RESIDENTS have won the latest round in their fight against a mobile phone giant.

T-Mobile has still not managed to put a mast up on the corner of St Paul's Wood Road and Beddington Road, St Paul's Cray, despite getting permission from the Planning Inspectorate in February.

About 30 protesters have managed to stop work on the site by standing round the hole where T-Mobile wants to put the mast, preventing contractors from working.

In the latest attempt by the firm to put up the mast, security guards were sent to the site but failed to get the campaigners to move out of the way.

The residents claim the guards intimidated them.

Sue Gibbens, 44, says her 10-year-old son was harassed by one of the four men.

She claims one of the men put his arms on both sides of her son against railings.

The former councillor said: "He sort of stood over him and said What would you do if I did this?' "Then one of the people with us said if you do not move there is going to be trouble because you are intimidating this young lad'."

Sam Anderson, a 35-year-old mother-of-three, said: "We think it is absolutely crazy T-Mobile is organising security guards to intimidate people.

"When is it going to start listening to what the residents want?"

Mrs Anderson, of Thorndon Close, St Paul's Cray, added: "Our protest is delaying it but sooner or later it is going to bring down more heavies to help them put it up.

"We are going to continue to fight."

The protest group, which has 100 members, is opposed to the mast because it claims families will be exposed to harmful radiation.

T-Mobile says the "third generation" mast, which will transmit live video calls, poses no health threat at all.

A T-Mobile spokesman said: "There was a security presence there to safeguard the workers and the general public.

"We are trying to get a service to our customers and if we did not have a need for the mast then we would not develop the site.

"The site at St Paul's Wood Road is to provide access to our services.

"Without a network of base stations then phones simply would not work."

He says there is no definite date when work will restart.