Kettering town centre phone boxes set to be replaced with 'street hubs'

This Gold Street phone box is set to be removed

Phone boxes in Kettering’s town centre are set to be ripped out and replaced with new interactive ‘street hubs’.

BT plans to remove their existing payphone booths in Gold Street (one outside Jamie’s Quality Butchers and one near Boots), Horse Market (opposite Gymophobics) and High Street (outside Nationwide).

Nationally, call time usage of phone boxes has dwindled from about 800 million minutes in 2002 to just four million in 2021 to 2022.

An artist's impression of how a new street hub could look

Now BT want to install street hubs – which can be used for Wi-Fi, calls and device charging – at the sites where they are removing phone boxes. They had previously deployed interactive ‘InLink’ units elsewhere in the country but the firm which supplied them went into administration.

A planning statement submitted to North Northamptonshire Council said: "The street hub has all the existing benefits of the previous InLink structure – ultrafast Wi-Fi, free public calls, public information – but with better Wi-Fi range, environmental monitoring, secure power-only USB ports for rapid device charging, and an expanded phone network coverage with 5G mobile enablement.

"Street hubs have the capacity to boost 4G and 5G through the installation of small cells within the unit casing, improving coverage and capacity. Consequently, when installed, residents, local businesses and visitors will get a faster, more reliable connection for calls and internet access.”

All units would be fitted with a direct 999 call button.

BT said their existing payphones are outdated and worn-down and that replacing them would ‘declutter’ Kettering’s street scene.

BT’s head of street James Browne said: “I’m really excited that we’re now evolving the service even further with a newly designed Street Hub 2.0 unit which is more sustainable while delivering free public Wi-Fi services and improved 4G/5G mobile coverage to local communities.

“The free digital services provided by our street hub units can play an important role in helping to revive the UK’s high streets following the pandemic.

“We are working closely with local councils and communities to introduce the new units to more parts of the country, enhancing the UK’s future digital infrastructure, and bringing benefits to residents, businesses and tourists alike.”

The applications could be decided by North Northamptonshire Council later this month.