K6 Telephone Kiosk, Saxton With Scarthingwell
Description: K6 Telephone Kiosk
Grade: II
Date Listed: 24 September 2010
English Heritage Building ID: 507066
OS Grid Reference: SE4760936930
OS Grid Coordinates: 447609, 436930
Latitude/Longitude: 53.8262, -1.2766
Location: 9 Saxton Lane, Saxton, North Yorkshire LS24 9QB
Locality: Saxton With Scarthingwell
Local Authority: Selby
County: North Yorkshire
Country: England
Postcode: LS24 9QB
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Listing Text
SAXTON WITH SCARTHINGWELL
1603/0/10013 COTCHERS LANE
24-SEP-10 K6 TELEPHONE KIOSK
II
K6 telephone kiosk
DESCRIPTION: The K6 is a standardised design made of cast iron, painted red overall with long horizontal glazing in the door and sides and with the crowns situated on the top panels being applied not perforated. There are rectangular white display signs, reading TELEPHONE beneath the shallow-curved roof. It has modernised internal equipment. It is intact and in good condition (2009).
The kiosk is situated on the north-west corner of a staggered crossroads at the heart of this small village. Approximately 40m to the south west stands the Church of All Saints, listed at Grade I. There are two listed buildings in the churchyard, standing to the north and east of the church - a cross shaft to the east and Lord Dacre's tomb to the north, both listed at Grade II.
HISTORY: The K6 telephone kiosk is a milestone of C20 industrial design. The K6 was designed by Giles Gilbert Scott in 1935 for the General Post Office, on the occasion of King George V's Silver Jubilee. The K6 was a development from his earlier highly successful K2 telephone kiosk design of 1924, of Neo-classical inspiration. The K6 was more streamlined aesthetically, more compact and more cost-effective to mass produce. Giles Gilbert Scott (1880-1960) was one of the most important of modern British architects; his many celebrated commissions include the Anglican cathedral of Liverpool and Battersea power station. The K2 and K6 telephone kiosks can be said to represent a very thoughtful adaptation of architectural tradition to contemporary technological requirements. Well over 10,000 K6s were eventually produced. In the 1960s many were replaced with far plainer kiosk types. But many still remain, and continue to be an iconic feature on Britain's streetscapes.
REASONS FOR DESIGNATION
The K6 telephone kiosk in Saxton, North Yorkshire, is recommended for designation at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
* It is situated in close proximity to a Grade I church, with which it enjoys a strong visual relationship
* It has a visual relationship with two Grade II listed buildings
* It is a representative example within a village setting of this important C20 industrial design
Source: English Heritage
Listed building text is © Crown Copyright. Reproduced under licence: PSI Click-use licence number C2008002006.