Moortown Post Office: Inside the new Royal Mail shop in north Leeds after it was saved from closure

Elderly residents in Moortown were left upset and concerned in September after it was announced that the local Post Office, located in the Nisa Local on Harrogate Road, was to permanently close.

But it has now been saved after local shop owner Ree Williams, 43, took on the responsibility to house the service in her Love Always Balloons shop.

Speaking at the opening she said: “The local community has been absolutely amazing and just so supportive. Everybody has been really excited about having a Post Office back in town.

"When the other one just up the road closed it put a lot of people out especially the older generation and it’s just been amazing. We’ve had amazing feedback from everybody and they’ve all been in congratulating me.”

The closure of the old Post Office came after a number of local bank branches had recently shut leaving the local community at a loss for where to go locally for their pension and other banking needs.

Love Always Balloons is located just three doors down from the Post Office’s original home and after months of navigating the necessary security checks and red tape officially reopened yesterday.

Dozens of happy locals turned out for the grand reopening, including local ward councillors Mohammed Shahzad and Sharon Hamilton.

Ree added: “It’s really a lifeline for the local community. The nearest bank is probably a 35 minute walkaway but for an older person that’s a bus ride so giving them that option on their doorstep is such a positive thing.”