21AA. Grange Close, Burton-upon-Trent, Staffordshire. Situated on a short access road to a row of garages are three Stanton 7 15 ft (5 m) concrete columns, with two supporting 'A' type brackets (swan necks); the third supporting the curved type of bracket that has no kick-back. By 2022, un-sleeved columns from this era were rare throughout Staffordshire, and a possibility exists that these may have been forgotten about when the majority of the Burton columns were sleeved, given their location. All three of the columns run Thorn Beta 5 35 Watt SOX lanterns, which are likely to have been 1980s - 90s' replacements for ELECO HW-852s running 150 Watt GLS lamps, as seen with the disused column here.
Ladder bars were an option with the Stanton 7 range, but as can be seen, they were not specified with these examples.
The installations are in excellent condition, with no obvious signs of spalling at all.
The original lamp support in this Beta 5 has been substituted with a cable tie wrapped around the gear tray. Although the lantern appears to be fitted 'backwards' (as the bowl clip on top-entry versions tends to face the bracket), this is only necessary when a NEMA photocell is fitted, but as this example is fitted with a miniature photocell, the lantern can be installed with the clip facing outwards.
Relatively modern control gear exists in this column base, although the capacitor is a little older, dating from May 1992.
These two columns are installed on a very narrow footway between the road and the back entrances to the adjacent properties.
The lantern appeared to be popular with the local bird population!
The third column was at the end of the roadway, on a footpath between the flats.
This lantern was even more revolting than the previous one was, with even the bowl looking as if it had resorted to nature!
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