Postman who is a 'trusted friend' in community given birthday honour by The Queen

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Postman Christopher Vallimae checks on his elderly customers while delivering their letters

A Weston-super-Mare postman – who checks on elderly and vulnerable residents on his rounds – has been recognised in the Queen’s Birthday Honours.

Sixty five year-old Christopher Vallimae – who has been awarded a MBE for services to the community in North Somerset - sees his role as much more than just delivering letters and parcels.

As well as being the cheery face of the Royal Mail, Chris, goes above and beyond his routine duties, checking on his customers many of whom are elderly and have medical conditions.

To many he has become a trusted friend who often helps them decipher bills and find reputable tradesmen to carry out work on their homes.

For the younger members of the community, he represents the postal service at nurseries and play schools to explain how the postal system works, engaging the children with interactive activities.

During his army service earlier in his life, he earned the appointment as battalion photographer and captured significant events in history during his tours of duty in Northern Ireland and Berlin.

He also taught evening classes in photography and digital image editing for eight years, as part of Weston College of Further Education in the local community, encouraging his elderly customers to get involved and identify with the digital world.

His students ranged in age from 19 to 90.

Mr Vallimae also served for four years as a Governor of Castle Batch Community Primary School.