THE Post Office has ended uncertainty over the future of the service in the town and will remain in Church Street.
The town’s Post Office was set to move from its current location on Church Street to 6-8 Bank Street earlier this year as part of a nationwide restructuring of the post office. However, this was delayed before the proposed site was leased to a restaurant. Now, following a long period of uncertainty, the Post Office has now decided to retain and invest in Melksham Post Office as part of its ongoing modernisation programme.
General manager of the Crown Post Office Network, Roger Gale said, “Post Office can confirm that we have not found a suitable retail partner that would help secure the future of Melksham Post Office, and we will not be continuing with our search.
“This means that this branch will remain under Post Office management. Our plan now is to invest in the branch to modernise it as part of our ongoing transformation programme, designed to ensure our Post Office branches are sustainable and profitable, reducing reliance on Government funding.
“I would like to express my appreciation for the great work of our colleagues at Melksham Post Office who have provided an excellent service to customers throughout our search for a partner. I believe that with their help and the investment we have planned, we will be able to meet customer needs.”
Melksham councillor and chair of Melksham Area Board, Jon Hubbard, has welcomed news that the Post Office in Melksham will now be remaining in its current site and refurbished. Cllr Hubbard said, “I am delighted that the Post Office have seen sense and agreed to keep the current site. Melksham is a growing market town and will see its population increase significantly in the next few years. We need to see more investment into our community by organisations like the Post Office, not see them choosing to leave.
“This is good news for Melksham and I look forward to seeing the refurbishment take place sooner rather than later.
“I just wish that we had never had to go through the pain of the last 12 months, with all of the uncertainly and worry. I hope we will now see the work undertaken as soon as possible and look forward to seeing the Post Office remain in its current location for many years to come.”
The Post Office is currently making a multi-million pound investment programme across its branch network. Over 3,500 branches across the UK have already been modernised, with many offering extended opening hours.
The Post Office, now independent of Royal Mail, is the largest retail network in the UK with over 11,500 branches. It is also one of the UK’s fastest growing financial services companies and is the market leader for travel money.
