This is why Sheffield residents have been waiting weeks for their post

Only last week resident Hilary Gerrans complained about delays at the Sheffield West delivery office in Broomhill, and Royal Mail explained that it had revised its postal routes in Sheffield West to reflect changes in the local area.

However, recent complaints about deliveries in S5, in the north of the city suggested a larger issue was the cause of Sheffield’s postal problems.

Joan Barton, from Shirecliffe saw the report concerning the reorganisation which had caused delays in Broomhill and got in touch with the Sheffield Telegraph to ask if this was the same reorganisation that was behind delivery delays of nearly three weeks to her property.

Joan explained that she had received no deliveries in that time and that her husband had had to go to the Lane Top sorting office twice to collect their post.

A Royal Mail spokesman said: “In the Sheffield area we are experiencing disruption to service due to significant sickness absences.

“Due to the high numbers of staff absent we have been rotating deliveries in the area so that our customers receive their mail as frequently as possible.

“We apologise to customers for any inconvenience they have experienced.”

Ross Mason, another S5 resident, complained to Royal Mail because he had been waiting nine days for a signed for parcel, and said that he was happy to pick it up if they were too short staffed, adding “I really need the parcel.”

The following day Ross added on Twitter: “I visited the delivery office this morning. I was told they had bags of mail going back weeks and not enough staff to open them and they couldn’t tell me when this would be done.”

Royal Mail responded to Ross to apologise for the delay and sent him a link where he could log lost parcels and another link to complain. Ross was contacted by Royal Mail again on November 16, to inform him that his parcel, sent on October 28, was now considered lost.