Wolverhampton Grammar School gets telecoms mast go-ahead
An historic school in Wolverhampton has been given the go-ahead to put up a seven-metre telecoms mast linking internet access from its main building to an adjacent site.
Wolverhampton Grammar School, on Compton Road, which dates back to 1875, will install the pole on its sports field with underground fibre-optic cable connecting to the neighbouring Hutton Theatre building in Merridale Lane.
A statement from the school’s estates manager Tony French said: “The telegraph pole will be at the end of the sports field to allow the cable to be spanned across the road from the main school site and straight into the Hutton building.
“This is to support the students by allowing them to have uninterrupted access to the internet and school’s website, which will help them with their coursework. Internet access is currently being provided by a wireless link between the main school site and the Hutton building, and this does drop in and out of service due to signal issues.
“Consideration has been given to the location of the telegraph pole to limit impact on the environment and the aesthetics of the area. The location of the telegraph pole should not affect the public or neighbouring houses.
“There will be some minor landscaping with this installation, including a soft dig trench approximately 100 metres in length from the corner of the building in Merridale Lane to the pole located at the far end of the school’s sports field,” he added.
“In order to minimise the visual impact for neighbours, the school will be installing a ‘standard’ telegraph pole to match all the others in the area.”
The school, which sought pre-application advice from the council before submitting its proposal, was originally founded in 1512 and moved to Compton Road in 1875.
Former pupils at the school include journalist Jacqui Oatley, the first female football commentator on TV, author and Times columnist Sathnam Sanghera and former governor of the Bank of England Mervyn King. In 2005 a new extension to the school’s music block was opened by former Led Zeppelin singer and lifelong Wolves fan Robert Plant.
