A VILLAGE post office which re-opened in a pub after months of being shut is enjoying lots of custom.
Rippingale Post Office, based in part of the Bull Inn in High Street, Rippingale, has welcomed back many residents who previously used the service at the village shop in Middle Street.
The branch was re-introduced as a hosted outreach service in N
ovember last year and according to The Bull landlady Sue Atkinson – everything is going well. She hopes people will continue to make use of the service.
Mrs Atkinson said: "It was busy before Christmas with people posting cards and parcels which was good.
"I think in the new year we will see whether it is going to be a success.
"However, people are coming in for their car tax, stamps and other services despite the bad weather we are having at the moment.
"It is great for the village community with people using the post office and meeting up with each other and having a chat."
The service is provided by the sub-postmaster from Billingborough Post Office. It is sectioned off from the pub and there is a separate entrance.
Opening times are from 2pm to 4pm on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, and 9am to 1pm on Fridays.
The branch was based at Rippingale Stores, now closed, after sub-postmaster Simon Dean's struggled to keep it open.
This followed the loss of the post office counter in January 2009 which was replaced by an outreach service.
It had been temporarily closed since May last year due to the premises being withdrawn for Post Office use.
The re-opening followed a six-week public consultation, which ended two months before it was reinstated.
Villagers campaigned to keep the post office in the village and set up a group called the Friends of Rippingale Post Office.
Group member Jim Latham said: "I haven't used it myself yet as I've been very busy but I hear it is going okay over there. We need to encourage the use of this as we have almost been left with nothing here in Rippingale."
Rippingale, which lost its school in 2007, faces the loss of its doctors' surgery as well. New Springwells Practice in Station Street has been classed as not fit for practice.
