Post Office Lordship Lane is Broken

[giggirl]

If like me you are a regular user of the Post Office then you don't need telling that the Lordship Lane branch is broken.  The average wait time recently has been 45 minutes but today it was over an hour.  The only way to get improvement is for the Post Office to receive a significant number of complaints about this branch.  Please find below a link to the Post Office complaints portal.  If it makes you feel better, make your complaint whilst waiting in the queue and make sure to pass the link on to others in the queue.  The branch is at 74-76 Lordship Lane, London, SE22 8HH (you will need this for the form).

The link is 

https://www.postoffice.co.uk/contact-us/in-branch-customer-experience

A word of warning - whilst looking for Post Office complaints portal I kept on being redirected to Royal Mail complaints.  Do not complain to Royal Mail - this is not a Royal Mail issue it is a Post Office issue.  I think the Post Office is being quite crafty on its website because it makes it's complaints portal hard to find and keept redirecting to Royal Mail.

Also, I politely ask that you do not rant at the staff in the branch.  I am sure each and every working day for them is hellish.  Branch staff are powerless so ranting achieves nothing and slows down the queue even more.

I think it is important for all of us to complain and not suffer in silence.  Effectively we have lost a local service as it is unviable.

 

 

 

[Sue]

My understanding was that the Post Office Crown Offices  counter service was going to run from smaller local centres, like the existing Sub Post Offices in shops.

Or at least that that is being looked into.

There's a thread on it on here somewhere.

So I suspect that management is already well aware of the issues.

But hopefully complaining might help speed up the changeover. 

On the other hand, it would  speed up the closure of this office, and on the other thread many people were complaining about that!  

Edited Wednesday at 17:49 by Sue

[giggirl]

I think Lordship Lane is an exception and needs to be complained about.  Next time you're out and about take a look at the queue - it is not unusual for it to go past the Dry Cleaners and sometimes even past the Japanese restaurant.  

It needs urgent action.  It is not acceptable to queue for an hour and 15 minutes to be served whilst the Post Office figures out its next business model.  

The PO does not care about its customers or its staff (Mr Bates v The Post Office anyone).  It does not like getting complaints.  Complaints are untidy.

[Spartacus]

Maybe, temper the complaint to say that it is a popular, well used service but understaffed by helpful people, often resulting in long queues of over an hour. 

Make it less about how bad it is but how well.used and needed it is 😉

[Sue]

Does anyone know why the waiting time is so long?

Are all the counter spaces being used? If so, it's hard to see how things could be speeded up within the existing building.

Is the office short staffed eg due to illness?

Are the queues at particular times of day which may coincide with staff breaks?

Are the counter staff inexperienced or lack full training or are just very slow?

Is the manager inexperienced?

Do the customers have things which may take a long time?

I'm sure there are other potential reasons.

Without knowing what the issues are, it's hard to say how things could be improved.

[giggirl]

There are a number of reasons for the long wait time and improvements can be made. 

The counter staff is inexperienced.  They all started work at the PO in November 2025.

There are 5 work stations.  On a normal day there are only 2 of the 5 stations open for service.  On a good day there are 3 workstations open.  On one day just before Christmas there were 4 open.  In all the decades I have been using that PO there has never been an instance of all 5 windows being open.

If they could aim for having 3 of the 5 windows open and serving customers at all times that would make a huge difference.  2 windows is not enough.

Recruitment and training are problematic. 

Sickness is a problem.  I think it is a very stressful work environment.  Please do not complain directly to the counter staff.  They are powerless.

I use the PO every day.  6 visits a week.  I run a small business.  I can no longer use LL - I have to travel to a different PO.  Because I visit every day I have had plenty of time to observe and IMO the one service they need to stop immediately is allowing people to collect deliveries directly from the PO.  Why, because that location is not equipped to deal with it.  

Here is an example of why it needs to stop.  Today the queue was long with 2 windows open.  One customer was collecting a package.  The package could not be found.  One of the 2 serving staff spent just under 15 minutes (yes, I timed it) looking for the package.  It still wasn't found and the customer left empty handed.  For 15 minutes there was only 1 member of staff attending to the queue - the other was looking for a package.  This happens a lot - I promise you this happens every day.

