NEILSTON residents have been left stunned after the village’s Post Office closed without warning.

The Barrhead News can reveal Post Office bosses have imposed a temporary closure of the branch, contained within the Shopsmart store in the village’s Main Street.

Residents have raised concerns over the decision, which has removed Neilston’s only source of banking services.

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A spokesperson for the Post Office refused to explain why the closure has taken place when contacted by the Barrhead News.

However, Neilston Community Council vice-chairman John Scott described the move as “quite a blow” for the village.

He said: “I went up to the Post Office this morning to post a parcel and there was a notice saying ‘service suspended.’

“The shop owner isn’t very happy about it. I asked how long it would be closed for and the owner said it could be a while.

“I had to take my parcel down to Barrhead Post Office. From what I understand, Neilston Post Office had auditors in and they took away all the mail and paperwork.

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“It’s the only Post Office and the only source of banking we have in the village.”

Councillor Paul O’Kane, who represents Neilston, and East Renfrewshire MP Paul Masterton have both written to Post Office chiefs to seek answers over the sudden closure.

“A number of constituents made contact with me on Friday to share their concerns over the suspension of the service,” said Cllr O’Kane.

“They were going in to send parcels and things like that and weren’t able to.

“I have written to the Post Office to ask them to shed light on what is going on and to find out when we can expect the service to be restored.”

Mr Masterton said he was “very disappointed” to hear about the sudden closure and is keen for services to resume “as quickly as possible.”

Post Office bosses have issued a “sincere apology” to customers for any inconvenience.

A spokesperson added: “We appreciate how much communities rely on our services and would like to reassure customers that the decision to suspend services at any of our branches is never taken lightly.

"We take very seriously any decision to temporarily close a branch and only do so when it is warranted.

“We are working hard to restore services for the community as quickly as possible.”