One place where people can meet (From Worcester News)

One place where people can meet

8:00am Sunday 31st August 2008 in News By Lucy Tatchell

Sub postmistress Cath Speake at Rushwick Post Office

RESIDENTS have been showing their support for Rushwick Post Office which could be axed by the end of the year.

It is one of the branches facing closure in the county after last week’s Government announcement and users have been busy signing a petition and giving their comments to the parish council.

Sub-postmistress Cath Speake said: “I have had wonderful support over the last few days. It really has been great.”

Post office users feel the closure would be a great loss to their community and create an inconvenience as their nearest branch would become St John’s in Worcester.

There are also concerns the plans for Worcester’s future development, which include a railway halt in the village, have not been considered in the decision.

Sir Michael Spicer, MP for West Worcestershire, said: “Although its present usage is apparently low, Harriett Baldwin and I feel insufficient attention has been given to future housing development west of Worcester. At the very least, a part time supported service should be provided for Rushwick.”

Harriett Baldwin, Cons-ervative parliamentary candidate for West Worcestershire, added the journey to St John’s post office was difficult.

“The route crosses the busy outer ring road,” she said. “The bus is infrequent. There is very limited parking in St John’s.”

One user of the post office is Jim Pickrell, who lives in Rushwick and uses the branch frequently for business.

“It will be a big loss to the village and it will create a lot of additional problems for folks having to travel to other post offices,” he said.

Another user, Bernard Mew, said: “You need to have a post office to go to as and when you need to for the services that are required, St John’s is really out of the question.”

There has been a post office in the village since the 1930s and if it goes, so does the village shop.

John Dixon, chairman of Rushwick Parish Council, said: “It would take away the one place left in the village where people meet each other on a regular basis.

“It would adversely affect the elderly, infirm and those without their own private transport.”

Mrs Speake said there are people who already struggle to get to her post office.

“Some phone up because they cannot get to me, so I go out to them,” she said.

The closure announcement followed Govern-ment proposals to close post officers following a fall in people using them.

As a result, Post Office Limited developed a network change programme which involves the compulsory compensated closure of up to 2,500 post offices out of 14,000 across the country.

A six-week public consultation has started and the Post Office wants to hear from users who have concerns over the proposals.

To express your views on the issue, write to Mark Partington, Network Development Manager, c/o National Consultation Team, Free-post consultation team.