The petition of residents of the constituency of Broadland and Fakenham,
Declares that residents of Fakenham and the surrounding villages need access to a permanent Post Office to service the needs of our community; asks that the Chief Executive and the Government listen to our voices and work with the banks to provide a long term solution to access to cash and postal services through a Post Office in the heart of our town; and notes that an online petition on the same issue has collected 1,223 signatures.
The petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urge the Government to take into account the concerns of the petitioners and take immediate action to ensure that a permanent Post Office is delivered to serve the needs of the Fakenham and the surrounding villages.
And the petitioners remain, etc.—[Presented by Jerome Mayhew, Official Report, 14 May 2025; Vol. 767, c. 458.]
[P003068]
Observations from the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Gareth Thomas):
I thank the petitioners for raising the issue regarding a permanent post office in Fakenham.
The Government provide an annual network subsidy to support the delivery of a minimum number of branches and a geographical spread of branches in line with the Government-set access criteria. This financial year we are providing £83 million of subsidy to support post office provision in communities across the UK. That is up from the £50 million previously provided and is in addition to the uplift that we provided in the last financial year. The access criteria ensure that however the network changes, across the country, 99% of the population live within three miles of their nearest post office.
While the potential location of a post office outlet remains an operational matter for the Post Office, we understand that there is an application in progress for a permanent branch in Fakenham. As soon as the Post Office has a proposal confirmed for the new post office in Fakenham, it will update the local community.
In the meantime, local residents can continue to access post office services at the temporary managed branch at Millers Walk in Fakenham, and via the nearest alternative branches located at Little Snoring and Great Ryburgh. Both branches are approximately four miles from Millers Walk.