Plan to turn post offices into social hubs

A working group to transform post offices into “social hubs” offering numerous community, financial, and retail services has been established.

It comes after a report on the future of the country’s 1,300 post offices published by businessman Bobby Kerr recommended immediate action to tackle serious challenges facing the network. The report found many rural and isolated post offices are not viable and must adapt to remain open in the coming years.

There were 198 closures between 2007 and 2010 and a further 24 net closures between 2011 and 2014.