THE owners of a post office building have said they will work hard to maintain the service in a Caithness village.
The Welbeck Estates Company says it remains committed to helping provide a post office for the residents of Berriedale.
The assurance comes after it was announced that the facility is to close temporarily following the retiral of sub-postmaster Joy Corley, who has run the branch for seven years.
Her resignation resulted in the Post Office officially announcing that the facility will be temporarily closed as of Tuesday, March 27, and the use of the premises withdrawn.
This caused confusion with the officials at the estate who said that they had not been contacted by the Post Office about a replacement or the building being withdrawn for post office use.
But after discussions with Post Office officials, matters were cleared up and it was discovered that the building was initially given to the sub-postmaster rather than the Post Office itself to run, therefore the sub-postmaster was responsible for providing the service.
Estate factor Anson McAuslan told the Caithness Courier
He said that the estate provides the building to the sub-postmaster free of charge.
"Everyone is hopeful that there is someone who will be willing to carry the service on," he said. "The building is still available free of charge for Post Office use in the area as we recognise the importance of maintaining the service in Berriedale.
"It came as a surprise to us that the building was being withdrawn for use, but it appears to be a misunderstanding and the Post Office is committed to keeping the service going if possible.
"We are committed to providing some sort of facility to the village as it is of benefit to those who use it.
"But once it is gone it is gone – so we hope that somebody will come forward and help continue the service."
The Post Office said that it is making every effort to continue its facility in Berriedale and is actively exploring its options.
Field change adviser Kenny Lamont said that despite the post office closing temporarily, work is under way to find a replacement.
"The provision of a post office service to our customers in the local community is of paramount importance and it is therefore important any future service is sustainable for the new sub-postmaster and for Post Office Ltd," he said.
"We will continue to review solutions to provide a post office service as soon as possible."
