14 POs to go and more may follow
Mar 13 2008 by Ben Guy, The Journal
A RAFT of post office closures in the region was announced yesterday, prompting fears many more are to follow.
The Post Office announced plans to shut 14 of its branches in County Durham, with more regional closures set to be announced later this year.
The first closures will be made in the southern part of the county, and councillor Brian Myers, cabinet member for social inclusion at Durham County Council, will chair a public meeting that is being held to discuss the implications of the proposed closures.
He said: “We are very concerned about the proposed closures and the effect they could have on isolated and vulnerable communities. In many rural villages in County Durham the local post office is a vital part of the community and the local economy.
“There are no alternative services proposed for the areas affected and this could have a devastating effect.”
The Post Office is due to announce the planned closures for the rest of Durham, Tyne and Wear and Northumberland this summer.
A consultation period with councils and residents in those areas will be carried out throughout July and August.
Peter Atkinson is MP for Tynedale, an area of Northumberland that is likely to lose a number of branches following the summer consultations. He said: “There is a difficulty to the consultations because if a community manages to save its post office then you commit another one to being shut.
“It is a no win situation. My view is that any post office that is profitable should be allowed to continue to exist.”
Mr Atkinson also said that the scheme put forward by Essex County Council to run post offices itself could be extended to authorities in the North East.
A Northumberland County Council spokesperson said: “The post offices within our county are an invaluable part of connecting our communities. The council is monitoring the situation, and will look to other councils to see what they are doing nearer the time.”
A Durham County Council spokesman said: “We don’t know what the implications will be for the proposals across the county, but we will look at that option as the process moves forward.”
The post offices that are set to be closed are in: Bolam, Boldron, Hutton Henry, Hutton Magna, Jubilee Fields, Kirk Merrington, Leeholme, Page Bank, Romaldkirk, Simpasture, South Church, Toft Hill, Tudhoe Colliery and Winston.
The meeting will take place on Saturday at Coundon and Leeholme Community Association – known as Leeholme Welfare Hall, County Durham – between 10am and 12.30pm.
The consultation period for the first set of closures ends on March 26.
Comment: Page 10
