Burpham Post Office shut on Saturday 22 August with the Morrisons Daily it sat inside. Boxgrove and Merrow are the nearest counters; the Post Office says a replacement is not guaranteed.
Burpham Post Office closed for good on Saturday 22 August. The counter at 214 London Road sat inside the Burpham Morrisons Daily, and it shut on the same day as the shop.
The Post Office’s branch finder now lists the branch as closed every day of the week. The nearest counters are at Boxgrove, about a mile away, and Merrow, about 1.4 miles away.
What the Post Office has said
The closure was set out in an information letter dated 30 June, published on the Post Office’s consultation site under the heading “Branch Unplanned Closure”. It says Morrisons had “confirmed their decision to close Burpham Morrisons Daily store and as a result, Burpham Post Office branch will also need to close”. The store’s closing date was given as Saturday 22 August, and the Post Office counter closed the same day.
On what happens next, the letter is careful:
“We are currently investigating the options available to enable us to reinstate a Post Office service to the local community, this may include the vacancy being advertised on our website www.runapostoffice.co.uk.”
It adds that “future provision will reflect customer numbers and usage and we may take the opportunity to establish an alternative type of service”. The letter is signed by Billy Ware, Corporate Account Manager.
The Post Office’s Principles of Community Engagement, reproduced at the end of the letter, spell out what an unplanned closure means. Whether to replace the service is “a commercial decision” that “will not be subject to public consultation”. The notification period on the consultation site runs until 23 October, but that is for comments, not a vote.
Guildford’s MP, Zoe Franklin, confirmed the 22 August date on 1 July and said the Post Office was “actively seeking a long-term replacement” in Burpham.
What has gone
The Burpham counter offered everyday banking for personal and business customers, including cash withdrawals, cash and cheque deposits, bill payments and top-ups, Drop & Go, DPD parcels, euro travel money and the Travel Money Card. That list is still shown on the branch’s closed listing.
Everyday banking at a Post Office counter matters more in Guildford than it did a month ago. Halifax closes its High Street branch on 24 September, and no banking hub is planned.
Where to go instead
The Post Office’s letter names two alternatives. We checked both on the branch finder on 26 August and both show normal opening hours.
Boxgrove Post Office, inside One Stop at 119 to 121 Collingwood Crescent, Boxgrove Park, GU1 2PF:
- Monday to Friday 9am to 5.30pm, Saturday 9am to 1pm, closed Sunday
- about 1 mile from the Burpham branch
- there is a step at the entrance
- offers similar services, but no euro travel money
Merrow Post Office, inside Nisa Local at 223 Epsom Road, GU1 2RE:
- Monday to Friday 7am to 6pm, Saturday 7am to 2pm, closed Sunday
- about 1.4 miles from the Burpham branch
- level access at the entrance
- offers similar services, but no euro travel money
Neither opens on a Sunday. The Burpham counter, sitting inside a convenience store, had been open seven days a week.
What it means for you
- Cash and cheques: both alternative branches take deposits and withdrawals over the counter. If you banked at the Burpham counter because your bank has no branch nearby, Boxgrove and Merrow do the same job.
- Parcels: Drop & Go and DPD services are available at both alternatives. Check the branch page before a trip if you need a specific carrier.
- Euros: neither Boxgrove nor Merrow sells euro travel money over the counter. Use the branch finder to find one that does before you travel.
- If you want the counter back: the Post Office is taking comments at comments@postoffice.co.uk or by post to FREEPOST Your Comments until 23 October. Anyone interested in running a branch can apply through runapostoffice.co.uk. The Post Office says it will write to local representatives again “once we have any news about our plans for future service provision”.
The shops still trading along London Road are listed in our Burpham business directory.
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