Meg's Hackney Gazette Column: Problem public phone boxes

High streets are often the jewels of our communities – filled with exciting shops, bustling activities, and tasty places to grab a drink or a bite to eat. Dalston has numerous examples, residents tell me they love the variety and quality of shops, services and the market, but there are challenges too, particularly around anti-social behaviour (ASB) and crime.  

On Kingsland High Street, for example, the telephone boxes have for too long been used as impromptu toilets. Human excrement has been found, along with evidence of drug dealing.

Local councillor Grace Adebayo has been picking up on these issues for some time, and we are working hard together to tackle it. Police patrols have increased and work is ongoing to target drug dealers and those committing ASB. Hackney Council has improved signage for public toilets so those of us who may be caught short know where to go. I am in touch with BT, requesting that particular, problem phone boxes be removed in order to promote the safety and cleanliness of our streets. Already we are seeing some progress, with one of the phone boxes on Kingsland High Street having been removed.

There are issues, however, around the usage of the phone boxes for calls, including emergency calls, so it isn’t a quick fix. BT tells me that another phone box on Kingsland High Street has met the threshold for number of calls made, so will remain in situ. It would be helpful to hear from people who do use phone boxes for calls so I can get a clearer picture of demand. If you want to feed in, please do get in touch with my office: meg.hillier.mp@parliament.uk. 

I will continue to work to protect, promote and celebrate the best that Dalston has to offer. That’s why Cllr Grace Adebayo and I have launched the ‘Love Dalston Shopfront Award’ competition, to shine a spotlight on some of these jewels in our high streets. If you have a favourite shop, café, or restaurant in Dalston – it can be any type of business so long as it is based in Dalston – then why not nominate them? All you need to do is visit bit.ly/4iMlI6n and fill in the form. Entries close in June, so you’ve got plenty of time to nominate and help spread the word.