Responses have been received  from :

The Bishop of Ripon & Leeds, Holy Trinity Church is in this diocese.
Our letters to him 28th Nov.00  1st Dec.00

The Church Of England Archbishops' Council (Telecommunications Working Party)
Read FADERs response to safety claims.

__________________________

CHURCH OF ENGLAND Diocese Of Ripon & Leeds 

THE RT REVD J R PACKER
Bishop of Ripon & Leeds
Bishop Mount
Ripon
North Yorkshire
HG4 5DP
Tel (01765) 602045Fax (01765) 600758
Email: bishop.riponleeds@virgin.net
20 December 2000

Thank you for the various letters and other communications about the possibility of radio aerials at Holy Trinity, Knaresborough. Your letters seem to have three main points - aesthetics, safety and democracy in the Church of England. So far as aesthetics are concerned, the Diocesan Advisory Committee will be very aware of the danger of significant changes to the spire of the church. My experience of such aerials in other places is that you would not notice them unless you knew they were there.

So far as safety is concerned, I take very seriously the scientific evidence. Our present advice is as follows:  {Extract from 'Radio Aerials and Your Church' - A National Approach November 2000]

The most recent advice of an independent panel of experts (the Stewart Report commissioned by HM Government to report on mobile phones and health), concluded that the basis of research to date 'does not suggest that emissions from mobile phones and base stations put the health of the UK population at risk' (from the press release by IEGMP, 11th May 2000). Copies of the report can be obtained from http://www.iegnp.org.uk or IEGMP Secretariat, c/o Information Office, National Radiological Protection Board, Chilton, Didcot, Oxon 0X11 ORQ. However, the panel recommended further research to gain more comprehensive data, and the Government has agreed to this recommendation.

If you express interest, we will advise you on the most recent official advice so that you and your PCC can make an informed choice in the best interests of your church and your community.

 For its part, the Archbishops ' Council is giving health & safety advice in good faith based on expert opinion available today.   The final decision on whether to go ahead with an installation (if you are approached) rests with you, your PCC and the DAC.  Again, the whole process will be explained if you decide you are interested.

I am not sure whether you believe that all aerials are dangerous and that mobile phones should be banned or whether it is simply this particular place which is inappropriate. Granted, present government policy the aerials will be somewhere, and what would be needed to press your point would be an attempt to change government policies. Until that happens it seems to me appropriate for churches to offer themselves as a community facility for this purpose since a) the masts are then less conspicuous b) they are further away from the ground than low level masts and c) less masts are necessary - I think I disagree with your point that two masts would be better than one.

I am puzzled by the information you appear to have received about decision making in the Church of England, and wonder where it came from. Certainly no application for a faculty would be entertained without a resolution from the Parochial Church Council.  You are absolutely right that a local church needs to come to its own prayerful conclusion as to whether to apply for a faculty, and therefore it would be inappropriate for me to intervene in the sense of trying to impose a solution.

I am very grateful for your interest, and especially your health concerns, and will make sure that they are communicated both to the Diocesan Advisory Committee and to the PCC.  If a Faculty is eventually applied for you will have the right to object to the Diocesan Registrar, because public notices will appear on the site.

I hope this is helpful.

THE CHURCH
OF ENGLAND
ARCHBISHOPS'
COUNCIL

Telecommunications
Working Party

9 February 2001

TELECOMMUNICATIONS MASTS

Your letters of 26 January to both the Archbishop of Canterbury and Mr Mawer, the Secretary General, have been passed to me for reply as I am responsible for this area of work.

The purpose of our initiative is to ensure parishes have access to the best advice, including the critical issues of health and safety. The initiative was brought forward because it had become evident that a number of parishes were already being approached by telecom operators etc and were experiencing considerable difficulties in negotiating suitable terms. A national approach would enable parishes to approach the issues in a properly informed way and (if they wish to proceed) secure appropriate (financial and non-financial) terms, subject to the checks and balances of the Church's own very thorough planning processes and any requirements of the secular planning system.

We realized from the outset that the handling of health & safety and environmental issues would be critical. Our starting point (which underpinned our confidence in bringing this initiative to the Council) has been the Report on "Mobile Phones and Health" by the Independent Expert Group on Mobile Phones chaired by Sir William Stewart (Chairman of the Microbiological Research Authority and former Chief Scientific Adviser to the Government) which was published last April.

This concluded on the balance of evidence (which included a very thorough survey and assessment of evidence from those claiming health risks) that "there is no general risk to the health of people living near to base stations (i.e. masts and aerials) on the basis that exposures are expected to be small fractions of guidelines, although there can be indirect adverse effects on well-being in some cases" (attributed primarily to the anxiety which some people feel about them).  The Group recommended a "precautionary" approach pending further (eg epidemiological) research which the Government has now put in train.

The "precautionary" approach was reflected in adopting stricter European/World Health Organisation  standards (i.e. 5 times stricter than the current guidelines) on exposure levels, proper monitoring arrangements, stricter planning laws (not least to ensure greater public consultation), and more awareness among the public of the health and safety issues and in particular the need for more sparing use of mobile phones by children. We would expect to reflect and build on this approach in our advice to parishes and in the terms and conditions which operators would have to observe. That advice is likely to include specific guidance on sensitive locations (eg churches very close to schools) so that parishes can assess whether and how best to proceed.

The "package" under construction would direct parishes to the Stewart Report and other authoritative sources (eg the World Health Organisation) and offer other material which could help people to understand the health and safety issues (and can assist in the presentation of those issues to the local community). It will ultimately be for each church to take its own view of the health and safety issues and indeed the effect on relations with the local community before coming to a decision on whether or not to enter into an individual arrangement. Any decision by a PCC will require a faculty (and in some cases secular planning consent) and we will be emphasising to parishes and operators the importance and independence of this process, whose outcome can by no means be taken for granted. That process covers a range of issues (eg appearance, access etc.), allows for public consultation and requires that any representations (and the issues raised by them)are considered on their individual merits by Diocesan Chancellors (QCs).

Yours sincerely
Richard Hopgood

Telecommunications Working Party

Richard Hopgood, Director of Policy, William Beaver, Director of Communications for the Council and Church Commissioners,
Stephen Bowler, Development Officer for the Care of Churches,
Shaun Farrell, Director of Finance

Church House, Great Smith Street, London SW1 P 3NZ
+44 (0)20 7898 1000 Fax: +44 (0)20 7222 6672
Email:telecoms@c-of-e.org.uk
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