158A. Avenue Close, Stoney Middleton, Hope Valley Installed on this short cul-de-sac is a single top-entry Thorn Beta 5 35 Watt SOX lantern attached to a lengthy piece of steel conduit that terminates into a cast iron ESLA-branded control box (much the same as those seen on the previous page) located only just above head height. From there, the supply cable enters from the underside of the box, passes back up the pole, and then attaches to the property behind using a catenary wire. This rather Heath-Robinson setup is set to disappear in the near future, as a 6 m column supporting an Isaro Pro-S 26 Watt LED lantern, also made by Thorn, is installed and operational alongside - this being serviced from an underground supply instead.
As well as providing the supply and support for the bracket, the pole also carries overhead British Telecom wiring.
With the new lantern being operational, the lamp and photocell have been removed from the Beta 5 already.
This view demonstrates the length of conduit required to reach the box. A similar installation used to exist on Furnall Avenue in Great Longstone, near Bakewell; however, the conduit was shorter on that example. Although there appears to be a rear section missing from the top bracket clamp, in reality, there are two large coach bolts holding the front section tightly to the pole.
The two generations of Thorn lanterns (and street lighting technology generally) are exhibited here.
The box has lost most, if not all, of its paint, but remains in reasonable condition for its age. What appears to be an old painted '1' is visible on the box cover - this is likely to be an old numbering system that existed prior to the multiple-digit setup employed in Derbyshire today.
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