A 5G mobile phone mast could be installed in Sherborne.

Telecommunications firm Cornerstone has applied to Wiltshire Council for permission to replace equipment at Sherborne Fire Station, in Coldharbour Road.

The current 17 metre mast would be replaced with a 20m-high device, providing services including 5G to the town.

As well as the mast, the site would be home to six antennas, two other dishes and equipment.

The rollout of 5G technology has, in some areas, caused concern among residents and councils.

However, official safety guidance says development is safe.

“We recognise that the growth in mobile communication has led, in some cases, to public concern about perceived health effects of mobile technology, in particular about siting masts close to local amenities,” the application said.

“Quite naturally, the public seeks reassurance that masts are not in any way harmful or dangerous.”

READ MORE: 5G upgrade plans for mobile phone mast near Dorchester

It added: “Cornerstone ensure that our radio base stations are designed and built so that the public are not exposed to radio frequency fields above the guidelines set by the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP).

“In fact, radio base stations operate at low power and emit levels of radiofrequency fields many times lower than the ICNIRP general public guidelines.”

Sherborne Town Council will discuss the application at a meeting on Monday evening (January 15), starting at 6pm in the Council Chamber at Manor House.

For more details and the full agenda, log on to sherborne-tc.gov.uk.