Request action at Calverley Post Office

By John Baron

“More needs to be done” to replace services after the loss of Calverley Post Office, West Leeds politicians claim.

following closing the branch earlier this yearLeeds West MP and Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves, along with Calverley & Farsley councilors Peter Carlill and Craig Timmins, have written to the Post Office to ensure work is underway to ensure the village will not be left without a post office.

After reading the response, they became concerned that not enough was being done to return these vital services.

Cllr Craig Timmins said: “The loss of postal services in the village is a big blow to the community – but in the current climate we understand why the new owners of Calverley Village Store would not be keen to take it on. We have therefore written to the Post Office to ask what they are doing to ensure that these services are not lost.

“The response I received says they have not received any consultation requests so far and will ‘continue to monitor the situation’. In our view, this is simply not good enough.”

Labour’s parliamentary candidate for Leeds West and Pudsey, current Leeds West MP Rachel Reeves, added: “Former owners Waheeda and Asaf Hussain built the post office into a vital hub in the community, going above and beyond to provide a service for the village – their efforts deserve more.

“During this period they were victims of the Horizon scandal, having to borrow money to compensate for apparently false deficiencies in the accounting system.

“Sub-postmasters were vindicated in their courageous pursuit of justice. We will study the legislation carefully to ensure that it applies to sub-postmasters like Mr and Mrs Hussain and to ensure that compensation is issued quickly.”

Cllr Peter Carlill said: “Coupled with the loss of the NatWest branch in Greengates, the closure of the Post Office in Calverley means that many residents will now find going about their day-to-day activities much more difficult.

“In the meantime, we have applied to Link through the ‘cash access scheme’ for a free ATM for the village and will be pushing the Post Office to come back with a more proactive response.”

The on-site general store remained open in Calverley, with the post office facilities closed.

A Post Office spokesman said: “Calverley Post Office closed in March due to the resignation of the postmaster who served this community well for many years and we thank him for his service to this community.

“We know how important a post office is to a community and we are keen to restore the service as soon as possible. The vacancy is announced on www.runapostoffice.co.uk. Our field team also visited the area and spoke to existing retailers about how taking over the post office can increase the share of their existing business. Alternatively, there could be an opportunity for a new retailer to operate a post office alongside a retail business. There is one retailer interested and discussions are at an early stage.

“Meanwhile, alternative branches include Idle, Harrogate Road and Farsley. Visit www.postoffice.co.uk/branch-finder for details of locations, opening times and services.”

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