RESIDENTS in Salterforth showed their support for their new village post office this week, queueing up to use the service in the Baptist Church Centre.

A new home had to be found for the post office after parish councillor Fiona Hanson moved out of the area. For six years, she had run a sub-post office from her kitchen in Moor View.

Since it closed on August 21, villagers, many of them pensioners, have had to travel to Kelbrook or Barnoldswick to use the post offices there. The Post Office Ltd appealed for a local resident to take on the service.

John Tidswell, of West Marton Post Office, offered to step into the breach and will be running the service from the Baptist Centre on Tuesday and Friday mornings from 9am until noon.

Starting the venture on Tuesday, Mr Tidswell said all his customers had been pleased to see a post office open again in the area.

Peter Galvin, performance advisor in the retail management sector of the Post Office Ltd, said: "This shows the Post Office's commitment to rural sites and today's opening is evidence of this."

Mr Tidswell, who has been running West Marton Post Office for two years, is working over a counter that has been specially built at the Baptist Church for the post office. Every Tuesday and Friday morning he also takes a mobile kit with him similar to a laptop to run the service.

The post office will offer the same range of services with customers still being able to collect their pensions, benefits and tax credits in cash. Parking is also immediately available outside the church.