5G and Me: One Mother’s Stand Against a School’s Cell Tower Plan
How do we protect our children from harmful unregulated technologies?
So there it is. In black and white - planning submission number 25/04239/FUL. ‘Cellnex UK Limited has lodged an application for a 5G mobile base at Beechen Cliff School.’ To say I am horrified is an understatement.
For context: Bath, in the Southwest of the UK, is where I live and Beechen Cliff School is where my daughter goes to school. The proposed new phone base would be approximately 200 yards from my home. Beechen Cliff School has more than 1200 children on its roll, from ages 11-18.
Beechen Cliff School, Bath, UK (image credit Beechen Cliff School)
I have lived in this area for 20 years, we chose to live here as it has beautiful views, and it is the best of both worlds; it’s a short walk to the city centre, but it also feels rural. Within five minutes you can walk to Alexandra Park and Lyncombe fields - a walk I do often. If we are unsuccessful in our appeal and the phone mast is built, we will put our house up for sale - and our chapter in Bath will be forced to an abrupt close. I do not wish to be blasted with non-Ionizing radiation day and night.
As readers of this Substack will already know, 5G exposure comes with serious health risks. Last year, World Council for Health reported on two unexplained deaths of primary age school children in Liverpool - a 4G LTE mast opposite the school was shown to have dangerously high EMF readings.
Other previous articles and links found on our website explain the health risks:
Cancer and DNA damage: Studies have shown that prolonged exposure to radiofrequency radiation (RFR) can lead to oxidative stress, DNA damage, and even cancer (Pall, 2018; Yakymenko et al., 2016).
Neurological effects: Research suggests that EMF exposure can disrupt the nervous system, leading to headaches, fatigue, and cognitive impairment (Pall, 2016).
Reproductive harm: There’s evidence that EMF exposure can reduce sperm quality and fertility (Pall, 2018).
Additional symptoms of EMF exposure: palpitations, insomnia, tinnitus, dizziness, anxiety, nausea and depression.
For centuries, Bath was known as a city of healing with internationally renowned hot springs, now it is one of the first designated ‘smart cities’ in the UK. A total of 16 5G antennas are being installed in locations around the city centre as part of an 18-month trial by Bath and North East Somerset Council which started in 2024. The 5G pilot in Bath city centre — called “One Word” (an acronym for Western O-RAN Deployment) is being funded by a £773,132 government grant and one of these sites is actually situated within the historic Roman Baths.
Would Bladud who, as legend has it, healed himself of leprosy by washing in Bath’s healing waters, and the Romans who knew of the healing powers of spring water in Bath, be proud of the direction we are heading in?
Protect Our Children and Our Wildlife
A 2025 Swedish-Norwegian study reports an “alarming rise” in memory problems among children and adolescents, which researchers link to the increased exposure to wireless radiation from Wi-Fi, 4G, and 5G technologies. The study found that medical consultations for memory disorders in Norway increased 8.5-fold and diagnoses of mild cognitive impairment in Sweden surged nearly 60-fold over the past two decades—a period that coincides with the widespread adoption of smartphones and wireless devices. The scientists argue that microwave radiation from these devices, even at levels below official safety limits, can affect the brain’s memory centre, the hippocampus, and they are calling for immediate measures to protect children, while accusing authorities of ignoring the growing evidence.
Brain scan image credit: Gabriel-Tech GmbH
Industry to date, has not produced a single study to show that 5G is safe or undertaken any risk assessment for effects on humans, wildlife and the environment for this laser-like beam forming technology. This technology is completely unregulated – safety limits for trees, plants, birds and bees do not exist.
Urgent Action is Now Needed
It’s incredibly galling as someone who writes about the dangers of 5G, to now be in the battle of my life, against a proposed 5G phone base, right in my own backyard. We only have until 5th December to stop this - it’s not very long but it can be done if we work together. Everyone is able to comment on this proposed mast, irrelevant of where they live.
Please help me and the school children of Bath, by sharing this Substack widely and commenting on the planning submission. If you would like to join the team in opposition to the mast, please email info@worldcouncilforhealth.org
Thank you.
How to Comment on the Submission:
1) Go to:
https://www.bathnes.gov.uk/view-and-comment-current-planning-applications
2) Click ‘View and Comment Online’
Insert 25/04239/FUL into the Planning Application box when prompted.
3) Leave your comment, this template may help although please do make it your own
Further Reading:
Work to start on 5G pilot scheme in city centre
https://feeds.bbci.co.uk/news/articles/cz47lyzdyx2o
5G Mobile Network Pilot - Western O-RAN Deployment” (WORD)
https://democracy.bathnes.gov.uk/documents/s80044/E3501
Why We Must Stop 5G – WCH Substack
https://worldcouncilforhealth.substack.com/p/why-we-must-stop-5g
https://worldcouncilforhealth.substack.com/p/is-5g-even-worse-than-we-thought
ActionAgainst5G
https://actionagainst5g.com/