Mobile masts near your home: planning rules

• Mast and antenna. A mast is the tower or pole. The government's Code of Practice for wireless network development points out that the mast itself plays no part in sending radio waves: it holds the antennas up at height. In England and Wales, height limits for ground masts leave out the antenna. Scotland counts more of the structure (see Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland below).
• Code operator. A company, such as a mobile network, with powers under the Electronic Communications Code. The mast permitted development rights in England apply to work by or for a code operator.
• Local planning authority. The body that decides planning matters for your area. GOV.UK says you contact it through your local council.

England's Code of Practice for Wireless Network Development, published in March 2022, says three kinds of permission cover wireless equipment:

For a brand-new ground mast within the height limits below, the usual route is prior approval. That's the process most residents meet when a mast is proposed near them.

The limits sit in Part 16 of the General Permitted Development Order 2015 for England. They were raised by an amendment that came into force on 4 April 2022. The government said taller masts would mean fewer new ones and more site sharing.

Anything taller, or any new mast in an SSSI, needs a full planning application. The government's explanatory memorandum for the 2022 change also said it would support the Shared Rural Network, the rural 4G programme run with the mobile networks.

Masts on buildings

On unprotected land, a mast on a building that rises no more than 6 metres above the roof (counting antennas and supporting kit) needs no prior approval. On buildings taller than 15 metres, a taller rooftop mast can go up with prior approval, up to 8 metres above the roof (10 metres on buildings of 30 metres or more). The equipment itself is also capped at 10 metres tall (15 metres on buildings of 30 metres or more). Anything beyond those limits, including a mast more than 6 metres above the roof of a building of 15 metres or less, needs a full planning application.

On protected land, a mast on a building under 15 metres tall isn't permitted development if it would be within 20 metres of a highway, unless it simply replaces one in the same spot at no greater size. In an SSSI, masts, antennas and anything supporting an antenna aren't permitted development at all, apart from small antennas on homes within strict limits and emergency work that doesn't involve a mast.

Upgrades to existing masts

On unprotected land, replacing a ground mast needs prior approval only in set cases, such as a replacement that is taller than the old mast and over 25 metres, or much wider. On a highway the trigger is lower: a replacement that is taller than the old mast and over 20 metres (excluding antennas), or much wider, needs prior approval. Even on protected land, a replacement no taller than the old mast or 20 metres (whichever is taller), excluding antennas, needs no prior approval. So a like-for-like upgrade may go ahead without an application you could comment on. Work that skips prior approval still comes with a condition: its siting and appearance must keep the visual impact on the surrounding area to a minimum, so far as practicable.

Temporary masts and removal

In an emergency, an operator can use land for up to 18 months for movable equipment that replaces kit that has stopped working, without the usual prior approval steps. It must give the council written notice as soon as possible after the emergency begins (and tell Natural England too if the land is in an SSSI). Emergency equipment must be removed when the need for it ends, or after 18 months at most. Other equipment put up under these rights must be removed as soon as reasonably practicable once it's no longer needed for communications. In both cases the land must be restored.

The law doesn't promise every neighbour a letter. Before a new ground mast goes up under prior approval in England:

1. The landowner is told. The operator must notify the owner of the land (and any agricultural tenant). That notice must say anyone can make written comments on siting and appearance to the council, give a deadline at least 14 days from the notice, and say the application can be inspected at the council's offices during usual office hours.
2. The council publicises it. It must either put up a site notice on or near the land for at least 21 days, or send notice to adjoining owners or occupiers. Proposals that depart from the local plan or affect a public right of way need a site notice plus a local advertisement, and sites of 1 hectare or more also need a local advertisement. Public holidays don't count towards the 21 days.
3. The council takes comments into account when it decides.

Because the council can use a site notice instead of letters, you may only find out from a notice near the site. If you see survey work nearby, ask your council's planning department whether an application has come in.

Consultation before the application

The Code of Practice says operators may consult residents before they apply, for example for a new site or where there's strong local interest, agreed with the council case by case. That can mean letters to residents and parish or town councils, a site notice, briefings or leaflets. It isn't guaranteed, so no leaflet doesn't mean nothing is planned. The Code also says councils should make sure the public can see information about proposals in their area.

