'Bewildered' people 'appalled' as Post Offices close suddenly

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https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/li ... s-32827034

Post Offices across Merseyside have been shut “until further notice” including Penny Lane, Woolton, Childwall, Hunts Cross and Croxteth

Communities across Merseyside have been left without a place to manage their money after Post Offices closed suddenly — in areas which have already lost all of their banks. The ECHO this morning reported that Post Offices across Merseyside were shut “until further notice”, including Penny Lane, Woolton, Childwall, Hunts Cross and Croxteth.

Readers have since told the ECHO that Post Offices at Walton Vale, Bootle Watts Lane, and Formby have also closed. The ECHO visited the Penny Lane branch on Smithdown Road and the Woolton Street branch in Woolton village this morning and found both shuttered.

Post Office Ltd would not confirm the locations of closed branches or provide a full list of affected sites. The company cited “operational reasons” for the closures this morning, and is yet to elaborate despite the ECHO’s attempts.

Lucy Antal, 57, walked to Woolton Post Office early this morning (Thursday, November 6), and encountered a “number of bewildered older people outside holding parcels they wanted to post and asking where they could go”.

Ms Antal, who has lived in Woolton village for 25 years, said: “Other people were stopping off and saying ‘You can’t go to Hunts Cross, that’s closed as well.

“This is going to have a big impact. The Post Office is always busy; you go there at any time and there’s always a queue of people getting their pensions, or paying their bills, or putting money into their bank accounts. It’s really popular.

Ms Antal, who works as a food access manager for the Food Wise charity and drives the 'Queen of Greens' bus around the city, said: “I’m worried for the staff who work there because they are brilliant and really helpful. If you haven’t got a car, I don’t know how you would get to another Post Office if you’re not as mobile.

“We used have lots of banks here in Woolton — a Lloyds, a HSBC and a Barclays — but they’ve all gone, and now we have to use cashpoints to get cash. They work less often than they work, and this closure leaves the whole village with no way to do banking — or to post things, for that matter. It’s crucial.“

Ms Antal describes Woolton as “isolated”, with infrequent buses that “don’t go where you need them to go”.

Martin Price, 66, of Formby said: “For those people who want cash or to process transactions, it means a huge inconvenience in having to travel to either Southport or Crosby, and for some elderly people that will be impossible, because they haven’t got the transport to be able to do that.”

The ECHO understands Formby Post Office closed yesterday (November 5). Mr Price added: “You would think it would be in the interests of the Post Office to make an announcement regionally to the local press and to reassure people that this is a minor issue and that normal service will be resumed.

“I would think there are a lot of people worried about this locally, particularly older people who rely on the Post Office to withdraw their pension.”

Is your local Post Office closed? Contact jonathan.blackburn@reachplc.com

Vickie Cooper, 46, uses Penny Lane Post Office weekly to send parcels to her mum in Glasgow.

She said: “It’s going to make life very difficult. My mum is vulnerable and I use the Post Office to keep on top of what I need to get her. Whenever I go to that Post Office there’s a big queue. There’s been absolutely no warning.

“I’m appalled. There are so many people more vulnerable than me relying on it. What do they do now?”

A Post Office spokesperson said: “There are some Post Office branches in the Liverpool area that are currently closed for operational reasons. It is not known when these branches will re-open. In the interim there are nearby alternative branches and customers are advised to visit www.postoffice.co.uk/branch-finder to find out the locations, opening hours and the range of services offered.”

At the time of writing, the branch finder tool the Post Office provides is showing branches the ECHO has confirmed as being closed as open, including Woolton and Penny Lane Post Offices.