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Pictured outside Essex Road post office are Cllr Gary Doolan, Cllr Catherine West, Jeremy Corbyn MP, Emily Thornberry MP, Cllr Shelley Coupland and Cllr Martin Klute |
HOPES SOAR IN FIGHT TO SAVE POST OFFICE
MP hails ‘breakthrough’ that could see stamps sold in library
A BREAKTHROUGH was claimed this week in a two-year battle to save a threatened Islington post office from closure.
Labour MP Emily Thornberry has been assured Essex Road Crown post office will only shut if an alternative franchise can be found or if nearby branches in Upper Street and Highbury can handle the extra customers following closure.
The news was welcomed by campaigners but Islington Council’s ruling Lib Dem leader Councillor James Kempton said he was not aware of the new development.
It could mean two smaller post offices opening nearby to provide the equivalent of the five counters at Essex Road.
Ms Thornberry, MP for Islington South and Finsbury, has appealed to the council to help find alternative premises for the smaller post offices, possibly in a library or municipal building.
Labour and Lib Dem campaigners have been fighting to save the busy Essex Road post office for two years. Its future became uncertain after the council sold the building’s freehold.
At the same time the Post Office was asked by the government to stick within strict financial limits, sparking a nationwide programme of planned closures.
Essex Road is one of only two Crown post offices – the other is at Ludgate Circus – threatened with closure.
At a meeting with Post Office chiefs, Ms Thornberry argued that Essex Road was in a poor, inner-city area and must be kept open.
Then last week Ms Thornberry and Islington North Labour MP Jeremy Corbyn held another meeting with Paula Vennells, who is in charge of the London post office network.
Ms Vennells sent an email to Ms Thornberry on Wednesday, stating that her “preference” for a post office would be “a possible franchise option”.
She wrote that she had asked her team to replace Essex Road with two smaller offices.
She then wondered “if there is a public service building we could consider, perhaps for an outreach solution – library, council offices, other – where it might work.”
She added: “Could you pass this on to your council colleagues: they may have some thoughts?”
Then she writes: “In conclusion, we will not close Essex Road unless we have found a franchise partner(s), or until I am personally satisfied that we can handle the increased numbers at Upper Street and Highbury.”
She admitted Upper Street was not ideal, but believes it could be improved to handle the extra business.
Ms Thornberry said: “We are not out of the woods yet, but this is a breakthrough and there is real hope now that we can save the services.
“Ideally, I would love to save Essex Road Crown office. It is still possible. But if we can at least retain our services then the long battle has not been wasted. I’m very keen to work with the Lib Dems over this.”
But Cllr Kempton said yesterday (Thursday) he was not prepared to comment on a new development he was not aware of. Of Ms Thornberry’s claim that there had been “a breakthrough”, he added: “I spoke to the Post Office yesterday and was told nothing of the sort. This is a lady who is desperately trying to wriggle out of a difficult position over the way she voted with the government last week.”
Residents welcomed the possibility of smaller franchised post offices replacing Essex Road.
Founder member of the Islington Society, Harley Sherlock, lives within walking distance of Essex Road post office but tends to use the branch at Highbury Corner.
He said: “There used to be a sub-post office at nearby Highbury Grove within a grocer’s shop. It was always busy. The public library in Essex Road would also be a good choice.” |
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