Pensioner threatens to chain himself to historic lamppost if council plan goes ahead

A defiant pensioner is threatening to chain himself to a historic lamppost if council bosses attempt to tear it down.

Richard Parkinson, 78, says the Victorian structures are “precious” features of Canterbury that must be “preserved at all costs” rather than being replaced with “grotesque” modern replicas.

The former city councillor and ex-Sheriff of Canterbury, who is a picture restorer, is determined to defend the one opposite his home in St Peter’s Lane, which he has even cleaned and repainted himself.

His stand follows a controversy which hit national headlines after Kent County Council announced plans to replace up to 240 historic lampposts if they were deemed unsafe due to corrosion.

But Mr Parkinson, who now holds the honorary title of city alderman, says he will do all in his power to prevent the removal of the one he has spruced up.

“I’m not throwing out just an idle threat,” he said. “I really mean it. If they come along with a digger to remove it, I’ll be out there to chain myself to the lamppost.

“These are precious, historic and much-loved features of Canterbury and should be preserved at all costs.”

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The lampposts were made in the HM Biggleston & Sons Foundry in Canterbury, which operated from the mid-19th century until 1963, producing distinctive cast-iron street furniture.

The examples in Canterbury are now said to be unique survivors of the foundry and campaigners are demanding they be saved.

The controversy was first sparked when Kent County Council’s highways department said that nine such lampposts in Cossington Road, Canterbury, would have to come down because they were found to be suffering from corrosion.

Engineers recommended steel replicas because they estimated restoration costs of up to £5,000 each, meaning that if all the remaining 242 Biggleston lampposts were eventually repaired and refurbished, the bill could approach almost £1 million.

The replicas cost about £800, providing significant savings for cash-strapped Reform-run KCC, which is targeting cutting costs.

Leading the resistance is the Alliance of Canterbury Residents Association and the Canterbury Society, whose president, Ptolemy Dean, has been particularly outspoken.

Mr Dean, a conservation architect and surveyor of the fabric at Westminster Abbey, says the lampposts are beautiful and unique.

“The proposed replacements are off-the-peg fixtures with so-called heritage attract additions, which are grotesque-looking things that do not benefit or grace the streets of a World Heritage Site,” he said.

ACRA’s business secretary, David Kemsley, said: “These lamp columns are as much a part of Canterbury’s story as its walls or gates - they are tangible links to a Canterbury firm whose craftsmanship literally helped light cities across the world.

“To replace them with mass-produced steel poles is cultural vandalism.”

The Canterbury Society and ACRA have launched a ‘Save Canterbury’s Streetlights’ campaign, which calls on the city council to use planning laws to withdraw permitted development rights for the replacement or alteration of street lighting within the city’s Conservation Areas.

Faced with overwhelming opposition, county council bosses have now defended their approach and say no historic posts will be replaced while talks to find a better solution are ongoing with Canterbury City Council.

KCC’s cabinet member for highways and transport, Cllr Peter Osborne, took to the authority’s Facebook page “to set the record straight”.

“Kent County Council has not been ripping out all the lampposts in Canterbury, and most of the city’s lampposts are not even Victorian,” he said.

“Since 2020, we’ve only replaced cast-iron columns where they’ve been proven unsafe, using steel columns with heritage-style features to keep the traditional look. We have not received any complaints about these and most people didn’t notice the change.

“This issue is about just nine cast-iron columns on Cossington Road that failed safety checks during routine inspections. Painting them doesn’t fix internal corrosion or underground damage. The original manufacturer is long gone, and full refurbishment would be impractical and very expensive for taxpayers.

“We are not legally required to install heritage-style lighting in conservation areas, but we do - because preserving Canterbury’s heritage character matters to us.”

He said the ornate lanterns will be reused and the new columns are fitted with decorative features.

KCC is working with the city council on “even better designs” and Cllr Osborne has invited The Canterbury Society for discussions.

He added: “Public safety comes first. This approach delivers safety, heritage, and value for money.”

The city council is using Levelling Up government funding to recreate the cast-iron lampposts it is responsible for in the Dane John Gardens.