FOUR West Somerset village Post Offices ceased business yesterday (May 27) after a shock decision which has robbed rural communities of their postal services and left them ‘stunned and devastated’. 

Emily and Mark Richards-Littlefield, postmasters in Watchet and Alcombe, announced during the week that they were not only leaving the Watchet Post Office and Shop but were also giving up the operation of outreach branches in Carhampton, Exford, Lydeard St Lawrence, and Winsford after making unsuccessful offers to Post Office Ltd to keep them running.

The outreach branches each closed on Saturday.

But, it was agreed that sub-Post Offices in Kilve and Wheddon Cross would continue to be run from Alcombe.

Just a day before the Watchet business was due to close, it was saved by a rescue package involving a local businessman who is applying to become postmaster.

Mr Richards-Littlefield will remain as temporary postmaster while the application goes through and the Post Office will open under new management on Monday (May 29).

It left village communities to come to terms with losing what, in some cases, was their last communications link.

West Somerset MP Ian Liddell-Grainger told the Free Press: “To lose an essential local service such as this without any prior warning is going to cause people unimaginable difficulties.

“This unheralded withdrawal of postal services will come as a shock to hundreds of villagers.”

Mr Richards-Littlefield told the Free Press: “We took over the operation of Watchet Post Office during the Covid pandemic in 2020 to prevent it from closing.

“It was our intent to build up the shop into a thriving business, securing it for the future.“Alas, this was not to be.

“Ever-increasing operating costs, wage increases, energy costs, etc, and falling retail sales due in no small part to the cost of living rises, and the remuneration from Post Office Ltd simply not keeping in line with inflation, meant that we were operating at a loss.

“We tried to mitigate this with changes to opening hours and other strategies, but unfortunately these did not bring the business back into the black.

“Having incurred substantial financial losses, we have had to admit defeat and close the business.

“We contacted Post Office Ltd and made various proposals to try and save some parts of the business.

“These included transferring support for Kilve and Wheddon Cross, which are serviced by Watchet PO, to our business in Alcombe, and also transferring the operation of the outreach services at Carhampton, Exford, Lydeard St Lawrence, and Winsford, to Alcombe.

“Although Post Office Ltd agreed to transfer support for Kilve and Wheddon Cross to Alcombe, they refused the other options.

“Every argument we made to try and save the outreach services was rebuffed.”

In a message to customers, Mr Richards-Littlefield said: “I would like to publicly offer my thanks to Kayla, Teresa, Wendy, and Alex who have worked so hard for us, and to my wife Emily for pouring her heart and soul into the business at the cost of her health.

“I would also like to thank our customers who have supported our efforts and say sorry but it was just not meant to be.”

Mr Liddell-Grainger said: I find it absolutely incredible that given the implications of closing the Watchet branch, the Post Office would not have done everything in its power to recruit and put in replacement personnel before this point was reached.

“I note the Post Office says it has no plans to provide services in the villages ‘at the current time.’

“I trust this not a prelude to the announcement of a permanent withdrawal.”

The decision to cancel the weekly visit of a pop-up Post Office to Carhampton every Thursday had left residents ‘stunned and devastated’, said community leader Lucy Parker, who helped to organise the service after the village shop closed.

Ms Parker said: “The weekly Post Office service and the pop-up café we provide has been working so well.

“We are really shocked by what has happened.

“Thursdays had become quite a community get-together, particularly for elderly people - one 90-year-old lady comes every week.

“At least there could have been some time for consultation but this seems just a done deal and we have had no official communication.

“The village is losing something really valuable.”

A Post Office spokesperson told the Free Press: “We apologise for any inconvenience caused by these unplanned closures.

“The Post Office is facing increasing financial pressures.

“Therefore, at this current time, we are not looking to replace the outreach Post Offices at Carhampton, Exford, Lydeard St Lawrence, and Winsford.”

Mr Richards-Littlefield said: “The outreach services were closed by Post Office Ltd - not by us.

“We asked to transfer them to Alcombe Post Office to continue running the service from there.

“But Post Office Ltd refused, and told us they were reviewing outreaches with a view to closing many services down.

“Ours were on the list.

“In other words, they would have been closed down in the near future, anyway.

“For Post Office Ltd to state that the closure was ‘unplanned’ is disingenuous at best.”