Loss means just one facility to serve Sheep’s Head peninsula.

THE closure of Durrus Post Office on Friday (January 16th) leaves the Sheep’s Head Peninsula serviced by just one post office from this weekend.

The facility, which is located in the village shop, is set to close following a decision by the shop owner not to continue with the service.

This means that locals in Durrus will have to travel 11km to the nearest post office in Bantry, while the only other post office on the Sheep’s Head peninsula is 16km away in Kilcrohane.

Speaking to The Southern Star, Shaun Taylor of Durrus Community Council said the closure of the village post office signals a huge loss to the community.

‘We are very sad to see that it’s closing at the end of the week. However, there isn’t much we can do about it unless someone wants to take over the running of the business,’ said Shaun.

‘We fought to retain it before but it seems to be an ongoing problem in rural areas. There is someone looking to try and see if it can be saved but the problem is that the post office would have to be relocated and a suitable premises would need to be found.’

He said the fact that there will be only one post office across the Sheep’s Head Peninsula from Friday presents a huge inconvenience for people.

Cork South West TD and Independent Ireland leader Michael Collins, who raised the issue in the Dáil on Tuesday, said it’s a devastating blow to the village that they are losing their post office. He called for a debate in the Dáil chamber on the issue, but this was voted down.

‘The problem is that people might be interested in taking it over but the associated costs as well as finding a new premises would make it unsustainable. The Government has made post offices non-viable and that’s the situation all around the country,’ said Deputy Collins

A spokesperson for An Post said that due to the resignation of the temporary postmaster at Durrus, An Post has no option but to transfer payments to Bantry Post Office, on what it said is a temporary basis.

‘The Durrus Post Office contract has been advertised for a protracted period on two occasions locally and on An Post’s website, but despite some initial interest, no formal applications were received,’ the spokesperson added.

The company stressed that it welcomes expressions of interest or requests for further information from interested parties.

‘A Local Link bus provides five daily return services from Durrus to Bantry, Monday to Friday.

‘Should any person prefer to collect their Social or Disability payment at an alternative post office such as Ballydehob, Kilcrohane or Schull (17km) they can apply to do so through the relevant DSP scheme office.’

The closure of Durrus Post Office comes in the same week that An Post announced a 20c  increase to the price of a standard national stamp from €1.65 to €1.85, effective from Tuesday February 3rd. This has met with criticism from some quarters.