Anger at Post Office plans

Plans are in place to turn a threatened Cannock post office into a takeaway – despite a campaign to save it from the axe.

St Aidans post office on Pye Green Road is one of scores of branches across the county that could be shut as part of the ongoing Government programme of closures.

Veteran Labour councillors Gordon Alcott and Frank Allen have called on residents to help save the post office, which they say provides a vital service to one of the most deprived areas in Cannock.

The councillors urged people to make representations to Tony Wright MP, the Post Office and the independent watchdog Postwatch, in a bid to keep the branch open.

But now St Aidans' owners have applied to Cannock Chase District Council for permission to transform their business into a takeaway.

Councillor Alcott said it would mean looking at alternative ways of keeping the post office service in the area.

"I would be disappointed to see us lose a service to the public that has been in the area for over 80 years," he said.

"If the owners don't want to take the post office on then we need to look for somebody else within the area who is prepared to do it."

Councillor Alcott said the loss of the post office would be a real blow to people living in the area.

"It's got one of the largest number of OAPs and people on benefits.

"This is going to add to their plight," he said.

The owners of the post office declined to comment.