Answer

Government has announced that 500 new Outreach Solutions will be introduced to help minimise the impact of the Post Office closures.

There are 4 types of Outreach service:

* Mobile Post Office®
* Hosted service
* Partner service
* Home Delivery service

For each of these services an established subpostmaster (known as the “core” subpostmaster) will travel into a nearby community to provide a local Post Office® service; in addition to running their own Post Office® branch.

Mobile Post Office®
A travelling Post Office® situated within a van operated by the subpostmaster that will visit small communities at set times and days each week, to deliver core Post Office® products and services to customers.

Hosted service
A fixed site Post Office® branch from which the subpostmaster or his assistants will transact core Post Office® products and services during restricted hours each week. The premises are owned by a third party, for example, a shop or community centre.

Partner service
A fixed site Post Office® branch where a local partner (such as a pub landlord), appointed by the subpostmaster, transacts a reduced range of Post Office® products and services from the partner’s own premises.

Home Delivery service
A service for very small communities whereby the subpostmaster delivers a reduced range of Post Office® products and services which are ordered over the telephone by customers. The products may either be delivered to customer’s home or at a local Drop-In Session. There will not be a physical Post Office® building in the community.

It is not known how these will be allocated/spread across the UK at the moment. This news comes shortly after the launch of the new-style mobile Post Office vans.

More information on Outreach solutions is available at

http://www.postoffice.co.uk/portal/po/content1;jsessionid=M2WIC0J4K1YFOF...