Post Office Closures

We’ve now got the list of Post Offices for closure in the new Winchester & Chandler’s Ford constituency.

The Post Offices proposed for closure are:

• Littleton
• Shawford
• Bournemouth Road, Chandler’s Ford

In addition, Micheldever has been proposed for closure and replacement by an ‘outreach service‘ with local people being consulted on which kind of outreach they want.

People opposed to the closures – or who want to have their say on which method of outreach they prefer – can write to:

Tim Nickolls
Network Development Manager
C/o National Consultation Team
FREEPOST CONSULTATION TEAM

or email consultation@postoffice.co.uk.

The more detailed the argument against the Post Office’s analysis behind their proposal, the better.

We are going to be campaigning very hard against these closures in the affected areas. To be successful, we need to make a strong case for each post office about how seriously closure will affect the local community – and, in particular, highlight any mistakes in their assumptions. The most important thing that people can do is write to the Post Office and clearly explain how the loss of the post office is going to affect them – particularly if people are dependent on public transport and there are issues in accessing alternative sites.

The real problem here is the Government. They’re the ones who are forcing the Post Office to close 2,500 post offices. And while it’s true that many people prefer accessing post office services via the internet or other shops, the problem is the impact on the elderly and those who find it hard to access any alternatives.

Rather than having the Government take business away from the post office, there’s a clear opportunity for both the Government and local Councils to use local post offices as local points of contact – putting more business through post offices to help sustain the network.