Southall residents mourn closure of Broadway Post Office despite protests
Wed 13 Mar 2024
In the final two hours, 500 more people signed a petition to save it, raising awareness of the community's potential loss. Campaigner Minni Dogra placed the wreath and coffin outside the Post Office just before it shut its doors for the last time on Wednesday (6 March 2024).
Before the Post Office closure, residents amassed 8,000 petition signatures, which they submitted to both the Post Office and the Government.
On 28 February 2024, local residents, MP Virendra Sharma and Ealing Council councillors, submitted two petitions to Nick Read, the Post Office CEO, at his London office.
Resident Minni Dogra presented a petition 2,000 signatures, while Mr. Sharma presented another with over 1,000 signatures.
On X (formerly Twitter), Mr. Sharma expressed frustration, saying, “This morning I tried to present Southall’s petition protesting the planned closure of Southall’s Crown Post Office to CEO Nick Read but he refused to meet with me and campaigners. With over a 1,000 signatures, it’s clear that Southall needs this Post Office more than ever.”
A Post Office spokesperson expressed gratitude to Virendra Sharma MP and union representatives for highlighting the Southall Post Office petition. However, they said that they weren't informed about the visit in advance and apologized for the CEO's absence, mentioning that a staff member accepted the petition on his behalf.
Apart from this petition, another one containing 4,000 signatures was delivered to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak by Ms. Dogra, alongside Ealing Southall MP Virendra Sharma and representatives from the Communication Workers Union, at Downing Street
The Southall community was informed of the Post Office's proposed closure plans in November 2023. The branch closure was described as a commercial decision by the Post Office. Another reason for the proposed closure was that the lease on the property was set to expire.
Local residents started a petition to stop the closure.
Local residents also campaigned against the closure.
A six-week public consultation took place from 15 November 2023 to 27 December 2023, where local residents were encouraged to express their concerns.
The public consultation resulted in 88 responses from customers and local representatives.
The Post Office expressed gratitude for the community feedback but decided to proceed with their plans to permanently close Southall Post Office and announced plans to partner with a local retailer to provide the service.
One of the justifications given for the proposed closure was that there are four alternative post offices in close proximity to the current branch, offering convenient options for customers.
Residents raised concerns about the alternative branches' ability to serve people for whom English is not their first language. The Post Office said that the alternative branches already have a diverse range of languages spoken.
"The only service exclusive to the Southall branch, not available at Western Road, is DVLA Photo card renewal. However, this service is accessible at the Hanwell branch, located 1.8 miles away."
In 2019, the Post Office secured a five-year lease for its premises at 38 The Broadway in Southall.
When a lease is about to expire, the Post Office conducts a review to ensure they meet evolving customer needs in a sustainable manner.
Consequently, the decision was made not to renew the lease but to partner with a local retailer to maintain service provision.
The campaigners say that the freeholder offered more favourable lease terms, recognizing the Post Office's essential role in the diverse local community.
But the Post Office is seeking a local partner to operate a service and cites successful franchise models elsewhere. It wants to fully franchise the network and emphasized its sustainability for both customers and postmasters, with over 99.9% of branches currently operating as franchises.
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