900 sign petition in support of closure-threatened branch

1:33pm Friday 29th February 2008

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A POST office in central Burnley acts as a lifeline to the elderly, disabled and single parents, borough councillors have been told.

Campaigners have collected more than 900 signatures protesting about the closure of the Parliament Street branch in Burnley Wood.

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This is despite admissions by Post Office chiefs that they will disregard petitions - and insist on objectors writing individual letters of complaint.

But Karen Heseltine, of Dall Street Residents' Association, said this discriminated against the elderly and disabled, who may have difficulties in penning their own protest letters against the moves.

"If they suffer from medical conditions that affects their hands - like rheumatoid arthritis - then they will have problems writing in. Is this not showing discrimin-ation to the elderly and disabled," said Mrs Heseltine.

She told a meeting of Burnley full council that Burnley Wood was already, according to the latest indices of deprivation, in the bottom one per cent in the country.

"This will have a massive negative effect on current and future members of the community," she added.

"It will also undermine economic regeneration efforts in a very deprived area.

"The local community shops along Parliament Street do not want this in any way and wish to support the post office and the services it offers."

She said many residents would not have the necessary transport to access alternative post office branches - a key part of the company's own consultation proposals.

Later councillors agreed to formally object to proposals to close branches in Parliament Street, Piccadilly Road and Cheapside, Burnley, Walk Mill, Cliviger and Church Street, Hapton.

Council leader Coun Gordon Birtwistle said there had now been wholesale post office closures under both Tory and Labour governments.

"We have had our libraries closed, our hospital half closed down and now our post offices closed down. It is difficult to see what else left there is to close. These proposals are outrageous," said Coun Birtwistle.

Coun Andrew Tatchell, Labour leader, said that the Post Office board had drawn up the closures plans independently of the current government.

He supported the council's opposition to the proposals but urged more detailed submissions, no-ting the specific objections to each individual closure, should be drawn up.