Bristol City Council is to make a decision on the plans next month

T-Mobile, owned by Western Power, wants to put a 3G mast in an electricity sub-station on Cairns Road.

Fifty campaigners who gathered at the site said the plans are "inappropriate" and a "health hazard" but a spokesman for T-Mobile refuted the claims.

The firm says the plans are within national and international guidelines.

The nearby houses are barely 50m away will receive a thumping belt of non- ionising radiation 24 hours a day Doug Turner

Doug Turner who lives near the proposed site told BBC Bristol: "The nearby houses are barely 50m away will receive a thumping belt of non- ionising radiation 24 hours a day.

"If you use a mobile phone it's a matter of personal choice - if you live near a mast you have no choice."

Carol De Burgher, the manager of Noah's Ark pre-school in Cairns Road, said: "The Children's Act says the local authority should be protecting children against harm and that includes the likelihood or perceived risk which is what this is."

In a statement T-Mobile said: "Based on over 40 years of research T Mobile is confident that its base stations are operating within strict national and international guidelines and do not present a health risk to any member of the public.

"This particular planned mast is a flagpole design which will be screened by existing trees in the immediate area."