Proposals for Littlehampton Post Office to move and be run by private operator

Under the new proposals, the Post Office will move from The Arcade to 66 High Street and have its opening hours extended by eight and a half hours per week.

The move would see Yogi Eyecare Ltd, which operates three opticians in the area, open and run the new Post Office in February next year.

The Post Office said the move was part of a modernisation programme designed to make branches ‘sustainable, profitable and no longer reliant on Government funding’.

There are currently around 370 ‘Crown’ branches that are run by the Post Office directly, which includes Littlehampton, with around 11,600 run by various franchise partners or local subpostmaster or operators.

The Post Office is now inviting people to give their comments on the move in a six-week public consultation, starting tomorrow (Wednesday, October 23).

Littlehampton Post Office would continue to offer the same range of products and services should the move go ahead.

Post Office opening hours at the proposed new site would be 9am to 6pm Monday to Saturday, making a total of 54 hours of service per week.

Traders and councillors had previously protested against plans to close or move the Crown Post Office branch in The Arcade earlier this year, arguing it would adversely affect businesses in the area.

During the consultation, which ends on December 4, submissions can be made through an online questionnaire at postofficeviews.co.uk, by FREEPOST Your Comments to Post Office Ltd, via email to [email protected], via the customer helpline on 08457 22 33 44 or textphone 08457 22 33 55.

Customers are asked to quote branch code 003908 in all communications.

For the full story, read this week’s Littlehampton Gazette, out on Thursday, October 24.