'I honestly just can’t believe this' - shoppers react as York main Post Office closes

The Post Office in Coney Street (Image: Alice Kavanagh)

SHOPPERS have branded the closure of York’s main Post Office as ‘shocking’ after it shut its doors for the last time.

York’s Coney Street Post Office, which is inside TG Jones, formerly WHSmith, shut for the last time today (October 14) - leaving the city without a main postal hub for the foreseeable future.

Newsagent TG Jones announced at the start of September that it will be shutting the city centre shop as part of a nationwide restructuring, which is expected to lead to the closure of around 150 stores nationwide and see thousands of job losses.

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TG Jones itself is not expected to close until next Monday (October 19), banners in the windows of the shop have marked down stock to 60 per cent and equipment is also up for grabs.

Inside, the first floor of TG Jones is bare and all remaining stock has been moved downstairs where people were spotted removing shelves, chairs, and other items from the empty looking shop.

In the Post Office, the branch was still mostly operational on its last day, with staff working behind the counters, but self-service parcel machines had been removed from the branch.

In a statement to The Press earlier this week, the Post Office said that they wanted to ‘open a replacement branch as soon as possible’ but warned it can take around six months’ – adding that alternative city centre branches include Market Place and Micklegate.

The shop remains busy with customers (Image: Alice Kavanagh)

A spokesperson said: “We know how important our products and services are to the local community. The vacancy has already been advertised, and we have heard from interested retailers. We are now looking more closely at the expressions of interest.”

Despite the assurance, people in York shared their concerns with The Press with several more passersby adding that they thought the closure was ‘such a shame’.

One couple, who preferred to remain anonymous, said that they couldn’t believe the closure – having moved back to York from the Dales four years ago, where they experienced a year without a Post Office whilst living in Helmsley.

They said: “I honestly just can’t believe this. I feel like they’re just going to say that they had to shut it due to lack of use of the facilities, but really, it seems like they were just looking for an excuse to close it and save money.”

Stock is heavily marked down (Image: Alice Kavanagh)

This sentiment was shared by Jo and Holly Reynolds from Huntington, who added that the closure of the Post Office was another sign of the decline of York’s high street.

Jo said: “Honestly, we just tend to go into Leeds or out to Monks Cross when we want to go shopping. York is just dead now – which is such a shame. There used to be a run of shops here that you’d want to go to and now everything is just closing down.”

Holly added: “My friends who all went to uni here moved away – there’s just nothing for them here compared to other cities like Newcastle or Liverpool. The only reason I really come into town now is for M&S.

“It’s sad about the post office though. We’ve got a local one we can use, but some services are going to be lost. I had to do a DBS check for university and this was the only post office in a reasonable distance that could do it. Where would you go now?”

A sign in an empty shelving display in TG Jones (Image: Alice Kavanagh)

Another woman, who was visiting the city from East Anglia, said that she was unsurprised to hear about the closure after her local Post Office – which was also inside a TG Jones shop – closed its doors recently.

This was echoed by Libby Trott, who now lives in York but is originally from Devon and has seen the effects of the closure of Post Offices in villages in the county.

She said: “I just think it’s shocking and it’s a service that really shouldn’t be lost. I’m from Devon and down there, the villages are forced to rely on a weekly bus service that comes through. Obviously, we have other Post Offices, but it’s a concern.”