To celebrate the launch of new-look Charminster Road Post Office, which has been totally transformed, Bournemouth West MP Conor Burns, ‘cut the ribbon’ at an opening ceremony on Thursday 13 November with Postmaster Mr Parrie Dha.
Charminster Road Post Office has been refurbished and Post Office services are now available from two modern screened positions and a combi-counter, where the customers can access selected Post Office products and services alongside retail transactions.
Post Office services are available Monday to Saturday: 9am to 5:30pm. This is an extra five hours service on a Saturday afternoon.
The car tax renewal service has also been added and four extra foreign currencies are now available on demand.
Conor Burns MP, said. “I am really impressed by the changes. The branch looks really modern and professional. I want to congratulate postmaster Mr Dha on his vital community role. Opening on Saturday afternoon will make it far more convenient for customers to visit. The addition of the car tax renewal service and more currencies available on demand will also be very helpful for customers.”
Mr Dha, who has been a postmaster since March 2013, said: “It looks posh is the immediate reaction of customers to the refurbishment of the branch. They feel it will be really useful to be able to visit the branch on a Saturday afternoon. They are really pleased that they can get their car tax renewed here now.”
Laura Tarling, Post Office Senior Stakeholder Manager, said: “We understand how important having a Post Office is to residents in the Charminster Road area of Bournemouth. I am confident this new modern Post Office will meet the needs of the local community and secure services for the future. This modernisation is part of a major investment programme, the largest in the history of the Post Office. It marks a commitment to no more branch closure programmes.”
Under the current Parliament the Government has committed £1.34bn for the Post Office network to make sure there is no programme of Post Office closures and to update branches; in November the Government announced a further £640m investment in the Post Office network, from 2015 to 2018. Nationwide the investment programme will see up to 8,000 branches modernised with additional investment in over 3,000 community and outreach branches.