In a prior approval case, the council looks only at siting and appearance. It isn't deciding whether a mast should exist in principle. National policy also shapes how it judges those two points. England's National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) was replaced on 17 August 2026, and its communications policies are now in Chapter 9 (policies CO1 and CO2). They say:

• councils should give substantial weight to the benefits of keeping or improving network coverage, capacity, reliability and resilience;
• proposals should use existing masts, buildings and structures, unless there's no reasonable chance to do so;
• masts should be sited and designed to keep their visual impact to a minimum, especially on a new site;
• councils should not require minimum distances between telecoms equipment and other development, try to prevent competition between operators, question the need for the network, or use health standards different from the international (ICNIRP) guidelines.

ICNIRP is the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection, whose guidelines set the exposure limits used in the UK. Policy CO2 says an application, including a prior approval application, should come with:

• the outcome of consultation before the application was submitted, in particular with the relevant body where a mast is near a school or college;
• for a new site, evidence that the operator looked at putting antennas on an existing building, mast or structure;
• a statement self-certifying that cumulative exposure won't exceed ICNIRP guidelines once the mast is working.

Use that list as a checklist when you read an application.

1. Find the application. Note the reference number and deadline on the site notice or letter, or ask your council's planning department for them, giving the site address.
2. Diary the deadline, and comment early. The landowner notice gives a date at least 14 days away; a council site notice stays up for at least 21 days. The council has only 56 days from a valid application to decide, and if it misses that, approval is deemed granted, so late comments can easily miss the decision.
3. Read the documents. Check the height, the position on the location plan, the drawings of colour and design, the ICNIRP self-certification, evidence that existing masts or buildings were considered and, near a school or college, the outcome of consulting it.
4. Write about siting and appearance. Explain what you'd see and from where, and suggest a better position if you can see one.
5. Send it in writing to the address on the notice or through the route the council gives, by the deadline, and keep a copy.
6. Tell your parish or town council, if you have one, as it may want to comment too.

Points that fit the rules

• The mast's height, bulk or colour looks out of place in the street or skyline.
• It's in a prominent spot when a less visible position nearby would work.
• An existing mast or tall building nearby could carry the antennas instead (and the application doesn't show this was explored).
• It affects the setting of a listed building, conservation area or protected landscape.
• A school or college is close by and the application doesn't show it was consulted.

Arguments for a minimum distance from homes, for health standards stricter than ICNIRP, or that the area doesn't need another mast run against national policy, so they are unlikely to change the decision.

Example wording (a template, not a real case): "Ref (application number), land at (site address). The proposed mast would stand above the rooftops in views from (street). The application does not show that the existing mast at (nearby site) was considered for sharing, as NPPF policy CO2 expects. I ask the council to refuse prior approval on siting and appearance, or to seek a less prominent position such as (suggestion)."

Work can't start until one of three things happens: the council says prior approval isn't needed, it gives approval, or 56 days pass from a valid application without it telling the operator its decision. Once approval is given, the mast must be built to the approved details unless the council agrees otherwise in writing, and work must begin within 5 years. If what goes up looks different from the plans you saw, ask the council's planning department whether it agreed the change.

If you're unhappy with the outcome, your options are limited. GOV.UK's appeal guidance covers appealing a decision on an application you made yourself, or on someone else's behalf. It offers no route for residents to appeal an approval given to an operator. If the operator appeals a refusal, GOV.UK says in most appeals no one else can comment. But if you commented on the original application, the council must tell you within 5 working days that an appeal has been made and whether you can comment. Where comments are allowed, they're due within 5 weeks of the appeal's start date (for applications dated on or after 1 April 2026). That's one more reason to send a written comment at the application stage.

England's Code of Practice gives schools and colleges a specific step. Before applying, an operator should discuss a proposal near a school or college with it. Which schools are consulted is agreed with the council case by case, considering whether the site is:

• on school or college grounds;
• on a main access point used by pupils;
• one the council has asked to be consulted on;
• one the school or college itself has asked about.

At the minimum, the operator sends a recorded-delivery letter or a saved email to the head teacher or principal and to the chair of governors, then waits at least 14 days before applying. The application should report the outcome, which NPPF policy CO2 repeats. What the rules don't contain is a minimum distance from a school: policy CO1 tells councils not to require one.

If you're a parent, ask the school whether it was contacted and what it said, then check the application includes that outcome. Wales follows the same approach (below).

