A POPULAR west Cumbrian postwoman is celebrating 30 years of service in the town of Cockermouth.
51-year-old Tracy Scott, who has lived in the town of Cockermouth all her life, celebrated 30 years service as a postwoman in the town and surrounding villages on April 15.
Having originally started out in hairdressing, Tracy became a postwoman at the age of 21 and has over the years been a popular face in Cockermouth, carrying out her round with a smile and stopping to chat to many in the town.
"I can only say I have enjoyed it really. I have made a lot of friends. The job has changed over the years, but you just have to change with it", said Tracy.
For many years Tracy was a 'reserve', serving lots of the villages around Cockermouth including Papcastle, Broughton, Loweswater and Deanscales. She said: "It's such a beautiful place to do that job when you go out into the countryside."
Ten years ago, new changes brought in by the Post Office led to Tracy having a set round, with the mother of two choosing to take the Main Street.
"I thought if I take the Main Street round I will see a lot of the people who I have seen over the years when they come into Cockermouth and that's actually what's happened, so I have kept in touch with a lot of people.
"It's not like being in the villages and you see the same people, you are in the town and you see different people every day", said Tracy.
"I think being out and about keeps you healthy. I just like the exercise part of it as well. I was a hairdresser before this and I just wanted to be outside."
Outside of work, Tracy has completed all of the Wainwright fells, likes socialising and going to bingo, and started volunteering to help out at rugby league club the Cockermouth Titans: her son Ryan plays and her friend Suzanne runs the club.
When asked about what she likes most about Cockermouth, Tracy said: "It's just a nice, friendly place really. There are nice places round it as well, you can always find nice places to go for a drink or somewhere to eat."
Remembering her time as postwoman in the town, Tracy recalled the 2009 Cockermouth floods, saying it was 'heart warming' to see how people came together to help the shops that were affected on her round.
Tracy said: "You just don't know if you would get that everywhere, just how everybody helped each other."
Tracy's husband Michael started a taxi business 'Tracy's Taxi's' 12 months ago, with the postwoman saying she may apply for her licence in the near future should Michael add another vehicle to their current fleet.
However currently she has no plans to give up her role as a postwoman saying: "I think as long as I can keep on going, I will."