A village will lose its post office provision from the start of next month after the resignation of the postmaster, as an alternative is sought in the short term. 

Earlier this week, it was announced by the Post Office that its branch in Kirby Misperton would be closed from April 8 at 2pm, due to having no one to run its postal facility in the village.

In a letter circulated online, the Post Office cited issues with rising costs and funding from the government as reasons for postmasters stepping away from its branches in recent times. 

However, it did reassure people that it was working to try and find an alternative in the future to allow people in the village to access its services. 

In the letter, the Post Office said: "Post Office is facing a particularly challenging period, as are other high street retailers.

"The impact of rising costs, inflation and restrictions on our funding from the Government means that while we will always look to reopen branches when they close, we cannot commit to doing so in every instance.

"As part of our continuous review of the Post Office network, we will evaluate Post Office service provision in the area.

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"We want to ensure customers can access our quality services and products across the Post Office
network and it is important that any service is sustainable for both the operator and for Post Office
Limited.

"We are committed to maintaining our access criteria so that 99% of the UK’s population are
within three miles of a Post Office and 90 per cent are within one mile and will continue to review this position and prioritise those areas with the highest need."

In the aftermath of the closure announcement, MP for Thirsk and Malton, Kevin Hollinrake, has promised residents in Kirby Misperton that he will be working with the Post Office to try and provide temporary services until a new postmaster can be found.

Mr Hollinrake said: "I've been informed by the Post Office that Kirby Misperton's branch is due to close next month - Monday, April 8. I completely understand this is a huge blow for residents who rely on the branch for postal, banking and business services and fully share the frustration of local people.

"The Post Office has stated the reason for this closure is due to the resignation of the postmaster and the withdrawal of the premises for post office use.

"I have contacted them to ask for a meeting and to press for measures to lessen the impact of this closure, for example implementing temporary services until a permanent solution can be found. I will keep residents updated on this."