Delivering to schools during school holidays

thedonkey · Post by **thedonkey** » 22 Jul 2019, 19:41

We have been told that any schools we deliver to must have a keepsafe if access to the school is not available during school holidays. We have been told to let the school know that any mail that can't be delivered will be written off and returned to sender. Message given to receptionist but i have no way of knowing if the message has been passed onto the headteacher or business manager. Surely RM should have put out a standard letter with a response form in which they can let us know the preferred method of dealing with deliveries during school holidays. How does your office deal with school mail during holidays?

Post by **SpacePhoenix** » 22 Jul 2019, 20:06

thedonkey wrote:We have been told that any schools we deliver to must have a keepsafe if access to the school is not available during school holidays. We have been told to let the school know that any mail that can't be delivered will be written off and returned to sender. Message given to receptionist but i have no way of knowing if the message has been passed onto the headteacher or business manager. Surely RM should have put out a standard letter with a response form in which they can let us know the preferred method of dealing with deliveries during school holidays. How does your office deal with school mail during holidays?

That's the correct way, RM isn't allowed to offer them a free keepsafe when others have to pay for it. I don't know why RM don't send out a letter to each school via SD a sensible amount of time before hand with a notification that they need a keepsafe in place and a form for setting up the keepsafe

olilew · Post by **olilew** » 22 Jul 2019, 20:08

Been standing practice in our office for years. If a school hasn't put a keepsafe in, our manager tells us to try and deliver each day and if you can't deliver kill off that days mail.

ted_e_bear · Post by **ted_e_bear** » 22 Jul 2019, 21:09

thedonkey wrote:We have been told that any schools we deliver to must have a keepsafe if access to the school is not available during school holidays. We have been told to let the school know that any mail that can't be delivered will be written off and returned to sender. Message given to receptionist but i have no way of knowing if the message has been passed onto the headteacher or business manager. Surely RM should have put out a standard letter with a response form in which they can let us know the preferred method of dealing with deliveries during school holidays. How does your office deal with school mail during holidays?

Our manager says he's sent a standard letter to the schools in our area, presume as with most things other managers haven't as they can't be arsed to do their jobs.

Celgar · Post by **Celgar** » 22 Jul 2019, 22:26

I have never seen a school covered by our DO take out a keepsafe for any holiday let alone the long summer holidays in the twenty years I have been a postie. Either they don't bother and think it will be alright or they don't have the money to spare from their budgets. EU competition rules don't officially allow us to hold school mail for free so officially if it can't be delivered it has to be killed off even though schools are effectively the government & RM was until fairly recently part of the government.
In practice we tend to hold onto the school mail whatever. All schools are different so some can still be accessed or have a caretaker. The one on my round usually gets visited by cleaners or others doing repairs at various points in time so I keep an eye out for when the door is open. Just have to make sure the school mail isn't visible if auditors turn up in the DO.

number one · Post by **number one** » 23 Jul 2019, 06:32

Or they could just take out a “call and collect” for free and collect it a day before they go back

Acca Dacca · Post by **Acca Dacca** » 23 Jul 2019, 08:20

Celgar wrote:I have never seen a school covered by our DO take out a keepsafe for any holiday let alone the long summer holidays in the twenty years I have been a postie. Either they don't bother and think it will be alright or they don't have the money to spare from their budgets. EU competition rules don't officially allow us to hold school mail for free so officially if it can't be delivered it has to be killed off even though schools are effectively the government & RM was until fairly recently part of the government.
In practice we tend to hold onto the school mail whatever. All schools are different so some can still be accessed or have a caretaker. The one on my round usually gets visited by cleaners or others doing repairs at various points in time so I keep an eye out for when the door is open. Just have to make sure the school mail isn't visible if auditors turn up in the DO.

Its nothing to do with 'EU competition rules' its simply a matter of treating every customer as equals which is the fair thing to do.

Theres nothing stopping schools installing a large letterbox opening on their shutters eiher

2Shedz · Post by **2Shedz** » 23 Jul 2019, 11:34

I have this argument with a manager every year.

If you are making schools pay for a keepsafe when they are closed for holiday why aren't you
making the businesses that are shut over xmas pay for one as well.
Especially those with no point of delivery.

Smiffy

Post by **SpacePhoenix** » 23 Jul 2019, 11:44

Don't all schools now have a caretaker living on site who could take in all the mail for the schools?

Post by **TrueBlueTerrier** » 23 Jul 2019, 13:51

Daft thing is for a relatively low-cost rate, someone in marketing could send letters to all schools and businesses advising them of Keep Safe.

As of 2013, there were 24,372 schools in the UK. Sending them a letter in late June (for argument's sake lets say it costs 30p per letter) would cost circa £7300.

At £49.50 for each school (66 days option) it would mean to break even they would only need roughly 150 schools taking it up.

Anything more would be profit

antcpfc · Post by **antcpfc** » 23 Jul 2019, 14:05

olilew wrote:Been standing practice in our office for years. If a school hasn't put a keepsafe in, our manager tells us to try and deliver each day and if you can't deliver kill off that days mail.

Ridiculous. Takes more time than keeping it and sending it in one lump,who would know?

Jefferson Starfish · Post by **Jefferson Starfish** » 23 Jul 2019, 14:12

SpacePhoenix wrote:Don't all schools now have a caretaker living on site who could take in all the mail for the schools?

The school I deliver to doesn't.

Post by **postpersondorset** » 23 Jul 2019, 15:19

what do you do to the schools mail on a Saturday ?
do you not keep it till the Monday ?
or return to sender ?

clashcityrocker · Post by **clashcityrocker** » 23 Jul 2019, 15:30

DORSET##CENTRE wrote:what do you do to the schools mail on a Saturday ?

Many businesses request that their mail is retained over the weekend if they are shut on Saturday.
There is even a facility on the PDA to scan their barcoded items as "retention".
It isn't comparable to holding it for 6 weeks.

Post by **SpacePhoenix** » 23 Jul 2019, 15:47

clashcityrocker wrote:Many businesses request that their mail is retained over the weekend if they are shut on Saturday.
There is even a facility on the PDA to scan their barcoded items as "retention".

AFAIK they have to pay for that, no mention on the RM business price list of a Saturday Retention service, only Keepsafe