Royal Mail is reviewing the future of Ipswich Sorting Office, in Commercial Road. If, as feared, it decides to close the office this will be bad for services and bad for jobs. No final decision has been made yet, but Dave Scott, Secretary of the Suffolk Amalgamated Branch of the Communication Workers Union says that the most likely plan is to shut the Sorting Office and move operations to Chelmsford or Norwich - meaning Ipswich mail will be driven up and down the A12!
Apart from the loss of jobs, collection and delivery times will be later, and large lorries making unecessary journeys will create extra congestion.
Leader of Ipswich Borough Council and Labour Parliamentary Candidate, David Ellesmere is backing the CWU campaign and urging Royal Mail to think again: 'Ipswich is growing all the time. It is short-sighted to be moving operations elsewhere, and Royal Mail should keep the sorting office here in Ipswich.'
Dave Scott says that customers, especially local businesses will suffer: 'Currently you can post a letter in Ipswich up until 7:30pm at Commercial Road, with many town centre boxes having collections up until 6:30 and 7:00pm Monday to Friday. We fear that by closing the Mail Centre and moving this work to Chelmsford or Norwich hese collection times will be brought forward.'
In recent times Ipswich has lost many of its blue collar jobs that provide a living wage and reasonable pension provision. The potential loss of up to 500 more of these full time and part time jobs from Royal Mail at Ipswich Sorting Office will not only affect local people who work and live in the town, but also the availability of future job opportunities for local working people in Ipswich and Suffolk.
We the undersigned call on Royal Mail to keep Ipswich Sorting Office open.
Updates
Reached 250 supporters
March 16, 2013
March 15, 2013
I have been reading through the personal notes left by so many of you and the stories about what this local office means to your daily routines are truly eye-opening. It is humbling to see how much people care about keeping these jobs and services right here in our community. I am working to make sure the leadership at Royal Mail hears these concerns directly from the people who actually use this facility every day.
February 27, 2013
I really never expected to see this level of interest when I started this. This momentum belongs entirely to all of you who took the time to care about our town office.
February 23, 2013
I honestly never expected that over a hundred people would care about our local sorting office. It is overwhelming to see so many neighbors stepping up to protect these jobs and services. This momentum belongs entirely to you.
Reached 100 supporters
February 23, 2013
19 Comments
Good reliable postal service is essential to small businesses. Closing the sorting office does not make sense when Ipswich’s small business community is growing.
It is important that Ipswich retain this important postal service in support of the local economy and business. There is no long term saving to be made by its relocation. Think of the 'green' issues.
Ipswich sorting office is invaluable to the town and all the residents with an IP postcode. Other mail couriers and carriers just don't come close to the efficiency, convenience and professionalism of this service. Speaking personally, I have had one carrier insist I collect from their depot (in Chelmsford), because I wasn't home when they called (I was at work) and another 'claimed' to have tried to deliver to me at 8pm one evening while I was actually at home and on their website to try to track it!! Ipswich sorting office simply leave me a card telling me where and when I can collect (or easily arrange another delivery). This service needs to be protected at all costs. For the sake of it's customers and also for the sake of the staff who have so much invested in their jobs.
I don't want to loose my local sorting office as I don't drive. Therefore any internet parcels etc would go to local deliverers so would entail more lost income for the post office.
It is important that we keep these 500 jobs in the Ipswich area and maintain the current level of service
Closing Commercial Road sorting office, sheer lunacy. The parcel increase & size limits soon brought a rapid change from Royal Mail when they saw the amount of business being lost. Is this going to be a similar story.
This is a backward step,service will go downhill.
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Royal Mail is reviewing the future of Ipswich Sorting Office, in Commercial Road. If, as feared, it decides to close the office this will be bad for services and bad for jobs. No final decision has been made yet, but Dave Scott, Secretary of the Suffolk Amalgamated Branch of the Communication Workers Union says that the most likely plan is to shut the Sorting Office and move operations to Chelmsford or Norwich - meaning Ipswich mail will be driven up and down the A12!
Apart from the loss of jobs, collection and delivery times will be later, and large lorries making unecessary journeys will create extra congestion.
Leader of Ipswich Borough Council and Labour Parliamentary Candidate, David Ellesmere is backing the CWU campaign and urging Royal Mail to think again: 'Ipswich is growing all the time. It is short-sighted to be moving operations elsewhere, and Royal Mail should keep the sorting office here in Ipswich.'
Dave Scott says that customers, especially local businesses will suffer: 'Currently you can post a letter in Ipswich up until 7:30pm at Commercial Road, with many town centre boxes having collections up until 6:30 and 7:00pm Monday to Friday. We fear that by closing the Mail Centre and moving this work to Chelmsford or Norwich hese collection times will be brought forward.'
In recent times Ipswich has lost many of its blue collar jobs that provide a living wage and reasonable pension provision. The potential loss of up to 500 more of these full time and part time jobs from Royal Mail at Ipswich Sorting Office will not only affect local people who work and live in the town, but also the availability of future job opportunities for local working people in Ipswich and Suffolk.
We the undersigned call on Royal Mail to keep Ipswich Sorting Office open.
Updates
Reached 250 supporters
March 16, 2013
March 15, 2013
I have been reading through the personal notes left by so many of you and the stories about what this local office means to your daily routines are truly eye-opening. It is humbling to see how much people care about keeping these jobs and services right here in our community. I am working to make sure the leadership at Royal Mail hears these concerns directly from the people who actually use this facility every day.
February 27, 2013
I really never expected to see this level of interest when I started this. This momentum belongs entirely to all of you who took the time to care about our town office.
February 23, 2013
I honestly never expected that over a hundred people would care about our local sorting office. It is overwhelming to see so many neighbors stepping up to protect these jobs and services. This momentum belongs entirely to you.
Reached 100 supporters
February 23, 2013
19 Comments
I frequently attend the Ipswich office to collect parcels if signature needed. What would be option if office closes? I would simply lobby suppliers to use other couriers.
Good reliable postal service is essential to small businesses. Closing the sorting office does not make sense when Ipswich’s small business community is growing.
It is important that Ipswich retain this important postal service in support of the local economy and business. There is no long term saving to be made by its relocation. Think of the 'green' issues.
Ipswich sorting office is invaluable to the town and all the residents with an IP postcode. Other mail couriers and carriers just don't come close to the efficiency, convenience and professionalism of this service. Speaking personally, I have had one carrier insist I collect from their depot (in Chelmsford), because I wasn't home when they called (I was at work) and another 'claimed' to have tried to deliver to me at 8pm one evening while I was actually at home and on their website to try to track it!! Ipswich sorting office simply leave me a card telling me where and when I can collect (or easily arrange another delivery). This service needs to be protected at all costs. For the sake of it's customers and also for the sake of the staff who have so much invested in their jobs.
I don't want to loose my local sorting office as I don't drive. Therefore any internet parcels etc would go to local deliverers so would entail more lost income for the post office.
It is important that we keep these 500 jobs in the Ipswich area and maintain the current level of service
Closing Commercial Road sorting office, sheer lunacy. The parcel increase & size limits soon brought a rapid change from Royal Mail when they saw the amount of business being lost. Is this going to be a similar story.
This is a backward step,service will go downhill.
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I frequently attend the Ipswich office to collect parcels if signature needed. What would be option if office closes? I would simply lobby suppliers to use other couriers.