Official Opening of New-look High Road Hayes Post Office with Longer Hours

- Ribbon-cutting ceremony performed by John McDonnell MP
- Modern retail environment
- Extended opening hours each day
- Wide range of Post Office® services

High Road Hayes Post Office, which has undergone a major refurbishment, has an official opening ceremony today, Friday 22 November.

To celebrate the launch of the new style open-plan branch, Subpostistress Mrs Satvir Cheeta will be joined by John McDonnell MP for Hayes & Harlington who will cut the ribbon at High Road Hayes Post Office, 570 Uxbridge Road, Hayes, UB4 0RZ.

Mr McDonnell said: “I am delighted to be opening this refurbished post office. It’s modern professional and a major transformation. Post Offices are vital centres for many local communities. The new extended opening hours will be hugely welcomed by everyone.”

High Road Hayes Post Office has three serving positions – a mix of two screened positions and a Post Office serving point provided for use at the retail counter. This is a new concept for delivering Post Office products and services available alongside retail transactions during shop opening hours.

Subpostmistress Mrs Cheeta, said: “I am really pleased with this refurbishment. The branch now looks much lighter, brighter, cleaner and tidier. Everyone has had positive comments about the changes.”

Post Office customers will benefit from opening hours being extended by nine hours a week as selected Post Office products and services will be available during shop opening hours, which are Monday to Saturday: 08.00 - 18.00. The extra hours include the branch opening an hour earlier and closing half-an-hour later every day.

The refurbishment of High Road Hayes Post Office is part of a major modernisation programme across the Post Office network designed to make it easier for customers to do business, through longer opening hours and modern retail environments.

Subpostmistree Mrs Cheeta will host the opening celebration with Post Office Senior Stakeholder Manager Simon Burman.

Mr Burman said: “We understand how important having a Post Office is to residents in this area of Hayes and we are confident that this new modern Post Office service will meet the needs of the local community and secure services for the future. The modernisation is part of a major investment programme to convert the Post Office network to new-style branches. This investment, the largest in the history of the Post Office, makes a commitment to no more branch closure programmes.”

The Post Office, now independent of Royal Mail, is the largest retail network in the UK, with over 11,500 branches. It is also one of the fastest growing financial services companies and is developing its online and telephony services.

Ends

The previous opening hours were Monday to Saturday: 09.00 - 17.30.

This change to the Post Office network is being carried out in accordance with the Code of Practice for changes to the network, as agreed with Consumer Futures, the national consumer organisation.

Post Office Limited has an unrivalled national network of over 11,500 branches across the UK, more than all the high street banks combined, and sits at the heart of many communities across the country. The Post Office has made a commitment to no more branch closure programmes. It provides around 170 different services and products spanning financial services including savings, insurance, loans, mortgages and credit cards. Post Office also offers Government services; telephony; foreign currency; travel insurance and mail services.

It serves around 20 million customers a week and half of all small businesses and 99.7% of people live within three miles of their nearest Post Office outlet. For many rural communities the post office is the only retail outlet. Post offices remain highly valued and trusted and are the focal point for many communities. For more information, visit www.postoffice.co.uk

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