EVEN in this age of the internet, e-mail, and the social network, the Post Office continues to play a hugely important role at the heart of many of our communities.

This isn’t harking back to some bygone age. A 2011 survey found that over 96% of people in Wales use the Post Office network, with just over half using their local branch once a week or more. Amongst those on low incomes, this figure rose to 63%, and 68% of people who are registered as disabled use their local Post Office weekly.

And it’s about far more than just stamps and parcels, with post offices increasingly offer a wide range of services - including banking - which is crucial when it comes to tackling financial exclusion, and in the face of the bank branch closures we’ve seen across Wales over recent years.

So it’s perhaps not surprising then, that the sudden closure of Garndiffaith Post Office in my constituency back in 2010, caused such significant concern - particularly as local residents were left without a service for nearly a year as unsuccessful attempts were made to secure alternative provision.

Indeed, it came as a huge relief when the Garnsychan Partnership - a long established and very successful social enterprise - agreed to step in to run a service from their base in the area.

It also represented a very brave and unusual step for the partnership, who deserve great credit in my view, for responding to the needs of the community and its representatives in this way, and taking on an operation of that magnitude, outside of its core function.

Sadly though, the partnership were recently forced to agree to consult on reducing the operating hours of the Post Office, in order to ensure it’s sustainability into the future. And although I’m planning to meet with representatives of the Post Office nationally in the coming weeks to discuss the support they’re offering the partnership, it’s clearly more essential than ever for the local community to show how much they value this important local service.

I would encourage Garndiffaith residents to respond to the consultation by e mailing their comments to comments@postoffice.co.uk or by writing to FREEPOST ‘Your Comments’. But even more importantly – local residents need to ‘use it or lose it’ – and secure the future of Garndiffaith Post Office by making the most of the services on offer there and showing their support in the crucial weeks and months ahead.