On 5 Apr 2016 at 9:39am Queuer wrote:
Got there yesterday at about 3:45. 2 kiosks open. 12 customers in front of me. Queue out the door. By the time I got to the front of the queue, which took me 15 minutes, there were at least ten customers behind me, and the queue was still out of the door. I saw at least one person look at the queue and walk off.
I think the Royal Mail is a good thing, and although I very rarely use the Post Office, when I do need to use it, it’s essential.
But, bearing in mind that there will still be a service in Lewes if it moves, and you’d hope that they’d employ at least some of the very helpful staff….and the fact that it’s now a listed company owned by shareholders – could the service really be any worse if it moved down to WH Smiths?
Is this really any more than a point of principle?
On 5 Apr 2016 at 10:40am Earl of Lewes wrote:
It might just be a point of principle, but it's an important one. The Government want to sell off as many public buildings and spaces as possible - okay, you could argue that it's now owned by the privatised Royal Mail, but it's still essentially for public use. I don't feel happy with having land that is supposed to belong to us being flogged off to often foreign investors who have no interest in the well being of the public. Harold Macmillan famously warned against selling off the family silver. Are we really any better off under privatisation? Is BT a huge improvement on the old Post Ofiice? Do we get better value for money with our water bills? And why are we unable to build a nuclear power station without the French and Chinese? For God's sake, we pioneered nuclear power in the 1950s! The Conservatives claim to be patriotic, but they don't believe in Britain and don't value its heritage. I don't know who I'd vote for.
On 5 Apr 2016 at 10:59am Mark wrote:
It will be very interesting to see how our Conservative government responds to the news from Panama. Will they be concerned about the fact that HMRC are haemorrhaging billions of pounds annually of public money to the uber-rich or will it all just be brushed under the carpet?
On 5 Apr 2016 at 11:12am Lopster wrote:
bit confused I am afraid...
there will still be a service when Post Office closes - where?
if it moves to WHSmith - has that been suggested?
it USED to have a presence there - which rumour tells me is still recorded in a central database somewhere, the powers that be must believe that WHS will provide the service when the Post Office closes...
hmmm!
On 5 Apr 2016 at 11:48am Grunge wrote:
I understood WHS refused to have the Post Office when they took over the shop because it impacted on their selling space. Public spirited or what!
On 5 Apr 2016 at 2:06pm Big Man wrote:
see that clown corbyn will take the post office back into public ownership and if you thick it bad now then see it go down the pan even more.
On 5 Apr 2016 at 2:22pm Postman Pat wrote:
Berk.
On 5 Apr 2016 at 2:49pm Queuer wrote:
I appreciate the wider points, but I (probably) naively assume that it's unlikely that a town the size of Lewes could be without a Post Office.
I just think that the service there could be better and wonder if the talk of moving it out of the current location is in some way a reaction to that.
If I was a Director of The Royal Mail and lived in Lewes, or visited the current location, I'd be very concerned about the service delivery.
There is something very wrong if driving to Ringmer is seen as a viable alternative (and yes, I fully appreciate the complexities, for example the cost of parking).
On 5 Apr 2016 at 7:31pm Convenient wrote:
Surely it would be fine if it went into one side of the useless Sussex Stationers shop which is already part of WH.Smiths . That way it wouldn't be moving far and would presumably give a boost to that particular shop . They could set aside the lower section for the post office but still sell associated products and just re model the upper section .
On 5 Apr 2016 at 8:17pm Wotcha wrote:
It's in a terrible location, with not enough room for the customers who want to use it. If you come in from out of town, the parking is non-existent. Somewhere near the Cliffe Precinct would be much, much better.
On 5 Apr 2016 at 10:46pm Lewes Lady wrote:
Any new location would have to be fully accessible, so Sussex Stationers would be a non-starter due to steps.
But the whole thing is just so bloody Lewes - any opportunity for self-important lefties who look like they make their own clothes out of sacking and cut their own hair, whinging about a prime example of the very worst customer service and retail environment known to Man - the Post Office - moving into a better location. I despair at times.
On 6 Apr 2016 at 8:05am Queuer wrote:
That was of course my point Lewes Lady - the very popular Lewes Branch of The Protest Against Anything Brigade just launch themselves at any perceived "cause", have terribly worthy marches with nice banners, but without actually standing back and considering the situation fully.
"Just so bloody Lewes" is a perfect summary.
On 6 Apr 2016 at 9:18am candy samples wrote:
The post office moving is not a human rights issue and so I do not think it is important .If it moves to cliffe shoping area it could be a good thing as it's more accesable with easier parking.I am surprised people are fussing so much about it .I have been asked by friends to participate in various protests but really. ...
A post office service moving up the road?
On 6 Apr 2016 at 11:27am Trooper wrote:
In regard to the discussion ref the Post Office I would offer the following information. Until the PO find and install the new PO they are not permitted by law to close the existing unit.
I have seen and read the agreement document that any franchisee would be required to sign to have the PO on their premises,I speak as a director of a company and I would never sign such document, its terms and conditions are draconian,I am not in the least surprised that nobody wants to take on a PO.
On 6 Apr 2016 at 11:34am The Twister wrote:
What's all the fuss about you philistines. If you need to send a parcel there are numerous private companies who will collect from your door often for less cost than the Royal Mail ( e.g.myHermes). Practically everything else you might need to do can be done over the internet. I appreciate that some people especially elderly ones are not internet savvy, but leave them to queue at the PO.
On 6 Apr 2016 at 1:42pm My Herpes wrote:
Thankyou Trooper. We can count on you for insight and sense.
On 6 Apr 2016 at 2:02pm Point of order wrote:
The post office is not part of Royal mail and is not privatised. It is still very much in public hands and they don't own the building anyway. It is rented.
On 6 Apr 2016 at 8:02pm Jennifer wrote:
If the Post Office moves into WH Smiths it will be much closer to the commercial centre of Lewes and a shorter journey from all the new offices going up in North Street. We've not used the old Post Office since moving because couriers do the job quicker
On 7 Apr 2016 at 1:47pm E Bayer wrote:
I'm all for couriers. Their prices have recently gone up from £2.99 to £3.30 but for a fully tracked service with insurance it is a no brainer really.
Taking 3- 5 days to get there is a small price for a better service.
My parcels often got lost and delivery took 3 weeks on a few occasions with Royal Snail. Not one problem in 3 years of using couriers.