HUNDREDS of people have signed a petition to stop the planned closure of their local post office.

Users of Link Top Post Office in Worcester Road, Malvern, are fighting to keep it open after last week’s announcement.

The sub-postmaster, Gurd Virdee, is also doing everything he can to challenge the decision and within four days of the announcement a petition had collected 400 signatures.

Mr Virdee said: “I was upset and annoyed when I found out because I expected not to be closed.

“I kept thinking there are new flats being built, there are shops and parking, I could not see a reason why they would want to close it.”

Link Top Post Office is one of 10 branches in south Worcestershire facing closure following last week’s announcement. It is part of a national programme to reduce the number of post offices in the country by 2,500 following a fall in people using them.

One user, Sue Gilbert, aged 64, of Woodbury Rise, Malvern, said: “I am appalled that such a busy post office can be closed just like that and we seem to have no control over what happens.”

The alternative branches for people would be Malvern Post Office in Abbey Road, and Malvern Link in Worcester Road. Many users do not feel these are viable alternatives.

Christine Williams, aged 52, of St James’s Road, Malvern, said: “It will be terribly sad. My mum is 84 and she would have to walk two miles down to the Link branch and she has difficulties with her mobility and rarely drives. It will be a big blow for us.”

The post office is located within a pharmacy, which is also linked to the newsagent, and Mr Virdee wants to discuss alternatives to a complete closure.

He said with approximately 800 users a week, the post office was in profit and was a valuable part of the community. “I want to preserve what we have so I am open to options from the Post Office,” he said.

“If they want to come to some sort of compromise I can move the post office to the newsagent.”

The closures are based on access criteria which states 99 per cent of the population should be within three miles of a post office.

A six-week period of public consultation has begun and you can express your views by writing to Mark Partington, network development manager, c/o National Consultation Team, Freepost Consultation Team.