Two post offices in the Newport area are due to be axed, after the long-awaited final cut, from the Post Office Ltd hitlist, was announced on Monday.
And the decision has been labelled as another ‘nail in the coffin’ by a parish councillor with people facing longer journeys to access post office services.
The impending closures come after six weeks of public consultation and now a total of 13 branches are set to close in Shropshire.
Church Aston Post Office and Standford Bridge in Sambrook are the two outlets which will close.
Church Aston Parish Councillor, Billie Knight, said: “This is another nail in the coffin and a disaster for people of the area, it was not just a post office, it was a place people could get essentials, meet and socialise.”
Church Aston Post Office, Postmaster, Bal Sunner, said: “I found out on Tuesday about the news and it is very sad.
“The people of the community will suffer and now I’m going to have to find another job.
“This is to do with the credit crunch and the knock on effect it has had, I have ran this post office for nine years, and the date for closure I have been given is August 12.
“I am grateful to all the people who have supported me over the years, I have tried my best here and the local council, along with Andrew Eade, have fought my corner.”
Telford and Wrekin Council leader Andrew Eade, who represents Church Aston, said the decision to close the branch could have much further reaching effects for the village.
He said: “I am bitterly disappointed for people in Church Aston who will be losing a very value service for good, a move which could rip out a key part of the heart of this community.”
"This will force some of the more vulnerable members of the community out of the village and it will further undermine the hard work that is going on to build communities in the more rural areas.
“We will now have to work very hard to ensure that this community is not affected further by this decision and that other local services remain.”
And Wrekin MP Mark Pritchard has said he will continue to fight the campaign having already written to the Prime Minister with a petition signed by hundreds.
