WORCESTER MP Tom Collins alongside West Worcestershire MP Dame Harriett Baldwin has called for urgent action over serious postal delays in Warndon Villages and Malvern.
Coun Sarah Murray, Worcester City Councillor for St Nicholas Ward, wrote to Mr Collins after being contacted by Warndon Villages residents who say they are often receiving only one postal delivery a week, with important letters arriving days – and sometimes more than a week – late.
In a response sent to Coun Murray, Mr Collins’ confirmed that he has been liaising with Royal Mail but remains unhappy with the explanations provided and will seek a meeting with the company if a clear and credible plan of action is not forthcoming.
Coun Murray said: “While emails go back and forth, people in Warndon Villages and all over Worcester are still missing hospital letters, getting test results late and waiting far too long for replacement bank cards and other important documents. That simply isn’t acceptable.
“Residents need to see a concrete plan from Royal Mail, with timescales, to get a proper, regular service restored – not just warm words.”
Coun Murray is urging Royal Mail to come clean about what is going wrong on local rounds and to work with both councillors and the MP to resolve the problems.
Dame Harriett has also received dozens of complaints from constituents over recent months as people have noticed a reduced frequency of letter deliveries across areas of Malvern, Upton-upon-Severn and Tenbury Wells.
She said: “We all appreciate our hardworking local posties.
“However, for many weeks now I have heard from constituents who are not receiving their hospital appointment reminders, magazine subscriptions or Christmas cards in a timely manner.
“I have called on Royal Mail to review how it resources its local operations as this problem appears to be becoming more and more widespread.”
A Royal Mail spokesperson said: “Data shows that more than 99 per cent of First Class and Second Class letters and parcels posted by the last recommended dates were delivered by Christmas Eve.
“This was during our busiest time of year, when volumes more than double, and we’re grateful to our teams who worked incredibly hard to deliver for our customers.
“Last week’s severe weather conditions and an increase in sickness absence have had an impact on deliveries to some addresses locally. We apologise for any inconvenience caused, and our posties are going above and beyond to ensure daily deliveries resume as quickly as possible.
“We have recently met with Harriett Baldwin and have scheduled meetings with Tom Collins to discuss his concerns.”
