We're sorted for Christmas mail

[TrueBlueTerrier]

http://edinburghnews.scotsman.com/featu ... 5900064.jp" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

THE room is a blur of busy hands, packages are stacked against the walls, heaped trollies whiz past, and the brightly-lit hall is a hive of pre-Christmas activity.
But this isn't Santa's grotto and there isn't an elf in sight – the scene of this lively hubbub is the Portobello delivery office in Windsor Place.

Portobello is one of the Capital's last small-scale delivery offices, where posties come in before dawn to sort their own mail. Many of them live nearby, several have worked here for decades, and the sense of warmth and camaraderie is obvious.

Today, they are in good spirits despite the strain of heading into their busiest season. From the middle of this week, the pace has been picking up, and on Monday they will have their busiest day of the year, after a weekend in which the nation is expected to sit down and write its Christmas cards.

Manager John Watling estimates that 32,000 items will come through the office today, in contrast to the usual figure of 18,000.

One of the office's many long-serving posties is David Clark, who has worked at Portobello for 23-and-a-half years. While other industries have been revolutionised in that time, being a postie, he says, is still much the same as it was then – apart from the growth of internet shopping.

He says: "It's not really changed – I'm still delivering post through doors, although it's got heavier."

David, 45, starts work at 5:30am each morning. Before he rattles your letterbox, he has already completed more than half his shift.

"A lot of people think we come in and this magic bag appears and we take it out," he says. Instead, the first five hours of the shift are spent sorting mail.

A letter posted elsewhere in Edinburgh and bound for Portobello will first be taken to the Edinburgh mail centre in Sighthill, from where it is delivered to Portobello.

Each postie sorts the mail for their round – or "walk", as they are known, in a dedicated "frame" – a row of shelves with a slot marked for every address. The mail is then loaded into bags, and at 10:20am David puts them in his car to get to his walk, around Milton Road East and Musselburgh. The festive season means no holidays and overtime all round, so this afternoon he will be back in the office for the end of a split shift.

It's a busy time, but having been on the same walk for years makes it easier, he says. "Christmas cards make a big difference and that's where the fun and games start. I had one addressed to a house in Queen's Bay Crescent and it was addressed to 'The Poodle Dogs'. I know who The Poodle Dogs are, but if anyone didn't know and they were doing my walk, they'd have been a bit confused."

Mention of dogs inevitably conjures up comic-book images of every postie's nemesis, the territorial pet. David has had a nip, but from an unexpected source.

He says: "I've been bitten by a cat. I put my finger through the letterbox to deliver a letter and it jumped up and wouldn't let go.

"But it let go when I started hitting its head about the back of the letterbox. Last time I saw it, it just ran away."

Apart from such occupational hazards, he loves the job. The father-of-two, who now lives in Prestonpans, grew up just around the corner.

The job also gives him the time to follow his other career, as a Sergeant Major in the Territorial Army. In 2004-5 he served in Iraq. He says: "I've been doing this 24 years, so all I do is put letters through doors, I don't actually have to think. When I go there, I have to manage 25 guys – it's completely different."

Across the room, Michael Sime, 45, is breaking into a sweat as he sorts mail for his Duddingston walk. He's been on the same route for 11 years, and has been at the office for 25 years. One of his roles is guiding school pupils on work experience, such as 15-year-old Morad Yassin, from Iraq, but now a pupil at St Thomas of Aquin's, who is shadowing him today.

Michael enjoys working with youngsters, and says with satisfaction: "It's great to see the kids put their codes on a letter." Everyone in the office is passionate to the point of obsession about the need for postcodes.

He is also a Communication Workers' Union rep, and so was at the heart of the recent industrial action. He says: "We were out three times I think, it was worse here than London. I was just glad that we got an agreement."

But despite the dispute, morale in the office is high, boosted by manager John's pride in his 28-strong team.

"This is Edinburgh's best kept secret," he says. "Actually I've got a waiting list of people to come in here. There's a big sorting office in Telferton, and they're always asking me if I've got a job for them. We're just happy here, we work well and we've all gelled.

"About two months ago, there was a guy whose mother had died in Northern Ireland and the guys all whipped round and got his flight, and they all worked his hours – that's what they do here."

By the time most workers are sitting down at their desks or opening their shop doors, the early morning flurry in the office is dying down.

It looks like a village hall in the wake of a particularly vigorous Christmas party. Discarded slips of paper and countless rubber bands litter the floor. Someone arrives with the "missorts" – items accidentally sent to the wrong office (mostly, somebody notes, because "the public don't understand what a postcode is").

Vicky White, 39, is one of the last few finishing her sorting before heading out to Joppa.

With the growth in the number of parcels and packets, posties would be forgiven, you'd think, for dreading the festive season.

But, sorting as she talks, Vicky says: "This will take me about four hours, 15 minutes today – the whole frame was jam-packed with packets. But I look forward to it. It's best being busy."

Parcel test delivers mixed bag of results for service
IT'S a common complaint. The postman doesn't bother to take the heavy parcel on his round, but simply drops a "Sorry you were out card" through the letterbox. This is especially frustrating for people who knew they were in at the time.

But how often does this really happen? The Evening News decided to test the Royal Mail by posting ten parcels, to various addresses, on the same day. We asked recipients to make sure they were at home at the expected delivery time.

Two of the ten recipients said the postmen did not even try to deliver their parcel. They simply found a card waiting on their doorstep.

Alex Close, 28, a student, was in his top-floor flat on Albert Street when the post was delivered. He says: "There wasn't even a knock at the door, but I heard the card coming through the letterbox."

Malcolm Wallace, 71, a retired admin assistant, was at his flat in St Leonard's Street when the card was dropped through his door. He says: "The card said it had been returned to their office. This is the fourth time this has happened."

However, the majority of our readers were happy with their postal service. Four of our parcels arrived the following day, while the rest arrived within three days.

A Royal Mail spokeswoman said: "Royal Mail's priority is to deliver our customers' parcels as quickly as possible.

"Royal Mail has not been given an opportunity to investigate any incidents relating to the Evening News survey and cannot verify the accuracy of these claims."

[DGP1]

he mail is then loaded into bags, and at 10:20am David puts them in his car to get to his walk

[pinstripe]

"A Royal Mail spokeswoman said: "Royal Mail's priority is to deliver our customers' parcels as quickly as possible."

[steven100]

He just finished 2 hours ago

[axeman]

four hours and 15 but how many seconds ? where do these prats get the licence to publish crap like this, it's no doubt a royal fail bullshi* press release ......straight out of the currier

[not me]

Alex Close, 28, a student, was in his top-floor flat on Albert Street when the post was delivered. He says: "There wasn't even a knock at the door, but I heard the card coming through the letterbox."

Malcolm Wallace, 71, a retired admin assistant, was at his flat in St Leonard's Street when the card was dropped through his door. He says: "The card said it had been returned to their office. This is the fourth time this has happened."

because the driver was round the day before when you wernt in
i farking hate these tenement stairs

[brothermagrew]

he mail is then loaded into bags, and at 10:20am David puts them in his car to get to his walk

Well spotted brother and a union rep to boot. Shame on him

[not me]

He is also a Communication Workers' Union rep, and so was at the heart of the recent industrial action. He says: "We were out three times I think, it was worse here than London. I was just glad that we got an agreement."

But despite the dispute, morale in the office is high, boosted by manager John's pride in his 28-strong team.

also WTF is this about?

[BELIAL]

[mucker]

"A Royal Mail spokeswoman said: "Royal Mail's priority is to deliver our customers' parcels as quickly as possible."

more like fail packets every day is a priority for royal fail,feck the customer.