Villages get a new post office, thanks to postmaster parachuted in (From The Oxford Times)

Villages get a new post office, thanks to postmaster parachuted in

12:16pm Friday 26th June 2009

• Print
• Email
• Share
• Comments(0)

VILLAGERS are celebrating the opening of their new post office three years after the original closed.

People at Aston Tirrold and Aston Upthorpe lost their post office in 2006 following the retirement of postmaster Cynthia Cox, who ran the service from her home in Baker Street for 30 years.

But villagers have welcomed a new weekly service, thanks to the Government’s new Outreach service programme, which provides for an established sub-postmaster from a nearby community to run the service in addition to their own post office branch.

The programme enables the Post Office to maintain a service in smaller communities in addition to supporting existing branches.

Postmistress Angela Foot, who also runs the Pangbourne post office, has started opening the Astons post office every Tuesday between 9.30am and 12.30pm in Astons village hall in Thorpe Street, Aston Upthorpe.

Jan Smith, who organises bookings for the village hall, said the new service coincided with the reopening of the refurbished hall following a grant from South Oxfordshire District Council.

She said: “It’s particularly important for the older people in the village and mothers with young children because it makes it more straightforward to do things.

“It’s also got more services than the other one, services that you can get at Didcot and Wallingford. You can get foreign money, cash, postal services and you can pay bills. The only thing you can’t get is a car licence or passport.”

Ms Smith said villagers hoped to expand the service with a fruit and vegetable exchange and other local stalls to attract more users.

She added: “We are hoping to get more passing trade and give people another reason to come to the post office.

“People are very pleased about it. It’s got a lot of support from the village. We lost our village shop in the 90s, so there was literally nothing.”

• Print
• Email
• Share
• Comments(0)