A VILLAGE’S Post Office would close and move into a petrol station under new plans.

The Post Office is consulting on closing its branch at 5 The Leazes, in Bowburn, near Durham, and running services from Bowburn Filling Station, 800m away on Durham Road.

An eight-week consultation has begun, during which customers and members of the public are invited to give their views.

The new Post Office would be open from 6am to 10pm every day, 66 hours more per week than the current branch.

Post Office bosses say it would offer a modern, open-plan retail environment and is part of a major modernisation programme being rolled out across the network to make it easier for customers to do business.

Suzanne Richardson, Post Office regional network manager for Scotland and Northern England, said: “We understand how important Post Office services are to residents in Bowburn and we are confident that this modern new branch will meet the needs of the local community and secure services for the future.

“The proposed changes to the branch are part of a major investment programme to convert the Post Office network to new-style branches and this investment, the largest in the history of the Post Office, marks a commitment to no more branch closure programmes.”

The consultation runs until Friday, January 31.

To comment, visit postofficeviews.co.uk with the branch code 233313, call 08457-22-33-44, email comments@postoffice.co.uk or write to: Freepost YOUR COMMENTS, Post Office Ltd.