BT Group has revealed plans to remove two payphones from rural locations near Ripon.
The company has applied to North Yorkshire Council for planning permission to take away phone boxes in Grantley and Winksley.
According to planning documents submitted in support of the application, the Winksley phone box has not been used for any calls in the last 12 months, while the one in Grantley has been used five times.
People have 90 days to object to the plans.
Planning documents say communities can also apply to adopt phone boxes and transform their use. They add:
“Thousands of boxes have been reinvented as cafes, mini-libraries and defibrillator sites. Communities can adopt most red boxes for just £1.”
The deadline for making representations to BT is November 20.
Read more:
- Fashion retailer Peacocks recruiting staff for new Ripon store
- Ripon nursery Busy Bees rated ‘good’ by Ofsted
Ramshackle phone box transformed into Stray information point
A ramshackle red phone box in Harrogate has been moved and transformed into a history of the Stray.
The disused phone box on the Stray, just off Otley Road, had fallen into a dilapidated state.
So the Stray Defence Association, which safeguards the 200 acres of parkland against building and encroachment, hired a specialist renovation company to uplift it on March 16.
It was restored to its original bright scarlet and moved to a more prominent town centre spot on West Park Stray, where it stood beneath a white cover for several days.
Two children removed the covers at an unveiling ceremony this afternoon to reveal the new-look phone box with panels displaying the history of Harrogate’s Stray and the Stray Defence Association.
Its old position on the Stray, next to Otley Road, has been restored and reseeded to return it to Stray land.
Stray Defence Association chairman Judy d’Arcy Thompson and committee member Syd Bell
Judy D’Arcy Thompson, chairman of the Stray Defence Association, said:
“It is the Stray Defence Association’s hope that it will become a valued part of the West Park street scene and an intriguing and iconic information source for both local people and visitors to Harrogate.”
Today’s unveiling, which was attended by members of the Stray Defence Association, Harrogate In Bloom and Harrogate Civic Society, coincided with the 90th anniversary of the Stray Defence Association, which was formed on May 12, 1933
Cordelia, 7, and Harry, 5, performed the opening by cutting a ribbon to highlight how children are the future custodians of the Stray.
A Stray Defence Association donor paid for the renovation, which was approved by the Duchy of Lancaster and both Harrogate Borough Council and the new North Yorkshire Council.
The phone box being uplifted
Panels on the restored phone box tell the story of the Stray.
Read more:
Harrogate phone box transformed into community library
A disused red phone box on St Hilda’s Road in Harrogate has been saved from the scrapheap and turned into a community library.
Last year, BT Group announced plans to remove 32 inactive booths across the Harrogate district, 22 of which were built in the traditional red style.
BT encouraged communities to keep the red telephone kiosks under its “adopt-a-kiosk” scheme, which costs £1 and lets community organisations, including councils and charities, transform the kiosks into defibrillator sites, mini-libraries and more.
The Oatlands Community Group has successfully adopted the St Hilda’s phone box, which is now called The Saints Community Library and can be used to store up to 200 books for people to swap, free of charge.
Read More:
-
Communities must step in to save red phone boxes in Harrogate district
-
Businesses helped post-Brexit by new Harrogate training centre
Jane Kennerley, a member of the group, told the Stray Ferret she believes similar community libraries have been set up inside former phone boxes in Pannal and North Rigton in the Harrogate district.
The new library on St Hilda’s Road will be adapted for themed events, such as Red Nose Day, World Book Day and Pride.
To kick this off, from Monday it will celebrate Fairtrade Fortnight by featuring books from countries that produce Fairtrade goods.
Hand sanitiser is available on entry and people are advised to quarantine all books for 72 hours prior to using them.
Ms Kennerley said the phone box has already generated a great response from the local community.
She said:
“People seem to love it and it’s been really busy, especially with the charity shops being closed in Harrogate.”