Worried residents living near a proposed telecommunications mast are pledging to fight plans.

Vodafone and Telefonica UK have confirmed they submitted a planning application last week for a radio station base and mast 11-metres high on a green area between Faringdon Road and Dewsbury Road, Harold Hill.

The council said it is processing the application and plans should be available online at the end of this week (Friday, September 2).

But in a letter to councillors Vodafone and Telefonica UK said their aim was to “increase 3G network coverage and capacity to the south of Harold Hill.

“A number of options have been assessed in respect of the site search process and the preferred option is… street furniture at the junction of Dewsbury Road and Faringdon Avenue.”

They said the ‘mock telegraph column and equipment cabinet’ would be away from the visibility of drivers and they have tried not to affect the visual amenity of residents.

But worried residents living nearby have teamed up and put together a petition to show the strong feeling against the plans.

Charlotte Hunt, 71, of Faringdon Avenue, has collected 50 names on the petition.

She said: “We are quite annoyed about it. The plan is for the mast between houses. We don’t need something like that there and some of us will be looking right on to it.

“The reception from mobiles is really good here. We get lorry drivers stopping here to use their phones because it is so good.

“The mast will be right in line with my bedroom and I don’t want to be looking at it every day.”

She added that although the company has said there is no health risks associated with it, she said there was still a fear among residents that theirs and their children’s health would suffer as a result.

Cllr Brian Eagling, who is ward councilor for the area, said: “I feel very strongly about any communications mast.

“They shouldn’t be putting it that high and in a residential area. There are other more suitable sites to put it than here.”