Fears solar-powered 'dalek' postbox could replace village shop

Villagers in the pretty Suffolk parish of Monks Eleigh are worried a new postbox could drive their community shop out of business. Royal Mail unveiled plans for the solar-powered unit earlier this month, with a new design, including a barcode scanner and drop-down draw, that marks the biggest revamp "in its 175-year history". The roll-out will see 3,500 solar postboxes installed across the UK, allowing items as large as a shoebox to be deposited in the draw, as Royal Mail faces growing competition in the delivery sphere from companies including Evri and DHL.

The change, described as "another convenient way" for residents to access the company's services, hasn't gone down well with everyone in Monks Eleigh, however. Alan Branthwaite, chairman of the local parish council, said he had "some real concern" about the new installation and its wider impact on the area.

"We are worried that they could be slowly replacing the post office with the post box and that would be a huge loss," he told the East Anglian Daily Times. "We have amazing volunteers and the shop is a really valued resource which is vital to community life."

The new automated postbox, which has yet to be launched in the Suffolk village, has been dubbed a "dalek" by some members of the community, for the threat it could pose to their way of life and its current appearance, shrouded in black plastic with an "out of service" sign stuck to its side.

Shop chairman Alan Line added: "We don't know enough about how it will work to have strong thoughts on it, but there was no consultation with us at all."

Royal Mail, which was bought out by Czech billionaire Daniel Ketínský last year, was fined millions after failing to meet letter delivery targets and warned in November that it was facing a £120 million hit from the National Insurance hike and couldn't rule out job cuts or price hikes.

Following successful pilot schemes in Hertfordshire and Cambridgeshire, the firm is planning to launch the solar-powered postboxes in villages, towns and cities across the country as part of a drive to expand its parcel services and make them "as convenient as possible".

Jack Clarkson, a managing director at Royal Mail, said: "We are all sending and returning more parcels than ever before. This trend will only continue as online shopping shows no signs of slowing, particularly with the boom of second-hand marketplaces.

"There are 115,000 postboxes in the UK located within half a mile of 98% of addresses, making them by far the most convenient network of parcel drop-off points in the UK. Our message is clear, if you have a Royal Mail label on your parcel, and it fits, put it in a postbox and we'll do the rest."