Hundreds call for York Post Office to be saved days before closure
Hundreds of people have backed a call to save a York Post Office which is set to close within days.
A total of 368 residents have signed a petition calling to save the Post Office counter service at Morrisons Daily, in Moorcroft Road, Woodthorpe, according to organisers the Liberal Democrats.
Liberal Democrat ward councillor Stephen Fenton said he had met with Post Office representatives and there were hopeful signs that services could be maintained.
A Post Office spokesperson said they had received interest from operators but the counter was still scheduled to close next week.
It comes as the counter is currently due to shut on Saturday, August 1.
Liberal Democrats said many residents in the area were concerned the closure could leave them cut off from vital services.
Dringhouses and Woodthorpe’s Cllr Fenton said he was grateful to those who supported the party’s petition.
He added he still hoped the Post Office counter could be saved.
The Liberal Democrat said: “I met with Post Office representatives last month and have contacted local retailers.
“There are hopeful signs that an announcement may be imminent that a new retailer has agreed to maintain Post Office services.
“That’s welcome news and I stand ready to work with the new operator.”
A Post Office spokesperson said they had advertised the vacancy to run a replacement branch and they were currently looking closely at those who had expressed interest.
The spokesperson said: “Our retail partner has reviewed their Morrisons Daily store operations and has decided to close their store at Woodthorpe.
“Consequently, the store and Post Office is to close on Saturday August, 1.
“We fully recognise the inconvenience this will cause our customers and small businesses who rely on our banking and parcel services in particular, so we want to open a replacement branch as soon as possible.”
Alternative Post Office services are available locally in Dringhouses, about a mile away from the Moorcroft Road site.
Post Offices also operate around two miles away in York Road, Acomb and Sim Balk Lane, Bishopthorpe.
There is also a Post Office Banking Hub in York Road.
A Morrisons spokesperson said: “Expansion of our convenience business is a core part of Morrisons growth strategy. We currently have around 1,700 Convenience stores, opening more than 120 new franchise stores last year, and we have a robust plan in place for further expansion in 2026.
“We continue to see the opportunity to open hundreds more franchise convenience stores in the years ahead.
“We have achieved a lot since acquiring the McColl’s stores in 2022, rebranding and repositioning the business as Morrisons Daily, with significant investment in the estate and an ongoing programme of proactive management to optimise the portfolio.
“The performance of all company owned stores across our convenience business is subject to continuous review.
“This process has identified a number of stores, which were part of the McColl’s acquisition, whose performance has been challenged for a number of years and which are loss making, despite remedial action.
“This situation has been exacerbated in more recent years by significant cost increases resulting from Government policy choices (NIC and NLW), which have made returning these stores to profitability even more difficult.
“Having completed the review, we are now proposing to take the tough but necessary decision to close a number of these stores over the next few months.
“Regrettably, the proposal means that some of our convenience store colleagues will now be at risk of redundancy and a consultation will commence shortly.
“We understand this will be difficult news for them and we will be providing these colleagues with all necessary support.
“This will include finding other opportunities for impacted colleagues elsewhere in the business wherever we can, in our supermarket, logistics and manufacturing operations and we have a strong track record of achieving this historically.
“We will also work hard to mitigate the impact on customers, continuing to serve them through other nearby stores and online.
“The combination of the proposed closure of loss making stores and the continued addition of attractive new franchise openings will enable us to concentrate on those stores which work best for customers, improving the quality of our convenience estate and making it stronger overall.”