Mobile Mast Refused On Appeal For Rottingdean Seafront

Mobile phone companies EE and Three have lost an appeal after they were refused permission for a new mast on a locally listed building.

They wanted to put a mast and antenna on the roof of St Margaret’s Court, in High Street, Rottingdean, just south of the A259 Marine Drive.

But the Planning Inspectorate has backed a decision made by Brighton and Hove City Council in December.

The appeal was submitted by Mobile Broadband Network Limited (MBNL) on behalf of the two mobile phone companies, claiming that the council’s Planning Committee had misunderstood the situation.

The committee said that the proposed equipment would be “highly visible” and create “unwelcome visual clutter” on the building. Councillors criticised the lack of camouflage or shielding.

The company lodged an appeal statement, saying:

“The application … did contain details of the need for the replacement mast.

“(It) provided evidence relating to alternative less suitable sites and justified the use of a locally listed building through the benefits the two mobile phone networks would provide to local communities.

“Having listened to the councillors debate the application at their meeting on Wednesday 4 December 2024, it was clear that the members were supportive of telecommunication development in principle.

“They wanted the network coverage from these two important telecom companies for all the reasons outlined by government policy and to enjoy the connectivity benefits that would follow.”

The proposed mast was due to replace a temporary one in the Marine Cliffs car park after the original phone mast was removed when the White Horses Hotel was refurbished.

The Planning Inspectorate said that the masts would be an “incongruous feature at roof level and would punctuate the skyline” for people travelling from the east into Rottingdean.

The decision letter said:

“The utilitarian form of the development would appear as a visually dominant addition to the locally listed building, introducing significant visual clutter to the rooftop, which would detract from the visual amenity of the building.

“It would fail to have an acceptable impact on the character and appearance of the area, both in terms of the design and the appearance of the heritage asset and the wider setting.”

St Margaret’s Court was built in 1938. It was designed by Richard Jones and built by Charles Neville’s Saltdean Estate Company.

The company also built the grade II* listed Saltdean Lido and grade II listed Ocean Hotel in Saltdean which were also designed by Jones.