Tudorville Residents Tackle Post Office Ltd at Public Meeting

8.14.00am BST (GMT +0100) Sun 28th Sep 2008

Paul Keetch MP and Sarah Carr speaking to local media outsode Tudorville Post Office to highlight the flaws in the closure plans

Tudorville Youth Centre in Ross-on-Wye was standing room only for a packed public meeting on the future of Tudorville Post Office on Friday 19th September. The public meeting was co-ordinated by Tudorville Community Association and chaired by Ross Mayor Councillor John Davies with representatives from Post Office Limited and consumer champion Postwatch on the top table to answer questions.

Sarah Carr, the local Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Candidate, who has been campaigning to save Tudorville Post Office since the day the planned closure was announced, attended the packed meeting. Sarah Carr has met with many local residents appalled by the closure especially from more elderly and less mobile members of the community.

At the public meeting with questions being taken on the impact of the closure on the less mobile living in Tudorville, Sarah Carr also asked Post Office Ltd representatives about the impact on small local businesses who currently use Tudorville Post Office and the impact of withdrawal of services for posting large packages. At the meeting, Sarah also expressed her great concern that details of a new 'urban outreach' should Tudorville Post Office be closed were not up for discussion in the meeting as limited information about the outreach was available.

Commenting on the meeting Sarah said,

"I was pleased that Post Office Ltd and Postwatch representatives attended the packed public meeting in Tudorville to hear the passionate views of local residents but disappointed that they were not taking views on the proposed alternative urban outreach.

"It is clear that local people will have to put forward very forceful arguments to maintain Tudorville Post Office as it is currently, based on clear examples of how the post office closure will impact them personally. I urge all Tudorville and concerned Ross residents to write to Freepost Postwatch and Freepost Consultation Team by the 7th October with their views. A small number of campaigns to reverse the closure of post offices have been successful and therefore local people must do everything possible to persuade Post Office Ltd to keep open the Post Office in Tudorville. I will also continue to press for more information on the details of the 'urban outreach' proposals".