STOCKTON Borough Council is being recommended to adopt a cautionary approach to the siting of mobile phone masts on its land.

At a cabinet meeting today councillors are expected to agree to a new policy for the number of phone masts that will be allowed and where they will be able to be situated.

The policy will restrict the number of base stations allowed on high rise blocks as well as trying to protect school sites.

A council spokesman said: "Following a detailed debate regarding the policy options it is recommended the cabinet should consider the cautionary approach, restricting the numbers of base stations on high rise blocks and implementing the Stewart report."

The Stewart report, published last year, recommended stricter controls on masts near schools, hospitals and residential areas.

In future, applications for masts to be placed on Stockton council-owned land on or near schools, will only be considered if the "beam of greatest intensity" does not fall on any part of the school site.

It will be up to the telephphone companies to prove that beams from the masts will not affect schools, and then the school governing body will have to give consent before planning permission is considered by the council.

Companies wanting to erect masts on sites away from schools will have to provide drawings showing where the highest intensity beams will fall.

Ward councillors and appropriate cabinet members will be consulted.

Under the new policy, no more than two telecommunications stations will be permitted on any rooftop. This will not affect police, radio,or similar public service aerials but will affect mobile phone masts.

The spokesman said: "All new agreements to be entered into with telecommunications will require the company to provide an independent report on the level of radio frequency emissions provided by the equipment, so as to enable a comparison with recommended guidelines."

The new guidelines follow a number of calls from parents for mobile phone masts to be banned near schools because of fears over health.

There have been demonstrations against mobile phone planning applications, including one against a development in Roseworth, last month, which was rejected.