Mortimer Common to lose its Post Office branch

A community will lose its post office in under two weeks’ time.

Mortimer Common Post Office, in Victoria Road, is closing at 1pm on Thursday, May 15, due to the Co-op withdrawing, Post Office has informed residents.

In a letter to customers, the state-owned retail post office company said: “Following the resignation of our retail partner Co-operative Group Ltd and the withdrawal of the premises for Post Office use, the above branch will be closing.”

It apologised for any inconvenience the closure may cause, but added it is investigating options to reinstate the service locally to keep any period of closure “to a minimum”.

But some residents have voiced their concerns.

Patsy Stone, who runs the village Warm Welcome Group, said: “It’s quite a blow to hear the post office will be closing.

“It will affect me as I use it to post parcels and buy stamps.”

She added while she is one of the “lucky ones” who can drive to other locations, not everyone in her group is as fortunate.

She continued: “I do know that some of our Warm Welcome people don’t have cars and rely totally on the post office.

“They will be lost without it, especially those who rely on our post office for collecting their weekly pensions.”

The next nearest available branches for customers are in Burghfield Common (1.3 miles), Pamber Heath (2.9 miles), Bramley (3.2 miles) and Mulford’s Hill (3.8 miles).