A post-box for the Shop……the campaign starts here!
By Barnaby Usborne, Parish Councillor
Now that the Shop has become a focal point of the community, the suggestion has been made that we need a post-box there so that customers can handily post letters when they shop. Unfortunately it's not simply a matter of asking Royal Mail to put in an extra box. In rural areas, post boxes should be no more than one mile apart. Since we have boxes at The-Lee Green, the Old Post Office and Sly Corner, as well as at Kings Ash and Swan Bottom, Royal Mail are not obliged to provide us with any more.
If we want a post box at the Shop, then either we will have to pay for a new one ourselves (cost ranging from £400 for a pedestal to £1,000 for a pillar box) or arrange for one of the existing ones to be moved. Before deciding what option to go for, the Parish Council is seeking the views of residents.
Winners and losers
If we do move an existing box there will be winners and losers.In an effort at objectivity, one of our councillors undertook a desk-top analysis. This showed that if the box near Sly Corner were moved to the shop some 20 households would lose out and have to walk 200 metres further.
However, over 40 households at the east end of Lee Common would benefit and would need to walk on average 300 metres less. (Check the figures if you will!). There would also be an advantage for others who visit the Parish Hall or Shop.
Chris Messen, from Royal Mail Collection Support, said monitoring of the box at Sly Corner in October and November showed that an average of 30-50 items a week were posted there, which he described as “quite heavy use” for a pedestal box. The Clerk has asked whether figures can also be obtained for the pillar box outside the old Post Office.
Once a request has been submitted it is likely to take around 10-12 weeks for the box in question to be moved. So don’t expect anything to happen before the summer.
Let us have your views please.