Rural post offices 'lifeline' to older residents
Wednesday, 27 Sep 2006 00:01
Older residents feel "isolated" without post office access
The continued closure of rural post offices across Britain is denying older people access to the most basic financial and informative facilities, a charity has claimed.
Age Concern says that more than nine in ten people aged over 60 in the countryside describe their local post office as a "lifeline", allowing them to take out their pension and benefits, as well as pay bills and receive advice and information.
There are about 8,000 post offices remaining in rural areas, with 144 closed during the last 12 months. The fact that 90 per cent are run at a loss means most are under pressure to close.
According to today's survey, 56 per cent of older people sat that further closures would leave them "isolated", both financially and socially.
Three-quarters of respondents said their main worry was losing access to essential services, with the same proportion revealing they did not have any suitable alternatives.
Gordon Lishman, the director general of the charity, said: "The message from older people couldn't be clearer. Rural post offices play a vital role in the community which stretches far beyond providing a postal service.
"The government must stop dragging its heels on the future of rural post offices. If it fails to renew the subsidy, thousands of post offices could be forced to close down and thousands more vulnerable older people could be cut off from their local community," he added.