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Town hall to be used as temporary post office

Mubashir Akhtar Mubashir Akhtar, right, and his son, Ibrahim Akhtar, stood outside the Co-op and post office in Malmesbury. They are wearing coats and hats, with high-vis jackets, and Mubashir holds a white piece of card with the words "Malmesbury needs post office" on it.Mubashir Akhtar
Malmesbury's Co-op and the post office inside are closed for refurbishment until 7 March

A town hall will be used as a temporary post office while a local branch is closed for seven weeks for a refurbishment.

The town hall in Malmesbury, Wiltshire, will offer the service from 27 January. The High Street Co-Op, where the post office is located, has been closed since 13 January.

Many residents criticised plans asking Post Office customers to travel about five miles (8km) to Sherston, Crudwell, or Tetbury in Gloucestershire, while the closure was in place.

Post Office Limited apologised for the inconvenience.

Minibus service

Mayor Phil Exton said some services may be unavailable in the town hall, but it was a "far better" option than making a longer journey outside of Malmesbury.

Until the temporary town hall post office opens, a 17-seater minibus will transport residents to the branch in Sherston.

The minibus service will start on Monday and run a few times a week.

Exton said: "We're still of an age where we have our elderly citizens who don't necessarily have a vehicle to be able to get from A to B, they don't have a mobile phone and they don't use the internet.

"They would normally go face to face at the post office and that's the situation we want to keep them being able to do.

"I personally think that if we can get everything back into the town for our residents, rather than them having to go further afield then it is worth it."

Fran Vandelli, Mubashir Akhtar and Jumana Akhtar. They are all sitting on a turquoise sofa. Fran has short pink hair and is wearing a cream turtle neck with a black coat and blue jeans. She is holding a cardboard sign with six pieces of white card on it, each with a note about the distance to other post offices. Mubashir is sitting in the middle. He has glasses, short dark hair and a beard. He is wearing a grey jumper and is holding a white sign reading "Malmesbury Needs Post Office 7 weeks is too long! 5 miles is too far!" Jumana is sitting next to him. She is wearing a blue hijab and a purple jumper. All of them are looking at the camera.
Fran Vendelli, Mubashir Akhtar and Jumana Akhtar campaigned against the plans asking customers to travel elsewhere for a post office

In December, the Post Office ruled out a temporary mobile branch for the town because the demand was "too great" - a decision Exton described as "ridiculous".

Earlier this month, Malmesbury resident Mubashir Akhtar staged a protest and walked five miles (8km) to Tetbury to highlight how "vital" the local post office was for many.

Although there are buses running between the two towns, a trip can take up to two hours to complete because of the infrequency of services.

A Post Office spokesperson said: "Malmesbury Post Office is temporarily closed for refurbishment work. 

"The branch is due to re-open at its current location on Friday 7 March at 13:00.

"We apologise for any inconvenience caused during this time."

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