If you are an ED resident considering having your packages redirected to Lordship Lane then please don't.  They cannot efficiently provide this service.  Redirect to the Peckham Sorting Office instead.  

 

 

 

[Rockets]

I think one of the problems with Lordship Lane is the sheer number of people using it to return items as it is now one of the only Evri parcel return points - I have been in there a few times (with an Evri parcel return I hasten to add) and everyone seemed to be doing the same. Either that or posting bags full of small sized packages each one that took a few minutes to deal with!

I agree - it's definitely not working but I don't think the Post Office really cares as the business is on it's knees and I suspect many of the poor staff having to endure it are too.

[Moovart]

12 minutes ago, giggirl said:

 

If you are an ED resident considering having your packages redirected to Lordship Lane then please don't.  They cannot efficiently provide this service.  Redirect to the Peckham Sorting Office instead.  

 

 

 

It's my understanding that it's private delivery companies such as Evri that have the post office as a delivery point so you can't redirect those parcels to Peckham SO as that's only for Royal Mail but, yes, probably worth trying a different drop off point.

As you say a lot of the queue is for people dropping off and picking up parcels to and from Evri and other companies, kind of like a private sorting office, and while there is clearly a huge demand for this service, the post office was never designed for the number of parcels it is now required to deal with resulting in long queues and lost or hard to find parcels.  This messes up the efficient provision of other core PO services including cash/bank services now there are no banks in ED.

I think this one office is being required to do too much for its size. 

[zog]

Couldn't agree more with the frustration. I avoid it like the plague but made the mistake of picking up a parcel a couple of months ago and it took them 20 minutes to find it. This was after queuing for an hour. All the pickup parcels were just in a massive heap with no order or organisation so they manually had to search for everything. Bizarre and deeply annoying as if run well it could be a good asset to the Post Office and of course the community. Also, very much agree with the point re not taking it out on counter staff as it must be a terrible and demoralising environment to work in.

[giggirl]

I spend a riddiculous amount of time at the PO.  Every day.  I watch and I watch closely. 

Returns take seconds.  The wait might be long but the scan takes a second.  The only thing that slows down a return is people scrolling through their phones looking for QR codes.

Business customers like me take seconds.  I might have up to 2 bags of boxes but every one is perfectly packaged and pre-paid.  It just needs a scan.  Seconds.

For customers like me and for returns customers they could just put in a self-service check out and we would all be in and out in minutes.  Quicker than M&S.  

Or, have a dedicated window for scanning and nothing else.  No facility to handle money at that window so nobody is tempted to ask for a service other than scanning.  That would get the queues down instantly.

It is the people picking up things that backs up the queue.  The branch is not equipped to provide the service.  Next time you're in the branch take a look at the shelf space immediately behind the servers.  A few stacking shelves.  That's all the space they have.  Everything else is on the floor in a mess.  I take on board what someone said about the private delivery companies not delivering to Peckham and I didn't know that.  

The biggest time wasting service of all is Parcelforce.  If someone in front of me asks for Parcelforce I want to cry.  Long, long, forms need to be filled out by hand, in triplicate.  It is Dickensian.  

Please consider taking a few minutes to fill out an online complaint (link below).  I honestly believe that an influx of complaints might make a difference.  I don't want to demoralise the staff or anything sinister but the PO needs to see that the branch is broken.

https://www.postoffice.co.uk/contact-us/in-branch-customer-experience

 

 

[Moovart]

Complaint submitted.  Your helpful link took me straight to the relevant page. 🙏

[mitchiner]

From what I’ve researched online, they aren’t issuing any opportunities for sub post office licenses in this area for ages so LL is so stressed out. If this is ever going to improve they need to start allowing applications for licenses in this area so complaining may be helpful if anyone can do this when they have time using the link from above? It’s very annoying indeed using LL especially when collecting

[Angelina]

I think it’s depends when you go in as well. I’ve been in a few times in the last month and I haven’t had to wait more than 10 minutes.

