Boxing clever Landmark saved after telecom firm marked it for removal
ACOMMUNITY is relieved that a well-known landmark that was due to be removed by British Telecom has been saved.
Resident of Bishop’s Cleeve of around 40 years Paul Fryer says a public telephone box close to the Tesco Superstore off Church Road was due to be removed after he spotted someone putting cones down on a layby opposite the telephone box.
Mr Fryer says he spoke to the person laying down the cones and asked what was going on, only to find that BT were due to take the entire telephone box away this week.
Describing it as something prominent in the centre of Bishop’s Cleeve for so many years, Mr Fryer argues that there was outcry from the community.
“I was really saddened because yes, the decline of telephone boxes has diminished because of mobile phones, but it is still an iconic part of Bishop’s Cleeve.” Paul goes on to say that the box “could easily be turned into a defibrillator, a book exchange or something to keep the community going, so I’m quite annoyed that it was considered for removal”.
Other people in the community were also less than impressed on Bishop’s Cleeve Community Board on Facebook. One person wrote: “It needs to stay and a defib needs to be there. What is wrong with just giving it a coat of paint rather than removing it!”
Another person said that if the box is saved, they will be more than happy to “get it back to its former glory” as a local decorator.
After BT announced the proposed removal of the phone box in 2019, Tewkesbury Borough Council contacted Bishop’s Cleeve Parish Council for their feedback.
The parish confirmed they had no objection to the removal of three kiosks in their area.
Representing Bishop’s Cleeve at Gloucestershire County Council as well as Tewkesbury Borough Council for the Cleeve St Michael’s ward, Liberal Democrat Cllr Alex Hegenbarth alongside other Cleeve councillors did their best to save the box.
“Taking away the payphone element of the box was fine and if BT wanted to take the guts out of it that was not a problem. We just wanted the kiosk because a lot of community groups have talked about things they want to do with the space.”
Cllr Hegenbarth adds: “Myself and Cllr Richard Stanley (leader of the Borough Council) will be discussing with Tewkesbury Borough Council for a process on how we can get the space adopted. I’ve been contacted by several people who are saying it was quite a shock and the first anyone knew about it. We could have woken up and found it to have vanished.”
I was really saddened because yes, the decline of telephone boxes has diminished because of mobile phones, but it is still an iconic part of Bishop’s Cleeve.
Paul Fryer