MYSTERY surrounds what has become of Manaton’s only phone box.

Residents of the small village on Dartmoor claim it has been cut off from the outside world after BT removed the phone box - twice - without consulting residents.

Manaton is a notorious mobile black spot with no mobile phone reception at all in some areas.

Villagers say a few years ago BT took away the village’s only phone box without notice.

BT eventually bowed to public opinion but replaced the heritage K2 Giles Gilbert Scott box with a modern alternative.

That too has now disappeared.

It seems there are ‘crossed wires’ about the fate of the phone box as while villagers claim the second box was removed, although no one is entirely sure when, BT insist there has been no phone box in Manaton since 2020.

Villager Emma de la Fosse explained: ‘There is no mobile signal at all in our area of Manaton. To get any mobile reception at all we have to drive to Trendlebere Down or to the top of the village, both are half a mile away.

‘With the BT digital switchover coming, we won’t have landlines anymore.

‘BT are relying on people having a mobile phone as a back-up in the event the new digital lines fail in the event of a power outage or tech problem.

‘But what if your entire neighbourhood doesn’t have a mobile signal? That is why it it is so important that BT give Manaton our phone box back

‘The parish council has never been consulted on the removal of the public call box and neither has Dartmoor National Park Authority, it seems. It’s all a bit of a mystery.

‘Because we don’t have any information about BT’s decision, it makes it impossible to register a complaint with Ofcom.

‘There are many elderly people in the area, plus lots of walkers and tourists.

‘Some residents have had lost tourists knocking on their door asking if they can use their phone as they can’t get a mobile signal and the OS map still shows a box here.

‘At best this situation is inconvenient, at worst it could cost a life.’

Ofcom states: ‘In areas with poor mobile coverage, a public call box can be the only option for making calls, including to the emergency services.’

The regulator lists four criteria that prevent a phone box being removed, including ‘evidence that the box is reasonably needed at the site – for example if it is likely to be relied upon in the event of a local emergency’.

BT says its records show its payphone was removed in 2020.

A spokesman said: ‘We only remove payphones that are no longer being used in line with Ofcom guidance and following consultation with local authorities.’

The company says rural mobile coverage has ‘improved significantly’ in recent years.

According to Ofcom’s mobile coverage checker, BT says all UK mobile operators have outdoor mobile coverage in Manaton, ensuring emergency calls can be made on any mobile phone network and, if in an area where their network doesn’t have reception but another does, 999 calls will automatically connect.

BT says in the event of a power cut after the digital landline switchover, customers are advised to use a mobile phone but if mobile is not an option, free battery back-up units are available.