Reference your article on Post Office closures in the Saffron Walden Reporter I am pleased to see that Essex County Council is trying to help prevent this very retrograde step. On the one hand county and district councils are exhorting us to recycle, redu

Reference your article on Post Office closures in the Saffron Walden Reporter I am pleased to see that Essex County Council is trying to help prevent this very retrograde step.

On the one hand county and district councils are exhorting us to recycle, reduce carbon footprints etc. and then apparently stand by and see the Post Office just make the whole situation worse.

Our local office (Rowntree Way, Saffron Walden) has already closed but it has provided an excellent service, not only for the people that live near it, but also for people from out of town who find it much more convenient to stop there rather than drive into the town.

But of course the main victims of the closure are the people who might now have to get a taxi into town to use the Post Office or use their car, not to mention the Shahs who have worked so hard there. It must be debatable whether the local shop will be viable without the Post Office customers calling in, and the Post Office pay, which may result in another hardship for local people.

It must be possible to think of other services the Post Office can offer to increase the revenue for rural offices. Can people pay their council tax there? It would also be a good idea to get more banks to offer banking facilities through the office.

Roger Smith

Maypole Close

Saffron Walden