Dear Ms Broughton
Thank you for your email regarding Post Office services in Kirtlington. This has been passed to me for response.
As you know Kirtlington Post Office closed following the resignation of the postmaster and the withdrawal of premises for post office use. We appreciate that the community in Kirtlington are concerned about the branch closing and have requested an outreach service for the area.
It may be helpful to explain that the costs of running the Post Office branch network have increased in recent years, however the funding we receive from the Government to maintain the loss-making, typically rural part of the Post Office network, which includes outreach branches, has not changed in line with these costs. This inevitably means that difficult decisions have to be made in order to prioritise our limited resources to support those branches that will benefit the most customers, and to provide sustainable services for all Post Office customers across the UK.
As previously advised, we have carefully reviewed service provision in the local area to determine the accessibility of alternative services nearby, and as you know we are not looking to replace the branch in Kirtlington at this time. Unfortunately, this would also include the provision of an outreach service for the community. You can find our Principles of Community Engagement principles-of-community-engagement-june-2024.pdf (postofficeviews.co.uk) this will provide you with information in relation to the communications we undertake in respect of changes to the Post Office Network.
We apologise to our customers who may have to travel further to access services. I can assure you we continually review our branch network, and should the current situation change, we will update our customers in the local area.
Kind regards
Michael
Michael Norman
Policy & Briefing Manager
Corporate Affairs, Brand & Communications
externalaffairs@postoffice.co.uk
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