Battle to save post offices
Vital services will be lost in three villages when their post offices close this month.
The Post Office has announced that branches in North Luffenham, Wing and South Luffenham will close before Christmas because their subpostmaster has resigned and a replacement cannot be found.
The move is supposed to be temporary but villagers fear once the branches close they will be gone for good, so they've launched a campaign to keep them running.
They hope to find a new subpostmaster before December 22.
Janet Whittaker, chairman of North Luffenham's community centre, said: "We want to support the community so we have to fight for our services.
"We lost one of our pubs when the Horse and Panniers closed last week and for some people the post office is the only time they get to see each other. Once these things close, they very rarely open again."
The post office at Wing village hall will close temporarily on December 22. Its satellite branch at St Mary and St John's Primary School in North Luffenham will close on December 18 and the branch at South Luffenham village hall on December 22.
Customers have been advised by the Post Office to use the branches at Uppingham or Ketton – neither of which has bus links from the affected villages. Uppingham is 3.6 miles from Wing, 8.4 from North Luffenham and 5.4 from South Luffenham. Ketton is seven miles from Wing, 11 from North Luffenham and 3.1 miles from South Luffenham.
The campaigners have the backing of Rutland's MP Alan Duncan who also hopes the branches will be saved.
He said: "Just when we thought that we had reached the end of a damaging period of uncertainty for post offices, this latest news is a bitter blow to local residents.
"These three branches are much more than just places to send letters from; they are hubs of the communities and a lifeline for elderly or more vulnerable people.
"Whole swathes of Rutland will be left without access to these vital services. This situation needs to be resolved as swiftly as possible."
The subpostmaster has been asked to collect the equipment from each branch and return it to the Post Office in January.
In a letter to Mr Duncan the Post Office has vowed to fight for the services. It says: "We will continue to work to find a solution that will provide a Post Office presence in the community."
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Monday 28 May 2012
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