Elmsett Post Office forced to close after remuneration was slashed

The couple said the counter would close in November, but they would continue selling stamps in their village store

A couple say the post office counter in their village shop will have to close following a dispute over pay.

Postmaster Julian Edwards and partner Sasha Lawrence have run Elmsett Post Office near Ipswich since April 2021.

After their monthly payment from Post Office Ltd was cut last year, the couple said they had been subsidising the counter from their own pockets and had "no trust" in the national firm.

Post Office Ltd said it was "working very closely" with the couple.

Sasha Lawrence said the space occupied by the post office counter would be transformed into something else to benefit the community

"The absolute truth is that Post Office Limited simply do not pay us enough to cover our costs," said Ms Lawrence.

She said their remuneration was about £1,800 a month when they took over the branch.

This was cut to £1,300 in July 2022, while their utility bills had doubled, she said.

"We did not expect our remuneration to be slashed to an extent where we're operating on less than the minimum wage," she added.

The old post office, which is now a private home, opened in 1887

Ms Lawrence said she spends 80 hours a week running the counter and it would have to close in November.

She said she appealed to Post Office Ltd for more help, including providing a petition containing 200 signatures from local people, but it had been ignored.

The nearest post office would be more than three miles away in Hadleigh.

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Local resident Jo Butler said: "The more vulnerable members of the community, such as the older population and those with disabilities, will be further marginalised.

"There's very little community transport, so they're going to rely on friends and family to take them."

The Conservative MP for South Suffolk, James Cartlidge, said: "Sub post offices are an important asset for rural communities and several villages use Elmsett's services.

"I have since contacted Post Office Ltd to explore what options may be possible... to lessen the impact on the local community."

A spokesperson for Post Office Ltd said: "Post offices are facing a particularly challenging period. Improvements have been made to the remuneration rates for postmasters.

"We are still working very closely with the postmaster to try to retain the service for this community."

The counter offers a number of additional services, such as banking, bill payments, gas and electric top ups, and DVLA transactions.

Ms Lawrence said they hoped to continue offering "community services" such as stamps, National Lottery tickets and Payzone.