Post Office Closures

This Assembly recognises that reform of the Crown Post Office Network is necessary and long overdue.  The Assembly welcomes progress being made to this end, with losses reduced by up to £14m, to around £40m, in the past three years.

Nevertheless, proposed reforms have the potential to disproportionately impact on Londoners.  Of the six offices identified for outright closure – as part of a plan to close or franchise 76 Crown Post Offices - five are located in the capital: Lupus St; Sutton High St; Kennington Park Road; Stockwell; and Broadgate.

Despite only representing 3% of the postal network, Crown Post Offices employ 4000 people and are responsible for 20% of all Post Office business.  Crown Post Offices also process 40% of financial services mail and are therefore a crucial component of London’s economy.

Post offices not only provide essential services to the public that are not available anywhere else, but they are also central to the local economies in which they are located. This Assembly is concerned at the potential adverse impacts on post-office accessibility for Londoners and the business community.

This Assembly therefore calls on the Mayor of London to: 

• write to the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State with responsibility for Post Offices, informing them of the concerns raised by the Assembly about the closure of five of London’s Crown Post Offices; 
• request that the Under-Secretary undertake to conduct a broader social and economic assessment of the proposed closures, focussing on the impact on customers; and
• seek assurances from the Under-Secretary that successful franchisees for Crown Post Offices will be strongly encouraged to pay their staff the London Living Wage.