Three Post Offices saved

by Hammersmith and Fulham Press Office
06/05/2008

Three of the six post offices threatened with closure in Hammersmith and Fulham have been saved, thanks to a joint campaign by residents and the council.

The Starch Green sub-post office branch at 7 King’s Parade in Askew Road, W6, the Kenyon Street branch in Fulham and the branch at 146 Shepherds Bush Road, W6 will remain open.

Formal notification was given today (7 May 08) by Post Office Ltd that these three branches are among the seven across London that have been saved from closure.

Previously, the Shepherds Bush Road branch was named by Postwatch as one of the top five closures in London it is most worried about.

Hammersmith & Fulham Councillor Paul Bristow reacted to the good news by saying: "With the help of local residents, we did our homework and presented Post Office Ltd with a dossier which they simply couldn’t argue with. When we called them in for our public meeting on March 19, they confessed that they did not know about the fifty flats for blind and partially-sighted residents at Pocklington Lodge, near the Askew Road branch.

"I’d like to thank the residents who worked so hard on the campaign to save the post offices."

Meanwhile, Richard Scott, 65, who lives in Bassein Park Road, Shepherds Bush, said: "This is another successful demonstration of what local residents and the council can achieve. It’s a triumph of common sense. It’s about time the post office took notice of residents – who are also its customers. But every victory is mitigated by the knowledge that we are being blackmailed. For every post office saved, they will close another one in response. It’s a perverted retribution."

Another branch-user and resident, Peter Sands, 55, of Pocklington Lodge, in Rylett Road, Shepherds Bush, said: "This victory shows that residents matter. Being blind, I would have had a terrible problem getting to another post office. It allows me to live an independent life."

And Annabel Clarke, of the Cathnor Park Area Action Group, said: "All of the residents’ and amenity groups are thrilled. But not nearly as thrilled as the most vulnerable in our community, especially the blind residents of Pocklington Lodge."

The plans to rip the heart out of the borough by axing six post office sub-branches were robustly challenged by the council. Its formal submission, handed in to post office bosses on April 2, included hosting a public meeting in Hammersmith Town Hall and collecting a petition with more than 1,000 residents opposed to the closures.

Three branches remain on the chopping block. They are: 780 Fulham Road, 68 Askew Road and 88 Goldhawk Road.

Cllr Bristow added: "We will continue to press Post Office Ltd to secure an agreement on a move into our libraries. These services are essential, especially to the elderly and disabled, and we will do everything we can to save them."

To view Hammersmith & Fulham Council’s submission to Post Office Ltd visit: www.lbhf.gov.uk/postofficeclosures.