Save Our Post Offices
Post office closure plans ‘a death of a thousand cuts’
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| FEARS FOR ELDERLY: Barry Palmer inside Leeholme Post Office |
RESIDENTS have pledged to
fight to keep their local post office,
which is threatened with closure
even though it had to take
on extra staff to deal with customer
demand.
More than 500 people have
signed a petition to save Leeholme
post office, near Bishop
Auckland, from closure.
When the postmistress of nearby
Coundon retired in January,
Leeholme was forced to take on
part-time staff to cope with a
surge in customers.
Despite this, Leeholme is one
of the post offices in the North-
East and North Yorkshire listed
for closure by Post Office Limited
in February.
Audrey Maughan, 68, is leading
the fight to save Leeholme.
She said: "The post office is
very convenient for all of
Coundon and Leeholme. It is directly
opposite a bus stop.
"A lot of older people do not
have bank accounts, they solely
use the post office."
Proposals to open a post office
at Coundon community centre
have not impressed villagers.
Mrs Maughan said: "If the service
was to move to the community
centre, the new location
would cause a lot of problems for
old people.
"It has been there for as long as
I can remember. This is sad for
the older people in the village - in
fact it is sad for us all."
Councillor Neil Stonehouse,
who represents the area on Wear
Valley District Council, said:
"Post Office Limited has been
very shortsighted in closing the
services at Leeholme and the
Government is going against its
own criteria.
"Coundon and Leeholme are
deprived areas. Should they both
close, residents would not have a
post office within a mile of their
home."
Postmaster Barry Palmer has
worked at Leeholme for 17 years.
He said: "The closure of our
post office would have a detrimental
effect on elderly people in
the village.
"Villagers will have to travel to
Bishop Auckland if there is no
post office in Coundon or Leeholme.
It would mean everything
is centralised, which is fine for
people who drive, but what about
those who don't?
The Government says do not
use your car for everything - and
then sets about forcing you to
travel for services.
"It has been death of villages
like Leeholme by a thousand
cuts. Margaret Thatcher closed
the pits and Tony Blair closed the
post offices."
10:39am Tuesday 18th March 2008
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