Closed Post Office fails to reopen as pensioners left out in cold

A Merseyside Post Office failed to reopen leaving customers out in the rain. On Friday, November 14, a spokesperson for Post Office Ltd said the Formby branch was set to reopen at 1pm today. However, when the ECHO visited the branch for the reopening, a staff member came out to inform those waiting that it would remain closed until Monday, November 17, leaving several pensioners in the rain. A spokesperson for Post Office Ltd later confirmed to the ECHO the Post Office will now reopen on this date following a "slight delay". The staff member told those assembled outside that “higher-ups got confused” and a stock take needed to take place before the branch reopens. The branch was one of 10 suddenly shuttered on November 5 without warning and with parcels trapped inside. Those branches are Childwall, Hunts Cross, Monument Place, Penny Lane, Toxteth , Tuebrook, Walton Vale, Watts Lane, Formby , and Woolton . Residents of a local over-60s supported living facility were said to be “mortified” over the closure after not being able to collect their pensions from the branch earlier this week, according to a manager at the facility. He said: “The reopening will bring them a lot of joy.” Jean Johnson, 78, told the ECHO that she uses the Post Office to weigh and send airmail to friends in Fuerteventura. She said: “A lot of people get their pensions out here. There’s always a long line. It would be terrible if it closed. Barbara Williams, 72, added: “We haven’t got any banks here. We wanted to get a new passport, because we didn’t want the back-and-forth that you go through online. Here, they do it for you. Older people rely on the Post Office for pensions. Anne Mawdsley, 79, said: “I don’t bank online, and all the banks in Formby have closed. I’ve not been able to do any banking for more than a week. I’ve come all the way out here in the rain to find it closed. Doreen Whalley, 75, trekked all the way to Liverpool city centre on Thursday to do banking she would usually do at the Post Office. She said: “I use it to pay in money. It’s very important to Formby.” “There’s no banks here anymore, so we need it for banking,” said Frank Smith, 72, adding that he doesn’t use ATMs because of worries his card will be swallowed. A Post Office spokesperson said: “There has been a slight delay to the re-opening of Formby Post Office. It will now open on Monday, November 17 at 9am. We apologise for any inconvenience caused by the temporary, unplanned, closure of this branch. “We hope to be re-opening other branches in the Liverpool area this month and we will provide details as soon as possible.” Want to have your say? Contact jon.blackburn@liverpoolecho.co.uk