant, Jet Infrastructure, has lodged an appeal with the government’s planning inspectorate, which holds the authority to overturn the council’s decision and permit the development.
In their assessment, council planners expressed concerns that the mast, standing at 20 metres-double the height of surrounding street lighting columns-and broader in width, would dominate the area. They noted it would introduce “visual clutter” and appear as an alien structure within its surroundings, particularly standing out against the adjacent buildings. The mast’s proximity to a primary school and a listed building heightened these sensitivities.
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The planners further explained that while some screening might be offered by a neighbouring industrial unit, this would be insufficient to mitigate the impact on both the street scene and the nearby listed church.
Jet Infrastructure’s application acknowledged that the church and primary school are sensitive sites but emphasised that the area is largely urbanised. A statement accompanying the application argued the mast’s positioning-approximately 75 metres from the church front, set back from the main frontage, and adjacent to an existing industrial building-would reduce its overall prominence in the townscape.
The company also highlighted the site’s transitional nature, lying between employment land to the west and residential neighbourhoods to the east, with the immediate surroundings characterised by industrial and commercial properties such as warehouses and commercial yards.
Jet Infrastructure defended its choice of location, noting that alternative sites, including rooftops, were dismissed due to a combination of planning, technical, and operational challenges. The statement concluded that the selected site represents the “least harmful and most appropriate option” within the search area, meeting network operational requirements while aiming to minimise impact on sensitive nearby buildings through placement within an industrial streetscape, integration with existing built form, and natural screening from nearby development and vegetation.
The appeal now awaits review by the planning inspectorate, with the potential to reverse the council’s decision and allow the 5G mast to be installed in this contested location.