Residents call for Canterbury City Council to issue an emergency Article 4 Direction
Canterbury’s distinctive cast-iron streetlights – many still stamped with the old Canterbury City Corporation crest – are under threat. Kent County Council (KCC) is condemning these historic columns and intends to replace them with generic steel poles fitted with standardised “heritage-style” embellishments.
Residents and heritage groups, including the Canterbury Society, Alliance of Canterbury Residents Associations (ACRA), and the Oaten Hill and South Canterbury Association (OHSCA), are calling on Canterbury City Council (CCC) to issue an emergency Article 4 Direction to protect these features before they are lost.
These elegant cast-iron columns are a unique part of Canterbury’s civic and industrial heritage. They were produced by H.M. Biggleston & Sons, a Canterbury ironworks founded in 1835 and located in the heart of the city. The firm supplied lamp posts to the City for nearly 130 years and, from 1908, became a leading manufacturer of electric street lighting equipment, supplying fittings across Britain and overseas. The foundry finally closed in 1963, but replica Biggleston-style columns continued to be installed and repaired in Canterbury well into the 21st century – with examples recorded as recently as 2023.
“These lamp columns are as much a part of Canterbury’s story as its walls or gates, — they are a 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.”
Campaigners argue that as Canterbury is a World Heritage City, its heritage assets must be prioritised. While KCC is carrying out the removals using its powers under the Highways Acts, Canterbury City Council is the only authority with the legal power to stop them.
Under planning law, CCC can issue an emergency Article 4 Direction to withdraw permitted development rights for the replacement or alteration of street lighting within the city’s Conservation Areas. This would bring such works under planning control and require formal permission for any future replacements – ensuring consistency and heritage-appropriate design.
“KCC state that they are not legally obliged to install heritage lighting…
….but that’s only true because CCC hasn’t acted to control this unwelcome change.
An Article 4 Direction would change that overnight – and force proper design oversight.”
Campaigners also highlight a lack of joined-up thinking within the City Council. While CCC’s £20 million Levelling Up Fund programme includes repainting and replicating cast-iron columns in Dane John Gardens and parts of the city centre, identical lamp posts on nearby public streets are being removed.
“It’s a lack of joined-up thinking,” said Mr Mayhew.
“The City Council is preserving these heritage assets in parks, yet turning a blind eye when they’re stripped out of the streetscape.”
A petition calling on Canterbury City Council to act has been launched by the Canterbury Society and will be formally presented to Cllr Alan Baldock, Leader of the Council.
The petition can be signed online via the Canterbury Society website.
Heritage Streetlights – Your Questions Answered
What’s happening to Canterbury’s cast-iron streetlights?
Kent County Council (KCC) has started removing some of Canterbury’s historic cast-iron “Biggleston” columns and replacing them with modern steel ones. This has happened because many cast-iron columns are ageing, and KCC has safety obligations as the Highways Authority.
Why are residents concerned?
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The original columns are a distinctive part of Canterbury’s character, especially in Conservation Areas. The steel replacements are generic and out of keeping with the historic streetscape. People want reassurance that any replacements will respect the city’s heritage. |
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Who is responsible for what?
- KCC owns and maintains the lighting on the highway.
- Canterbury City Council (CCC) is the Local Planning Authority and holds the powers to protect heritage and set design standards in Conservation Areas.
KCC carries out the physical work.
CCC controls how that work should look in heritage areas.
Why hasn’t this been sorted out already?
An extensive set of correspondence (2020–2024), released under Environmental Information Regulations (EIR), shows that:
- KCC repeatedly asked CCC for heritage guidance and design approval.
- CCC didn’t provide a clear written position.
- No Heritage Impact Assessment, specification or design standard was ever completed.
- Decisions stalled, meaning KCC acted alone under safety obligations.
Only recently – with the potential for mass-scale removal of these columns – has the issue received prominent attention, which is finally prompting movement.
Why can’t CCC just refuse the steel replacements?
CCC can influence what gets installed. They have the power to:
- issue an Article 4 Direction, removing KCC’s automatic permitted-development rights;
- require like-for-like reinstatement using the Biggleston casting moulds created under the Levelling Up Fund programme;
- introduce a Local Development Order (LDO) setting clear standards for lighting, materials and reinstatement in Conservation Areas.
These tools have not yet been used.
What about the Biggleston cast-iron moulds?
CCC already holds the mould created during the LUF public-realm works.
This allows proper replicas to be made at any time.
KCC has asked to discuss using it. CCC needs to confirm in writing whether this is required.
Has the steel design been approved by CCC?
No.
The steel column and embellishment kit currently in use have not been formally approved by CCC’s heritage or planning teams. KCC proceeded because they were unable to obtain a decision and had safety pressures.
Are the original columns unsafe?
A small number of poorly maintained columns may require additional work. The safety of individual columns should be assessed properly, but most can be restored.
Replacement should only happen where genuinely required – and where it does, like-for-like heritage reinstatement should be the standard.
Is there a map of these?
We’ve created a public map showing every cast-iron column across the district, using KCC’s own street-lighting inventory data. You can explore it below (or here):
The map lets you:
- see exactly where the heritage columns are located
- understand which streets and neighbourhoods are affected
- zoom in street-by-street
- and check how many columns remain in each area.
It is the first time this information has been available to the public in a single, accessible format.
my father worked at Biggleston foundry. Seeing those lamp posts disappear one by one breaks my heart. They’re part of our city’s story made here, for here you can’t just replace that with a bit of steel tubing from a Freemans catalogue.
I walk past these every day on the school run they’re part of what makes Canterbury feel like Canterbury.
It’s honestly wild that they’re replacing perfectly good posts instead of just repainting them.
We talk about sustainability all the time, and this is literally the opposite!! throwing away something that’s lasted a century for new steel that’ll need replacing again in 20 years. Heritage is sustainability.
These should be listed in order to protect them
The original lamppost in Castle Street by the junction with St John’s Lane was knocked down by a lorry some years ago and attempts to get the Council to replace it with the same kind have failed. They have placed a straight steel lamppost next to the bandaged stump of the old one which remains where it was. The local residents association have not replied to my recent messages to get them involved in this issue.