The local community, along with Leatherhead Community Hub, are fighting to save their local post office on Kingston Road. This is part of a series of closures in communities across the UK by Tesco-owned One Stop, due to take place at the end of March. Decisions are being made about these vital services without direct consultation with, and consideration of, those impacted. Residents of North Leatherhead want to be heard.
Residents have hosted a community meeting, organised a petition hand-signed by several hundred people, and collected 161 responses to a community survey. 89% of respondents said it was “very important” to keep a post office in North Leatherhead, and 65% said it would be “difficult” or “very difficult” to get to another post office.
Ruth Smith, resident and campaign organiser, said: “This will be so detrimental in an area with many older, disabled, and disadvantaged residents who would struggle to access the town centre post office. The loss of this essential, local resource would put another nail in the coffin of a once vibrant community, which has already lost the children’s centre, local pub, and pharmacy.”
Maureen, resident and campaign supporter, said: “I use a mobile scooter and can’t use the town centre post office as there is no room to get out, once in, and I can’t turn around”.
Other members of the community have said: “I don’t have transport, so I have to walk up town. I don’t always have money for the bus”.
“I would have problems paying my bills on time if I had to go into Leatherhead town, which would take a lot more time and money as I would have to pay for parking.”
“I am disabled and would find it very difficult to carry a parcel to Leatherhead by public transport and queue for a long time without being able to sit down.”
Many residents rely on the post office for parcel delivery, to pay their bills, top up their gas and electricity, and collect their pensions. Local businesses depend on the post office for banking services now that all local bank branches have closed. According to the Post Office, this site performs better than average for many of its services, so the decision to close it has confused residents.
North Leatherhead is around a mile from the town centre and has the feel of a separate village. The post office is a hub, somewhere people can connect, helping to maintain cohesion in the community. The closure of these resources increases the modern-day epidemics of loneliness and isolation.
Tesco plays a big part in the area as the main provider of shopping facilities in North Leatherhead and states that community is key to its purpose. Therefore, the community and its representatives would value an opportunity to meet with them to discuss how we can work together to retain this essential community resource.
The campaign to save the post office in Fetcham was successful and shows that the community coming together can make a difference. If you haven’t already, please sign our petition to keep our post office open by visiting Leatherhead Community Hub or the B@titude shop, both on Kingston Road.
For further information about the campaign, please contact Carley Timerick, LCH Community Development worker: carley@lch.community, 07450 650302
