Decision details

The purpose of this decision is to agree or object to the removal of telephone kiosks in Graveley and Croxton. The District Council previously agreed to allow the parish councils to adopt the kiosk, however, they no longer wish to do so. BT, and other providers, must consult the local authority before removing any telephone kiosks or telephony equipment from kiosks.

Should the parish councils have adopted the kiosks, the telephony equipment would have been removed, but the kiosk remained in situ. The new proposal is for the kiosk to be removed along with the telephony equipment.

The criteria above, plus local knowledge, has informed the decision:

In making its decision, the Council must consider the following:

Who lives there?

The type of local housing around a phone box may say how important it is to the area. If it’s surrounded by people who own their homes, there’s a fair chance they have home phones or mobiles as well. However, if the neighbourhood has mainly rented properties, social housing or residential-care homes, it could be that there are people on low incomes who need that phone box.

Emergency calls

Many people feel reassured that phone boxes are available if there’s an emergency. This can range from 999 calls to being able to call for help if your car breaks down. The local organisation needs to think about whether a particular phone box is more likely to be used for emergency calls than another. If, for example, the call box is near a known accident blackspot, it may strengthen the argument for it to be kept.

What are the takings?

Whether it’s a shop, a pub or a phone box, the amount of money people spend on a local service is a sign of whether it’s important to them. BT may be able to show how much business a particular phone box is getting. If it’s a low figure, this may support their case to remove it.

The Council’s options are to:

(i)            Agree to the removal of the kiosk being consulted upon, or

(ii)           Object to the removal of the kiosk being consulted upon, or

(iii)          Agree to the parish council or parish meeting adopting the kiosk, which will result in the kiosk remaining and the telephony equipment being removed.