Post office on the move

POST office customers in Pill could soon have a new, easier to access store in their village.

Postmaster at Pill Post Office, Kate Jopp, is hoping to relocate the shop to a unit in Baltic Place in the village centre so more people can make the most of the services it offers.

Currently the post office is located in the quiet Myrtle Hill and in the past few years the number of people using it has fallen.

Now, Kate, who has been postmaster for nine years, hopes to revitalise the business with the move to a location where there is a higher footfall and better access.

It is also hoped that being sited next to other retail units will help increase the number of post office customers.

Kate said: “With footfall falling in the last few years we are just hoping to prolong the life of the post office in the village.

“Things like losing the TV licence facility haven’t helped and the increase in Pay Points in supermarkets, which allow people to pay for their bills out of hours rather than coming to us to do it.

“With the online payments available for things such as car tax as well that doesn’t help our business.”

The proposed move to Baltic Place is currently out to consultation and members of the public have six weeks to make comments.

If Royal Mail agree to the move following the consultation, it is expected that the post office shop will move to the village centre sometime in February or March but the sorting office will remain at its current site.