Kilwinning Main Street Post Office opening hailed by MP

Patricia Gibson was given the honour of cutting the ribbon to mark the opening of the new facility at the Seymour post office.

She attended alongside community councillor Jim Miller, who had been very supportive in raising awareness of the planned re-opening.

The new facility brings Post Office services back to the centre of the town after the previous facility at the McColl's store nearby closed at the beginning of this year - along with the shop of which it was a part.

The return has all been thanks to shop owners Melissa and Tony Fuggle, who took on the premises back in May, originally as a discount store.

They then successfully applied for the Post Office franchise, and now Tony is concentrating on the retail side and Melissa is serving Post Office customers with new employee Nikole Campbell.

The couple, originally from Folkestone in Kent, moved to Scotland in 2014.

They previously owned an award-winning takeaway in the Dirrans area of Kilwinning, but the rising cost of fuel persuaded them to make the move into retail.

They previously owned an award-winning takeaway in the Dirrans area of Kilwinning however with the rising cost of fuel their own bills trebled and the pair decided to move into retail.

Melissa said: “Business is really taking off. It works really well having a Post Office alongside the sweet shop.

"We are all geared up for Christmas and we are seeing lots of new customers that we have not seen before.

“People have been really happy that Kilwinning post office has opened. A couple of customers commented that they would have liked the branch down the other end of the high street, but we were the business that was willing to operate the post office on.

“Some people said that they didn’t realise what shops were available down this end of Main Street, and other local retailers are very happy as their business has picked up too.

“We are busy reminding customers what services are available here, including banking,  bill payments, send parcels and home shopping returns, as well as get Euros on demand and pre-order other currencies.”

Ms Gibson said: “I am delighted that it is back on the Main Street. There was a lot of concern in the town when the original post office closed.

“Kilwinning, despite the fact it is a town of over 16,000 people, has no bank, so the post office became even more important.

“I know there is one down in Pennyburn, but that isn’t handy for people who live close around and come down to do their shopping.

“The post office is really the heart of the high street. When that goes, other businesses suffer, so I’m so pleased that it’s back. It will help to maintain services in Kilwinning Main Street.

“We know that the retail sector is having real difficulties. Post offices are vital to survival of businesses.”

Now, as she has done often over the years, Ms Gibson is calling on the UK Government to do more to ensure the vital service can be maintained in future years.

She added: “We are well into the Christmas season. The Post Office is vital for connecting communities and people within them.

“I think the problem is that the UK government isn’t being proactive enough to support our post offices.

“We see services being stripped away from them which is making their sustainability all the more difficult. We need better support for post offices and better support for postmasters.

“I have tried hard to make a special case for supporting post offices with their energy bills because they are so critical for our high streets and I will continue to do that.

“We say we value our post offices but it has to be more than words, the government has to actually show with actions that they are a special case and need more support.

"At the minute we are in such a critical cost of living crisis for businesses and households that our priority is to hold on to what we’ve got.

“Every town needs its own post office. For communities that have lost their banks, as many in North Ayrshire have, the post office takes on an even greater importance.

“It’s going to be hard to get post offices to re-open which is why what has happened with this one re-opening in Kilwinning is just wonderful.

"I know the people of Kilwinning will support it and use it well.”

The new facility is open from 9am until 5.30pm, Monday to Friday, and from 9am-1pm on Saturdays.

Scott Hamilton, network provision manager with the Post Office, said: “We are delighted to have restored a post office to this area as we know how important a post office is to a community.

"The branch’s opening hours make it convenient for customers to visit.”