Scarborough Council has received plans from BT which is looking to sell the kiosks for as little as £1 due to a sharp decline in use.

There are currently 18 red telephone boxes in the Scarborough area, including two outside the Stephen Joseph Theatre in Westborough which are classed as listed structures and another in Sandside.

Further boxes include one in High Street in Cloughton which saw 118 people use it last year and one in Osgodby Lane where 89 people made a call in the last 12 months.

The proposal was discussed yesterday at the council's planning and development committee – and under the proposal the telephone equipment would be removed.

Adrian Perry, chairman of Scarborough Civic Society, said he welcomed the idea and believed the telephone boxes were a cultural icon.

He said: "The telephone boxes are something that make people smile and they offer a little bit of history.

"It is quite a good idea and I know there are quite a few places in the country with the red telephone boxes where they have taken them and made them into a tourist information site."

Mr Perry said he hoped the town could take responsibility for the boxes which he believed would help make the town a tidier and potentially offer further information for visitors to Scarborough.

He said: "I think it is important that local people support the initiative because we need to take responsibility for them and keep it up to scratch.

"We don't want to see a lot of derelict and unsightly telephone boxes around the town and if we can get them and make them tidier then it will improve the look of the town.

"There is also the possibility of using them as a tourist point and providing a focal area for visitors who can find out more about the town by using them."