Ballymena Post Office on the move?
POST Office has moved to allay fears that Ballymena’s town centre branch is set to close.
The Wellington Street branch is one of 70 Crown branches across the UK which are involved in a consultation over their future, with Post Office stressing it is not a “closure programme”.
Instead, Post Office is seeking for a “retail partner” to take on the franchise, either at the existing location or another outlet nearby.
The move would be similar to existing smaller franchises which are located within supermarkets and other outlets.
And, if not “retail partner” is found, Post Office say they are committed to ensuring there will still be a branch in the area.
A Post Office spokesperson said: “We are currently undertaking the biggest business transformation programme in the history of the Post Office.
“Our overall investment will maintain the size of the network and modernise branches to meet customer needs.”
The Crown branches are currently operating at a £40m annual loss and so Post Office are keen to make them profitable once again.
“Crown branches are a fundamental part of our long term growth strategy and need to be brought into profit,” the spokesperson said.
She added: “To maintain our high street presence we will be looking to find retail partners for 70 of our branches enabling us to stay in these locations.
“The 70 branches that have the potential to be partnered with a retailer [including Ballymena] will be subject to a six week public consultation to gather the views of the local community.
“We are committed to having a Post Office branch within the area.
“The Post Office successfully works with many retail partners. We already have over 3,000 branches across the UK where customers are accessing services in this way.
“If no retail partner is found we are still committed to having a Crown Post Office within the area. This is not a closure programme and there are no compulsory redundancies planned as part of this strategy.”
* What do you think about Post Office’s plans? Have your say on our Facebook page www.facebook.com/Ballymena_Times
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Weather for Ballymena
Wednesday 22 May 2013
Today
Cloudy
Temperature: 4 C to 11 C
Wind Speed: 20 mph
Wind direction: North west
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