Residents in Kelvedon have won their fight to save their post office.

More than 50villagersattended a meeting of Braintree Council''s Witham area committee inSilver End village hall last nightto try to save it.

To rapturous applause, the committee voted to grant planning permission for a sorting office to be built behind the Bhavani Store, where the post office has operated since April, in Kelvedon High Street.

The post officewas threatened with closure after Royal Mail announced it was to close the sorting office further up High Street.

The owners said that without being given permission to move the office into a purpose-built building behind the store, continuing to run the post office would not be viable.

Braintree Council received almost 50 letters supporting the application.

Joyti Thakrar, owner of the Bhavani Store, said: "All the villages need the sorting office and without this, the post office cannot survive."

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Published Wednesday, November 30, 2005

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