[Jenijenjen]

Is it still operated by the Post Office though. I took this photo of a poster in the Post Office in September announcing the running of LL Post Office would soon pass to a franchisee ZCO Limited. Is the current chaos a result of that?

[giggirl]

I think it's partly due to losing the old staff and having a change over, but that's not the whole picture.  The LL branch is not coping.  I don't think it will get any better without intervention and it is not the fault of the staff; they aren't lazy or stupid.  I think it does not have the resources to provide the services it's being asked to provide.  It does not have the space or staff to act as a mini-sorting office.

Please complain to the Post Office using the link below.  They need to know there is a problem

https://www.postoffice.co.uk/contact-us/in-branch-customer-experience

We are losing a valuable local resource.  My advice to anyone is to go to Dulwich Village, Peckham, Forest Hill, Nunhead or Crossthwaite Avenue (behind the big Sainsbury).  Lordship Lane is a last resort. 

[Jenijenjen]

I totally agree about lack of space/resources, in a way it's a victim of its own success as more and more people are using it as a collection point rather than wait in for delivery. My point is, will complaining to the Post Office bring results, though of course I hope it does, or will they just say it's nothing to do with them and to contact the franchisee?

[Rockets]

The problem is the Post Office (and not just the one on Lordship Lane) has become a victim of the changing nature of the way things are delivered, the changing volume of things that get delivered, the changing nature of what is being delivered, what is being sent back and the fact delivering those things is a competitive market where it is very difficult to make money.

[pecksniff]

Only tend to use Lordship Lane if necessary opting for  Denmark Hill. Or Little Hut (near Nat West Bank, Peckham) who have longer opening hours and offer  Royal mail, Yodel, Inpost. 

[Eats Dulwich]

How widely are people aware of Royal Mail's sending service - if it's a parcel you can pay and print off label at home and just drop off. link below. They will even pick it up for a small extra charge (maybe even free depending on item). I did this on Monday and was aiming to drop off at LL PO but saw the queue was stretching way out into the street so diverted over to corner shop in Upland Road and dropped it off there. 

https://send.royalmail.com/?cid=SM_RMP_0223&s_kwcid=AL!10933!3!781157212692!b!!g!!royal mail tracked 48&gclsrc=aw.ds&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=23192018280&gbraid=0AAAAADnU4TDfp6wGzzGiPexY0ahf0UnAT&gclid=Cj0KCQiAyP3KBhD9ARIsAAJLnnYKkFDCIiPu21DB_Iv_oQaBMiAsWz8toFN1mHaGgYdQFRc5U9UfZ8MaApJpEALw_wcB

It might help morale if they got their sign fixed. It's been like this since before Christmas.

Edited 23 hours ago by Eats Dulwich

[Dave 3]

But i think the problem has been here far longer. For years there have been massive queues so the ownership change isn’t the thing to blame. I only use the PO for money deposits so i don’t have that many options unless i want to go to Crosswaithe avenue

[David Peckham]

39 minutes ago, Eats Dulwich said:

 

It might help morale if they got their sign fixed. It's been like this since before Christmas.

Maybe the 'POT OFFICE' sign is the reason behind the recent unusual footfall at the Lordship Lane branch?

I suppose a little spliff may make the waiting time pass faster, but I suspect most stoners would just put off their errands for another day. Or two. Possibly.

[Cluck'ed]

Psst - you can also drop off Royal Mail parcels at Family Store, the blue-fronted corner shop at 23 Upland Road!

[Eats Dulwich]

34 minutes ago, Cluck'ed said:

Psst - you can also drop off Royal Mail parcels at Family Store, the blue-fronted corner shop at 23 Upland Road!

yep, that's the one I used. 

[Pugwash]

If I need a PO I will go to Forest Hill (the old WH Smith). Shorter queue but only 2 windows. Due to poor mobility I cannot stand for more than 5-10 mins, so LL is out for me.  I remember the times, many years ago, when there were chairs in the post office!   Showing my age!

[Sue]

3 hours ago, Cluck'ed said:

Psst - you can also drop off Royal Mail parcels at Family Store, the blue-fronted corner shop at 23 Upland Road!

Do they take any size and weight parcels, or is there a limit?