The Post Office has confirmed it will open a new branch in Bath later this year, although this is not intended to replace the city’s central main branch.
The new facility is set to open within the Londis store on Moorland Road in the Oldfield Park neighbourhood, scheduled for Monday 5 October at 1pm. This branch will take over services previously offered at the Post Office located inside Morrisons on the same road, which closed last year following the supermarket’s closure. The new branch will provide a comparable range of services to residents in the area.
Local interest in preserving postal services was highlighted when a poster appeared outside the former branch calling on the community to support the reinstatement: “Our community deserves this service. Let’s come together and bring our Post Office back to our store.”
Despite this development, there remains no confirmed timeline for the reopening of Bath’s main Post Office, which has operated from inside the former WH Smith store on Stall Street. This central branch is due to close on 1 September, ahead of the closure of the “TG Jones” shop later in the month.
Bath MP Wera Hobhouse and Bath and North East Somerset Council have both urged for the prompt establishment of a new central Post Office. The Post Office management have stated their intention to open a replacement city centre branch “as soon as possible” and are currently evaluating expressions of interest from local retailers interested in hosting the service. Typically, if a retailer meets the requirements of postmaster accreditation and suitable premises, the process of establishing a branch takes on average six months.
The transition to the new Moorland Road branch has taken 18 months from inception to opening. Conveniently, the new location is just 170 metres from the former Morrisons branch, ensuring continued accessibility for local residents. The community is encouraged to provide suggestions and feedback on the new premises.
Operating hours for the Moorland Road Post Office will be from 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday, and 9am to 3pm on Saturdays. Available services include drop and go, DPD parcel purchasing and drop off collections, cash withdrawals, depositing cash and cheques, bill payments and top-ups, issuing travel money cards, and currency exchange for euros and dollars.
Feedback can be submitted until 9 September via the Post Office website using branch code 328504, by email to [email protected], by post to Freepost YOUR COMMENTS, or by phone at 03452 66 01 15. Textphone users can contact 03457 22 33 55.