Post Office (PO) branches are helping to generate an extra £3.1bn spend in nearby businesses on the high street, according to a new report.

A London Economics report, published today for the first time on the social and economic impact of the PO, revealed that in two out of every five visits to branches, money was also spent in neighbouring stores and premises.

In the north west, PO trips generated additional expenditure of £370m in other high streets shops, which equates to £50 per person. In Northern Ireland, PO generated £111m in other high street shops, which equates to £59 per person.

During 2021 to 2022, PO generated £4.7bn in economic impact across the UK, and for every £1 spent by PO, an additional £1.51 is generated across the wider economy.

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PO’s CEO, Nick Read said: “PO branches are essential to the high street ecosystem, driving footfall and generating wider nearby economic activity, as well as providing an underlying economic infrastructure that supports small and medium enterprises (SMEs). The report shows that this economic contribution is felt in every corner of the country, and across each parliamentary constituency, supporting 50,000 jobs, and generating an aggregate economic impact of £4.7bn every year.

“PO is essential for the shopkeepers, traders, and nascent businesses of the nation as a whole, who rely on our continued presence on high streets in towns and villages everywhere.”

In addition, the report revealed that PO is worth almost £1bn overall to SMEs, with nearly three in 10 SMEs using a PO once a week to deposit cash and use mails services.

Read added: “Simply put, post offices, and the dedicated postmasters and postmistresses who run them, keep people connected. Connected to the financial system and their cash, to their friends and loved ones, to their customers at home or overseas, and connected to one another in what may, for some, be the only human contact in the day. It is very telling that half of customers believe PO fosters a sense of belonging in the community. POs should not be overlooked nor taken for granted.”

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