Post Office bosses are being urged to reconsider their decision to close a village post office in South Pembrokeshire. The Post Office in Lawrenny closed yesterday (Thursday) after 80 years of service. Demonstrating against the closure with placards, villagers posted their final Christmas cards, Christmas presents and bade a fond farewell to the postmistress. However, the fight for the Post Office to re-open continues. Members of the Save the Lawrenny Post Office Campaign and MP Nick Ainger will be meeting with Tony Jones, the Post Office network development manager, today (Friday). The villagers are calling for a reprieve on the removal of the equipment, so the post office can be re-opened with new volunteers and new ideas which they claim, will make it more profitable. Yesterday's demonstration came days after a packed public meeting was held to discuss the closure. Held at Lawrenny Village Hall, some 50 people attended the evening meeting chaired by village resident Keith Williams, "There was excellent support from the community council, Pembrokeshire County Council, AM Christine Gwyther, Diane Clements, of the Countryside Alliance and Conservatives, and John Gossage, prospective AM candidate for the Liberal Democrats," said a campaign spokesperson. The overall updated position regarding the Post Office was given in some detail and over an hour of open discussion took place. Among those to address the meeting was AM for Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire. Christine Gwyther. She said the whole process had been "flawed... and the Post Office has questions to answer on the way this village has been treated." Said Keith Williams: "The Post Office said it's closing our post office in Lawrenny because no candidates came forward to take over, and because the premises were being withdrawn. That's just not true. "I registered my interest in the position almost immediately," said Mrs. Marijke McBean from Lawrenny, "so I don't know why the Post Office is saying no one has come forward." Surprised landlords, David and Virginia Lort Phillips, say they have not withdrawn the premises and have not been contacted by the Post Office. "It's unbelievable," added Mr. Williams. "The Post Office has used very underhand tactics to close our post office. First they said no one offered to take over, now we've rumbled that, they're saying it's uneconomical. At Monday's meeting, it was agreed to ask for a reprieve from the Post Office over the busy Christmas period, in order to give villagers a chance to turn the business around with new ideas. The Post Office intend operating a Home Service, starting on Wednesday. However, the meeting felt the service was not acceptable. On a show of hands, not one person indicated that they would be registering for it. When contacted by the Observer, Denise Sparkes, Post Office manager said: "Our subpostmaster, Mrs. Maria Carrier and her husband Mark have worked tirelessly over the past years to try and ensure that the residents of Lawrenny have access to Post Office services in the village. "In August 2004, she pioneered a bus service to outlying hamlets to collect customers who do not have their own transport. However, despite her efforts, her customer base has diminished to a point where the business is no longer viable, and she has decided to tender her resignation. On behalf of Post Office Ltd., I would like to thank her for her hard work and dedication."
"However, I am delighted to tell you that an opportunity has arisen to continue offering a service to the Lawrenny community via our Home Service offered by our subpostmaster Mark Wilson at Pembroke Post Office branch, she continued. " The Post Office Home Service was introduced as a pilot scheme to allow essential services to be maintained in remote rural areas. Post Office Ltd. are now proposing to extend this service into the village of Lawrenny. This type of service does not rely upon having a physical Post Office branch in the village, but customers, following registration, will be able to phone the Pembroke branch directly from the comfort of their own home, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Subpostmaster Mark Wilson will then arrange delivery of the products and services directly to their homes between 1.30 and 2.30 pm every Wednesday. This service will start from Wednesday onwards. Extending this service to Lawrenny will mean that the local community will retain full access to Post Office products and services, on their doorstep, thus preventing the loss of a vital service to this community. A range of retail items, i.e. educational toys, learning resources, stationery, greetings cards and confectionary, will also be available from the core branch in Pembroke. "I would once again like to thank Maria for her hard work in the past and I trust that residents of the area will do all they can to continue to support their local subpostmaster in this venture, thus safeguarding Post Office services to the local community in the longer term," concluded Denise Sparkes. Tony Jones, Post Office Ltd.'s network development manager, said: "It is widely acknowledged that the habits of many Post Office customers have changed over the years and this clearly has influenced the viability of many Post Offices throughout the country. " "Our subpostmaster in Lawrenny, Maria Carrier and her husband Mark, have worked tirelessly with many innovative initiatives to engender support from the village and surrounding communities. However, sadly, despite their best efforts, the level of income that she receives from her customers (on average less than 20 a week - with only a handful being regular customers) means that her business is no longer viable. "Since the opening hours of a Post Office branch are determined by the level of business undertaken at that branch, it is prudent that, before entering discussions with potential candidates and agreeing a new contract, a review of the levels of transactions at that Post Office branch is undertaken. "Aligning the hours of opening, commensurate with the level of business actually transacted at an individual office helps us to maintain the viability of the Post Office network whilst, at the same time, allowing customers continued access to those services they value in their locality." "Under such a review for Lawrenny, where the volume of business handled has unfortunately reduced over the years, it now actually warrants a significantly reduced face-to-face serving time from the present eight hours per week. "The proposal to introduce a Home Service enables customers in the area to still have access to Post Office products and services, as well as getting a personal service from our very experienced subpostmaster at Pembroke, Mark Wilson, directly to their homes. It is also more efficient and cost effective in terms of the whole network and helps to sustain the branch at Pembroke. "Under the terms of the Code of Practice with Postwatch, the postal services watchdog, we are mandated to enter into a period of public consultation. Indeed, we wrote to locally elected representatives in the area on October 31 as part of this process. However, had I waited until the end of this process, there would most certainly have been a break in the provision of service from November 30. "In order to talk to and inform local Post Office users, we recently held a 'drop in' session at the Lawrenny Post Office branch and we shall be writing directly to all residents of the area in the near future. "Whilst I understand the local concerns, my responsibility is to ensure access to Post Office services in the most efficient and effective manner possible. Therefore, in my view, and based on the level of demand, the only way that this can be achieved is by the introduction of the Home Service option and I am planning to introduce this service as from Wednesday."
Assembly meeting
Nick Bourne, leader of the Welsh Conservatives in the National Assembly and Assembly Member for Mid and West Wales, has met with representatives of Post Office Ltd. in the National Assembly and discussed the issue of Lawrenny Post Office. Nick Bourne said: "I made it clear to Post Office Ltd. that their decision to close the branch at Lawrenny when alternative candidates willing to maintain a full time service exist has caused much anger and resentment locally. "I stressed that I believe maintaining a post office in the village is the best option and alternative forms of service should only be considered when that objective cannot be met. "I urged them to reconsider their decision as a matter of urgency."