Press release -
1st class Gilberdyke postmaster, who serves three Yorkshire communities, is retiring from the role
- Postmaster John Shepherd marks 15 years in the role
- Runs two outreach Post Offices - Eastrington & Broomfleet
- Experienced postmaster taking over
- Has received special recognition from fellow postmasters
Popular postmaster, John Shepherd, is to retire from running Gilberdyke Post Office and the two outreach branches that he started at Eastrington and Broomfleet.
After a successful retail career with Tesco in southern England, Yorkshire born John and his wife, Susan, returned to their county of birth, so that they could be closer to their parents, who lived in Leeds and Hull.
John took on his first Post Office at Gilberdyke in June 2010 and he considers it a “privilege” to have served this village, where he has got to know the community really well.
The long-serving postmaster said: “I have cherished every minute of my time here as postmaster. It really has been a privilege to serve the people of Gilberdyke and also went on to operate Post Office outreach services in Eastrington and Broomfleet.”
He also opened a convenience store shop and Post Office in Hook in 2015 as the village had no food store and needed someone to take on the Post Office. He undertook the work to provide much-needed services to the village, until the community was able to take over its running.
John is proud of the business that he built up and that he and his staff remained fully open during Covid and his customers were very appreciative as that allowed them to stay local.
He clearly remembers his first winter in rural Gilberdyke - it was the worst weather that he has experienced in all of his life. There was deep snow constantly on the ground from 1 December to 1 January. Local farmers with tractors cleared snow from local roads and John was able to maintain service and supplies to the village and ensure that Christmas cards and parcels could still be sent.
An experienced postmaster, Rachel Chandrakumar, from Nottinghamshire, is officially taking over on 27 January. Rachel has spent a couple of days in branch this week so that John can introduce her to customers and staff. Knowing that a very suitable person wanted to take over Gilberdyke Post Office made it easier for John to make the decision to retire.
John has also made a difference to people’s lives in Gilberdyke by starting a table tennis club and introduced live music to the village, including a recent charity concert which raised £707 for the Postmasters Benevolent Fund that provided financial assistance to individuals experiencing hardship issues.
John has also been keen to help other postmasters across the UK. When postmasters started to realise that there were issues with the Post Office computer system, John was one of the postmasters who became part of a national Post Office Branch Users Forum to help to identify issues, improved processes and ways of working.
He also got involved with Post Office Branch Engagement and campaigns to highlight how Post Offices are at the heart of communities, the vital roles of postmasters and how they go above and beyond for their customers.
John was involved in a group with the idea of filming pioneering short documentary-style videos for social media to highlight the important social role that Post Offices provide as well as raising awareness of the wide range of Post Office services they provide including every day banking, mails, home shopping returns, bill payments, vehicle tax renewal and foreign currency, passport renewals and ID verification services.
In November the tables were turned on John when he received a surprise from some fellow postmasters and a camera crew to film him at his branch. John was presented with a certificate of appreciation to show Post Office’s thanks for his innovative support for other Post Offices.
Post Office Area Manager, Martin Wyer, said: “I really want to really thank John Shepherd for the excellent Post Office service that he has provided to his community for the past 15 years and for all that he has done for fellow postmasters too.”
Whilst John will no longer run a Post Office branch, he wants to continue to support postmasters by still being involved in support groups and with creative ideas.
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- With over 11,500 branches, Post Office has the biggest retail network in the UK, with more branches than all the banks and building societies combined.
- Post Office is helping anyone who wants cash to get it whichever way is most convenient. Partnership with over 30 banks, building societies and credit unions means that 99% of UK bank customers can access their accounts at their Post Office.
- Cash withdrawals, deposits and balance enquiries can be made securely and conveniently over the counter at any Post Office; and the biggest investment by any organisation or company in the last decade is being made to safeguard 1,400 free-to-use ATMs across the UK.
- Post Office is simplifying its proposition for Postmasters with a focus on its cash and banking; mails and parcels; foreign exchange; and; bill payments services.
- Research has found that visits to the Post Office help drive another 400 million visitors to other shops, restaurants and local businesses equating to an estimated £1.1 billion in additional revenue for High Street businesses.
- 99.7% of the population live within three miles of a Post Office; and 4,000 branches are open seven days a week.
