PLANS for a taller communications tower in the Lake District have been given the go-ahead in a bid to deliver ‘vital’ mobile connectivity.

Lake District National Park Authority has approved a notice of intention application from Cornerstone to remove the existing 17.5 metre pole on the site and construct a 24-metre-high lattice tower on Pool Bridge in Hawkshead.

Planning documents state: “The increased height solution is necessary in this case to allow Vodafone to deliver vital mobile connectivity to the wider area which is unachievable with the current solution in place.

“Albeit the new mast incorporates an increased height solution, it is felt that the increase in height would not be overly dominant within this wider landscape.”

According to the planning statement the colour and materials used on the new mast have been ‘carefully considered’ to match those used on the existing mast and assimilate with the wider landscape.

The planning application was approved by the LDNPA on October 25.