The last four remaining crown Post Office branches in Leeds will be offloaded, it has been confirmed.
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00:00The turbulent time in post office history continues with the news that their final crown branches are set to be sold to franchisees.
00:08In Leeds, this includes the St John's Post Office within the St John's Centre off Albion Street,
00:15the Markets Post Office off New York Street, the Cross Gates-Osthorpe Road branch and the Queen Street branch here in Morley,
00:24which are all set to be offloaded.
00:25It comes less than six months after more than 1,000 people backed a campaign to save the Cross Gates branch.
00:32Communities that currently have a directly managed post office branch in their area
00:37will continue to be able to access post office services either at or near to the same location.
00:44Post Office Chair Nigel Railton said that moving to a fully franchised network is one part of enabling the post office
00:51to deliver a new deal for Postmasters, helping to create a long-term sustainable future for the post office.
00:59He added that by franchising these branches, they are protecting access to services for communities right across the UK
01:06and realising £40 million worth of savings that will enable them to uplift Postmasters' remuneration by up to 10%.
01:14He said that over the coming months, the firm will continue to work with unions to ensure they treat staff
01:20working in the 108 branches impacted with care and respect through the transition,
01:26consulting with them on proposed changes.
01:29More details on the future of individual branches will be released in the coming weeks,
01:34with some potentially closing altogether and moving to new premises,
01:37while others could be taken over by other businesses as part of the move,
01:41which is set to be completed by the autumn.