Plans have been submitted to Mendip District Council for an 18-metre high 5G phone mast to be installed in Street High Street.

A planning application for prior approval of telecommunications development for a street pole with built-in cabinet, three separate cabinets and ancillary works on land at Street High Street has been submitted by the mobile network Three.

The proposed location of the mast is on the wide section of pavement, next to the Mullions No. 51 hotel.

Three say the site has been selected for a number of reasons, including the presence of existing street furniture including streetlights and equipment cabinets, and the setting against open grassland and the proximity to nearby trees, including a tall, mature tree that sits directly opposite the site, which the applicant says should provide some degree of screening.

In the application, Three says that the cell search range for 5G is very limited, with a typical cell radius of 50 metres.

A number of other sites have been looked at by Three and discounted, in Wilfrid Road, further up the High Street, in Hindhayes Lane and Leigh Road.

Using existing mast infrastructure in the village has also been discounted, as Three says it is not capable of hosting additional equipment.

The application said: "Three is in the process of building the UK's fastest 5G network, and has 140Mhz of 5G spectrum, which means our service will be much faster, and shall have the ability to handle more data.

"In making this technology available to customers, Three will need to provide a mix of upgrades, involving existing sites, and the building of new sites.

"New sites will be needed for many reasons, including the higher radio frequencies used for 5G, which do not travel as far as those frequencies currently in use.

"In addition, not all existing sites will have the capacity of being upgraded. The very nature of 5G and the network services it provides means the equipment and antenna are quite different to the previous and existing service requirements.

"In particular, the design of the antenna and the separation required from other items of associated equipment is such that we cannot utilise certain structures that provide an installation for another operator, most notably in a street works or highways environment."

Certain forms of telecommunication development, including mobile telephone masts, are known as "permitted development" and subject to prior approval from the local planning authority, rather than a full planning application.

The prior approval procedure means that before beginning the development the developer must apply to the authority for a determination as to whether the prior approval of the authority will be required as to the siting and appearance of the development.

The local planning authority has 56 days in which to let the mast operators know of its decision on whether prior approval is required for siting and appearance, and to let the operator know of its decision to allow or refuse approval.

If a case is refused, by being classed as permitted development, the applicant can alter the plans in terms of appearance of the mast or where it might be sited, and apply for prior approval again.