Community Share Created to Save Heptonstall Post Office
Tuesday, 5 October 2021
For 21 years, local postmaster, Tony Spink, has provided a valued post and shop service to members of the Heptonstall community. When news that the postmaster would retire at the end of the year with no prospects of a candidate to take over, the community members came together to try and save their valued community asset. Community members formed Heptonstall Community Assets Limited and a community share offer was created.
Heptonstall Community Assets Limited believes that community business are key to thriving, innovative and vibrant rural communities and address multiple critical needs. They further believe that assets of community value better serve their communities when they are owned and controlled by communities that value and need them.
While many might not have heard about communities buying and running businesses, this is actually a well-trodden path. There are currently over 300 community-owned shops in the UK, with many of them including a Post Office.
The community share offer basically means everyone in the community would be offered the opportunity to buy shares and then become the democratic owners of the business. The share offer and recruitment for a shop/post manager are currently underway and community members are hopeful that the post office will be saved.
Shareholders can choose to invest anywhere from £50-£15,000. You can become a shareholder by post (form available to download from the website or pick one up in person from the Heptonstall post office) or via the post office website. If you would like information about the share offer, please check the post office website www.heptonstallpo.org.