In England, protected land for these rules is "article 2(3) land": land in a conservation area, an area of outstanding natural beauty (AONB), an area specified under section 41(3) of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, the Broads, a National Park or a World Heritage Site. On that land:

• a new ground mast is limited to 25 metres rather than 30;
• prior approval applies to most mast work (with set exceptions, such as fixed-line broadband poles and cabinets, and some small-scale and replacement work);
• a mast on a lower building close to a highway isn't permitted development (see above).

In a Site of Special Scientific Interest, a new mast isn't permitted development at all, so it needs a full planning application (GPDO Part 16 para A.1(4)(b)). Any emergency work there must also be reported to Natural England.

The Code of Practice asks for more sensitive siting and design in National Parks, AONBs and the Broads, and notes a 2018 Joint Accord between National Parks England and the mobile operators. It also says listed buildings and scheduled monuments need their own consents.

Planning is devolved, so each nation has its own order. The rules for a new ground mast (checked October 2026):

Scotland

• Height: up to 30 metres without a full application (since 1 April 2021), with prior approval of siting and appearance. The 30 metres includes anything attached to the mast and any plinth, leaving out only antenna that sticks up above the mast's top, so it isn't directly comparable with England's 30 metres, which excludes the antenna. Check the drawings for the overall height shown.
• Time to comment: the operator's notice must say written comments can go to the planning authority within 21 days of the day after it's sent.
• Protected areas: generally not permitted development in national scenic areas, National Parks, conservation areas, SSSIs, World Heritage Sites, historic battlefields and similar, or in the setting of a category A listed building or scheduled monument (with some small-scale exceptions).

Wales

• Height: up to 25 metres on unprotected land and 20 metres on protected land (land listed in article 1(5) of the Welsh order, or an SSSI), with prior approval.
• Time to comment: at least 14 days from the operator's notice. The council puts up a site notice for at least 21 days or writes to neighbours, and has 56 days to decide.
• Schools and publicity: Wales has its own Code of Best Practice on Mobile Phone Network Development (2021). It uses the same four factors as England to decide which schools and colleges are consulted, and says extra publicity for prior approval applications should be considered so people likely to be affected can give their views. The old planning note TAN 19 has been revoked; policy now sits in Future Wales 2040 and Planning Policy Wales.

Northern Ireland

• New ground masts: not permitted development, so a new mast (not a replacement) needs a planning application. Ask the council how it publicises the application.
• Protected areas: code operator permitted development is largely excluded in conservation areas, AONBs, Areas of Special Scientific Interest and National Parks.
• Antennas: antenna work needs at least 28 days' written notice to the council with an ICNIRP compliance declaration.

A council can't set its own health standards for masts: it must rely on the ICNIRP guidelines. The UK Health Security Agency says health effects are unlikely below ICNIRP levels, and that Ofcom measurements at over 500 sites, summarised in a 2012 report, found maximum exposures hundreds of times below them. For the detail, read our guide to what UK health advice says about Wi-Fi and 5G.

A new or upgraded mast can change which mobile home broadband options work at your address. EE, Three and Vodafone all sell home broadband that runs over their mobile networks, using a hub that connects to the mobile network rather than a fixed phone line. Their own pages explain why the mast matters:

• Three says speeds aren't guaranteed and can be affected by where the hub sits, line of sight to your nearest mast, hills, how many people use the network locally and the thickness of walls and windows (checked October 2026).
• Vodafone says speeds can fluctuate with signal strength, how far you are from the mast and how busy the local network is (checked October 2026).

The NPPF also sets out the government's aim of higher-quality standalone 5G in all populated areas by 2030; our guide to 5G Standalone and whether it matters at home explains what that means. In the countryside, the Shared Rural Network programme for rural 4G reported 157 government-funded upgrades of existing masts live by the end of September 2026, bringing 4G from all four networks to sites that previously connected only EE customers and 999 calls.

If a mast has gone live near you:

1. check each network's coverage at your address, then look at EE broadband deals, Three broadband deals and Vodafone broadband deals;
2. run our broadband speed test on your current connection so you have something to compare against;
3. compare deals at your postcode through our comparison partner. The comparison shows what's on offer at your address; the order and the switch happen with whichever provider you pick, not with us.

Setting up a hub? See EE 5G home broadband set-up and signal fixes, or browse all the broadband providers we cover.