A 5G phone mast will not be allowed to be built on a 176-year-old Grade II-listed church in West Yorkshire due to concerns it could harm its appearance.
The spire at St Mary’s The Virgin in Wyke, Bradford, already has antennae attached and Cellnex UK had applied for permission to upgrade the base station.
But Bradford Council has rejected the application, saying it would “detract from the church’s architectural form”.
The building, dating back to the 1840s, was a “landmark”, the council said.
Although Cellnex’s planning application said 5G coverage in the area was “essential” and that any visual effect caused by a new mast would be outweighed by the benefits of 5G, Bradford Council’s conservation officer Jon Ackroyd disagreed, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
Bradford: Wyke 5G phone mast plan refused for listed church https://t.co/uCjYgX6zu8
— BBC Yorkshire (@BBCLookNorth) May 5, 2022