Tag: Post Office Ltd

Alan Cook, the newly appointed boss of the Post Office, has been touring Britain meeting the nation’s sub- postmasters and mistresses. In Wilstone, Hertfordshire, almost the entire 320-strong village population turned out to meet Cook, who joined the Post Office seven weeks ago. “They knew we were coming,” he said. If the former “man from the Pru” had any doubts about the importance of his new job, the reception from the Wilstone villagers left him with no doubts. Cook is the man charged with securing the future for the country’s 14,500 post offices. It is a tough task: not only is the network losing about Pounds 100m a year, but its position as the government’s cashier -doling out cash to pensioners, mothers and the unemployed -is being eroded as benefits are paid directly into bank accounts. If Cook is to save the nation’s post offices, he has to find a new role for all the sub-postmasters and mistresses across the country.

Almost a third of London’s post offices have closed in the past three years, figures show today. There were more than 1,200 in the financial year 20012 but three years later there were only 867 – a loss 28 per cent. Today, campaigners said local communities were being hit hard by the loss of their local services and called on the Government to intervene. Lynne Featherstone MP, London spokeswoman for the Liberal Democrats, said: “The future for London post offices looks gloomy. It is time the Government realises the seriousness of this problem. It needs to come up with concrete plans to provide for the long-term future of Royal Mail.”

UK post office were dealt another blow yesterday when the BBC announced an end to their contract to issue television licences after 60 years. The corporation said it would save pounds 100 million over six years by giving the contract to Paypoint, which operates over-the-counter payments through shops such as Co-op, Londis, Spar, Costcutter, Texaco and Somerfield. But sub postmasters, who are in many cases already struggling to avoid closure, fear that the move will further damage their businesses. An estimated 2.1 per cent of post office income derives from the sale of television licences. Five million people pay for their licence at the post office every year. There are almost 15,000 Paypoint outlets, which is slightly more than the number of post offices. Paypoint said it would have 17,000 by 2007 and that its operations were open for an average of 100 hours a week.

CONTENTS PAGE
Executive Summary 6
Developing and Testing Innovative Approaches 7
Propositions for Innovative ways of Providing Rural Services 7
Initial Findings from Pilots and Associated Analysis 9
Next Steps 10
1. BACKGROUND 11
1.1 History of the Rural Network up to 2000 11
1.2 PIU Report 11
1.3 Post Office Ltd’s Response 11
1.4 Postcomm’s Response 12
1.5 Government’s Response and Requirements for Further Pilot Activity 12
1.6 Post Office Ltd’s Rural Activity 13
2. THE RURAL NETWORK TODAY 14
2.1 Size of the Network 14
2.2 Stability of the Network 14
2.3 Trends in Sales: Growth of New Products Offsetting Loss of Benefits 14
2.4 Supply and Demand 15
2.5 Value of the Social Network 15
2.6 Customer Satisfaction 15
2.7 Current State: Description of the Current Environment 16
2.7.1 Demographic/Economic Trends 16
3. DEVELOPING ALTERNATIVE SERVICE DELIVER MODELS FOR RURAL AREAS 17
3.1 Criteria for Developing Credible Alternatives 17
3.2 The Role of Initial Pilots in Shaping the Options 17
3.2.1 Background to Initial Work 17
3.2.2 Initial Activity Undertaken 18
3.2.3 Developing the Integrated Work Packages 18
3.2.4 Implications for Subsequent Pilot Work 18
3.2.5 Developing the Integrated Work Packages and Pilots for 2005 18
3.3 Summary of the Approach to Developing the Options 19
4. DESCRIPTION OF POTENTIAL RURAL SERVICE PROPOSITION 20
4.1 Introduction 20
4.2 Commercial Branches 21
4.3 UK-Wide Direct Channels 21
4.4 The Core and Outreach Service Propositions 21
4.4.1 Profile and Role of the Core Branch 21
4.4.2 Outreach Services in General 22
4.4.3 The Virtual Services (‘Home Service’) 23
4.4.3.1 Proposition 23
4.4.3.2 Target Market 24
4.4.3.3 Operating Model 24
4.4.4 The Partner Service 24
4.4.4.1 Proposition 24
4.4.4.2 Target Market 24
4.4.4.3 Operating Model 25
4.4.5 The Hosted Service 25
4.4.5.1 Proposition 25
4.4.5.2 Target Market 25
4.4.5.3 Operating Model 25
4.4.6 The Mobile Service 26
4.4.6.1 Proposition 26
4.4.6.2 Target Market 26
4.4.6.3 Operating Model 26
Post Office Ltd – Rural Pilot Activity Report – 2006
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CONTENTS PAGE
4.5 Conventional Branches Proposition 27
4.5.1 Profile and Role 27
4.5.2 Operating Model 27
4.6 Supporting these Service Propositions 27
5. APPROACH TO TESTING THE PROPOSITION 28
5.1 General Outline 28
5.1.1 Field Testing 28
5.1.2 Field Data Gathering 28
5.1.3 Basic Research and Analysis 29
5.2 Site Selection for Field Testing 29
5.2.1 Core and Outreach Site Selection 29
5.2.2 Site Selection for Community Support 30
5.2.3 Site Selection for the Hours Reduction Trial 30
5.3 Operational Deployment of 2005 Pilots 30
5.4 Profile of the Field Pilot Campaign: Characteristics of Pilot Sites 31
5.5 Conclusion 33
6. RESULTS AND ANALYSIS FROM THE TESTS 34
6.1 Network Shape 34
6.1.1 Home Service 34
6.1.1.1 Adoption of the Service 35
6.1.1.2 Stakeholder Response 36
6.1.1.3 Customer Response 36
6.1.1.4 Core Subpostmaster Response 37
6.1.1.5 Potential Scalability 37
6.1.1.6 Preliminary Conclusions 38
6.1.2 Partner Service 38
6.1.2.1 Adoption of the Service 39
6.1.2.2 Stakeholder Response 39
6.1.2.3 Customer Response 39
6.1.2.4 Core Subpostmaster Response 39
6.1.2.5 Partner Response 39
6.1.2.6 Potential Scalability 40
6.1.2.7 Preliminary Conclusions 40
6.1.3 Hosted Service 40
6.1.3.1 Adoption of the Service 41
6.1.3.2 Customer Response 42
6.1.3.3 Core Subpostmaster and Host Response 42
6.1.3.4 Stakeholder Response 43
6.1.3.5 Cost to the Core of Running the Service 43
6.1.3.6 Sales Generated by the Service 43
6.1.3.7 Potential Scalability 43
6.1.3.8 Preliminary Conclusions 44
6.1.4 Mobile Service 44
6.1.4.1 Adoption of the Service 45
6.1.4.2 Customer Response 46
6.1.4.3 Core Subpostmaster Response 46
6.1.4.4 Stakeholder Response 46
6.1.4.5 Cost to the Core of Running the Service 46
6.1.4.6 Sales Generated by the Service 47
6.1.4.7 Overall Commercial Impact 47
6.1.4.8 Potential Scalability 47
6.1.4.9 Preliminary Co