Residents slam PO (From Gazette Series)

Residents slam PO

POST OFFICE chiefs have been accused of dragging their heels on the matter of a temporary Post Office for Cam, which will not now be available until the end of the month, it was revealed this week.

Since the Post Office within the old Cam Co-op was closed last month to make way for a new Tesco store, residents have had to travel to Dursley and Slimbridge to post their parcels and collect their pensions.

And this week it was confirmed that the village would be without a temporary branch, which will be sited on land at Chapel Street, until the end of November.

At Cam Parish Council's monthly meeting on Wednesday councillors expressed their dismay at the slowness of Post Office Ltd to react to the need of relocating the facility.

Cllr Margaret Nolder said: "I think the big problem is that they think communities can do without a Post Office because there is an alternative service.

"Because they believe everybody is in the same situation and has the same needs they think it is okay to mess everybody about.

"I have heard that this has caused a lot of distress to people in the area. I think the Post Office has treated the whole of this area very badly and I feel very bad that people have been treated like this."

Chairman Cllr Dennis Andrewartha said: "Every time you speak to the Post Office the date goes back. It is an awfully long time to be without it.

"Pressure has been put on the Post Office from very high levels, including from the office of MP David Drew. It would appear that the Post Office has been unwilling to do this at maximum speed and effort."

A Post Office spokesman told the Gazette this week: "We have got a site and we are having the temporary building delivered today (Thursday) but it is going to take some time to get the operation up and running.

"We have to get the right person in to run the facility and that process takes some time. Everybody is working together to get this facility reopened but because of necessity it will take some time and it is unlikely to happen before the end of November."

The spokesman added that the Post Office was working hard on finding a long-term solution to reopening the facility and several businesses in the area had already applied to relocate it.

Anyone interested in applying to relocate the Post Office can apply for an application pack on 0845 6016260.