Flood lights installed at a St Albans school without permission have been compared to those at Wembley Stadium by neighbours.

St Columba’s College last week had a retrospective application to retain a car park with 17 low level bollard security and safety lights approved by St Albans District Council.

The school in King Harry Lane had already installed the lights before applying for permission in October last year.

Within application documents, the school said the purpose of the development was not to increase the number of car parking spaces for parents picking up or dropping off their children from school, but as part of the security arrangements for female staff working in the evening to be allocated car parking spaces at the front of the College site.

This is because the number of car parking spaces required by staff have increased, due to more specialist female part-time staff.

The application was met with fierce opposition from neighbours on the grounds of noise pollution from cars, light from the floodlights, floodlights being on all the time, and lost open views.

Sarah Yexley, who lives in Trevelyan Place, the lights are sometimes left on overnight.

She said: "In a meeting with the Bursar a neighbour and myself were assured that this car park was a temporary measure whilst the recent building extension was undertaken.

"At the time we suspected this was not the case as the school had invested in lighting of a permanent structure and planted a hedge around it.

"The car park is an intrusion on the privacy of Trevelyan place as it is immediately adjacent to a garden area."

The council approved the application on the condition that two previously installed floodlights were removed.

Andrew Onacko, who also lives in Trevelyan Place, added: "One day I woke up and there was a car park behind my garden where there once was a grass bank.

"That evening I was further surprised when a flood light lit up the back of my garden like Wembley Stadium.

"Then the fireworks in the park came and this new school car park was used as an overflow to the main Verulam parking areas.

"And finally the snow arrived and this new car park became a skid pan for the more adventurous driver.

"This new parking area is used as an overflow to the main park with visitors parking here before walking across the School field to Verulam park.

"From dusk, the monstrous double-headed flood lights blaze until dawn. Cars are often parked overnight."