'Diabolical' staffing situation leading to lengthy postal delays in town - whistleblower
Staff levels at a Royal Mail delivery office in Shropshire have been described as "diabolical" by a whisteblower amid accusations of missed deliveries.
Residents in Church Stretton had expressed concerns that mail would not be delivered every day from the town's delivery office due to staff shortages, with fears that important letters such as utility bills might not arrive on time.
Royal Mail has said its campaign to recruit more staff is ongoing and that if there are delays to a particular route, staff will look to prioritise it the following day to keep delays to a minimum.
However, a whistleblower with connections to Royal Mail spoke to the Shropshire Star and said the situation in Craven Arms was "diabolical".
They said: "It's sad because members of the public talk to you about it and they say 'I haven't received mail for 10 days' – and then they get a whole load coming through.
"This (situation) got worse since Covid. They started prioritising parcel deliveries over letters and I think it's stuck ever since."
The individual went on to say "it was down to lack of staff – there's no doubt about it – they have taken on new recruits but a lot of people left over the last 12 months".
