THERE have been various changes to Post Office services in the area with some having reduced hours and some where the mobile service in a van has been replaced by a full-time service.

A Post Office spokesperson said: “The Postmaster who operated the Cheriton Bishop mobile Post Office service has resigned from providing the service to eight communities.

“We understand how important a Post Office is to a community and we are delighted to have arranged solutions for six of the eight locations.

“Recently a full-time service was opened in Bow at Bow Garden Centre and Chawleigh’s full-time branch opened on Monday, March 11 at Chawleigh Village Stores. Both have significantly longer opening hours.

“The Postmaster for Chudleigh has taken on providing outreach services for Ashreighney, Yeoford, Burrington and Morchard Bishop.

"Instead of being visited by the Mobile Post Office which had been based at Cheriton Bishop, the services now operate from fixed locations – inside the buildings where the Mobile had been based in the car parks. These services began on Friday (March 8).

“Post Office services have now ceased at Chittlehamholt and Umberleigh as nobody had used these services in the past year.

“Additional changes have also been made to the existing hosted outreach services, which were already provided by the Postmaster for Chudleigh, to accommodate the extra outreach services.”

One village getting used to the change is Yeoford where the mobile van had visited for an hour on Monday and Tuesday mornings and an hour-and-a half on Thursday lunchtimes. Now there is one hour on Friday afternoons.

The outreach services are as follows: Ashreighney Village Hall, now Friday 9.30 – 10.30am. Bridford, Village Hall, now Thursday 2.45 – 4.45pm. Burrington Chapel, now Friday 11.30am – 12.30pm.

Chudleigh Knighton, Village Hall, now Tuesday 3 - 5 pm and Thursday: 8.30 – 10.30am. Denbury, Church Cottage, remains as Tuesday 9 – 11am.

Lower Aston, Teign Valley Golf Club, now Tuesday 12.15 – 2.15pm.

Morchard Bishop, London Inn, now Friday 1.30 – 2.30pm. Starcross, Westbank Charity Shop, now Thursday 11.30am – 1.30pm. Yeoford Community Hall, now Friday 3.30 – 4.30pm.

Bow Garden Centre is now open Monday to Saturday: 9am – 5pm; Sunday: 10am – 4pm. Chawleigh Village Stores is now open Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday: 9am – 6pm; Wednesday: 9am – 1.30pm; Friday and Saturday: 9am – 4pm; Sunday: 9am – 12 noon.