An Oxfordshire MP is calling for more investment on the Post Office network.
Olly Glover, MP for Didcot and Wantage, debated the future of local Post Offices while praising their role as community hubs.
In the debate last week Mr Glover spoke of the community services Post Offices provide but highlighted that many in his Didcot and Wantage constituency are under threat.
He said: “They offer vital human contact and offer information and support for people who might otherwise be isolated, particularly given suboptimal rural transport links.”
The work of the postmistress in Blewbury near Didcot, where the village Post Office is based in the village hall, was given as an example of both the invaluable postal service offered but also the extra support they can provide.
Postmistress Karen Foreman had told Mr Glover of how she had recently helped with locating a lost cat, a lost bunch of keys and a missing bank card.
The MP added: “Post Offices are facing rising operating costs and the services they offer do not generate much revenue, making it hard to keep the lights on with an estimated 1.7 pence per transaction in revenue. But we can do a lot more to support our community branches.
“The Post Office network and the very hard working postmasters and mistresses in villages such as Blewbury, and many others in my constituency and beyond, are in dire need of our support.”