Irish Street post office to close

A statement by Post Office Ltd said: "Following a period of public consultation, Post Office Ltd confirmed today that it is to go ahead with plans to close Lisnagelvin Post Office branch and merge it with the new Ebrington branch located in the Eurospar convenience store, Rossdowney Park.

The decision completes a review of Post Office provision in this part of Londonderry aimed at ensuring that customers in the area have continued access to services in the years to come.

"During the six-week public consultation, Post Office Limited received a number of comments as well as a petition from customers, and attended a meeting with local elected representatives. This feedback helped improve our understanding of customers' concerns and was given very careful consideration before we arrived at our final decision."

Sheila McCann, Network Development Manager for Post Office Ltd, said: "We want to make sure that Post Office branches in this part of Derry have enough customers to survive in the competitive market we operate in and that local people can continue to access Post Office services well into the future.

"I am confident that the decision to close Lisnagelvin Post Office and run a combined service with the Ebrington branch is the right course of action and that it will help safeguard provision in the longer term."

The combined branch will run from premises in the Eurospar convenience store in Rossdowney Park.

The Post Office said the announcement means that the subpostmaster at Ebrington Post Office will now go ahead with his plans to staff all four counter positions to ensure that the branch can accommodate the additional customers.

"In addition to Ebrington Post Office, other branches in the area are located on Trench Road and Spencer Road, while customers in the city centre may chose to visit either the main Crown office on Custom House Street or the Diamond Branch on Bishop Street. Post Office Ltd will confirm the exact date for the closure of Lisnagelvin Post Office and its merger with the Ebrington branch in due course," said the statement.