Peoples Republic of South Devon

Post mortem

July 23rd, 2008

posted by Cptn

Good news for the Torbay communities of Chelston and Torre - their post offices will stay open, at the possible expense of Abbotskerwell and Moreleigh (although Moreligh has already closed) - a six-week public consultation about these new proposals will begin on August 5.

In all, 37 of the proposed 45 closures from the Post Office (which now takes ‘Limited”) will go ahead.

And 32 post offices from their original list of 38 are to be replaced by outreach services (which we’re guessing used to be called ‘delivering the mail’).

According to the press release from Devon County Council: “Millwey Rise in Axminster, Offwell, and Queen Street in Exeter, which were on POL’s proposed closure list; and Bridestowe, Shebbear, Lustleigh and Widecombe in the Moor, which were on POL’s proposal list for replacement with outreach services list, are undergoing further review by Postwatch. The outcome of this extended period of review for these post offices is expected in three weeks.

“Decisions affecting changes to services in Buckland Monachorum, Milton Combe, and Peter Tavy, Clearbrook and Lamerton, which are currently served by a Devon and Cornwall Mobile Post Office operating from Tavistock, have also been postponed to follow Cornwall’s consultation on POL’s change programme, which ends on 1st September.

“According to POL, Devon’s remaining network of 333 branches will then meet the Government’s access criteria, ensuring that 99.4% of the Devon area will either see no change or will remain within one mile, by road distance, of an alternative branch.”

Devon County Council’s executive Member for Communities, Cllr Brian Berman, said: “We are greatly concerned about their new proposal for closure at Abbotskerswell, which we had not expected. We will in the course of this new round of consultation be negotiating hard for the service to remain unchanged.

“We are hopeful that POL, in escalating the cases of the seven post offices to Postwatch, that they will listen to the evidence from those communities, as they have in Chelston and Torre in Torbay, and come to the right decision.

“I am particularly disappointed by their decision concerning Tipton St John, which we believe has a very strong case to remain unchanged, and which has a very solid body of support from its local community.

“And I have to keep coming back to the basic fact that the overall figure for Devon is way too many, where for example closures for the West Berkshire and Wiltshire areas were only 30 compared to our proposed 83 of which 71 are in Devon.

“We will be continuing our negotiations with POL to make the best arrangements for outreach services. Our main concerns for outreach have been for communities where proposed changes also affect the only shops in those areas, and that is where we think our support would be best placed.”

Full details of the decisions and the issues raised during local public consultation are available by visiting the post office website or by writing to Post Office Ltd at Freepost Consultation Team or by emailing consultation@postoffice.co.uk

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