The five areas of Leeds where Covid-19 has hit Royal Mail services hardest

Five Leeds postal areas are no longer receiving regular post due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Royal Mail has revealed.

The postal service has published a list of 28 areas suffering from limited delivery services as more of its staff are affected by coronavirus.

The zones are areas with high numbers of Royal Mail staff either off sick or self-isolating.

And the list includes five areas of Leeds – under the LS1, LS2, LS3, LS4 and LS5 postcodes, known as the Leeds City areas, as they lay in and around the city centre.

There have been complaints in affected areas that some people have not had mail delivered for more than a month – and fears raised that elderly residents may not receive their letter telling them when they can book their Covid-19 vaccine.

In a statement published with the list on its website, Royal Mail said it was “working hard to deliver the most comprehensive and high-quality service we can to all our customers” despite the pandemic and the associated rise in pressure on delivery resources due to increased online shopping.

“The combination of greatly increased uptake of online shopping, and the ongoing Covid-19 restrictions, mean that all delivery companies are experiencing exceptionally high volumes,” the statement said.

“Every single parcel and letter is important to us. Despite our best efforts and significant investment in extra resource, some customers may experience slightly longer delivery timescales than our usual service standards.

“This is due to the exceptionally high volumes we are seeing, exacerbated by the coronavirus-related measures we have put in place in local mail centres and delivery offices to keep our people and customers safe. In such cases, we always work hard to get back to providing our usual level of service as quickly as we can.”

On its website, Royal Mail advises people in the regions who have been left a “Something for you” card from the service to check its website to learn revised opening hours for when they can collect the item.

“If we’ve not left a ‘Something for you card’, and you do not have alternative arrangements in place, we’re sorry that your mail will not be available for collection,” the advice says.

The 28 areas are:

• Ashford (TN23-TN27)
• Barnsley (S70, S71, S72 and S75)
• Basildon (SS13-SS16)
• Bow (E3)
• Bury St Edmunds (IP28-IP33)
• Chelmsford (CM1-CM3)
• Christchurch (BH23)
• Daventry (NN11)
• Debden (IG7-IG10)
• Enfield (EN1-EN3)
• Grays (RM16-RM20)
• Hampton (TW12)
• Highbury (N5)
• Hornsey (N8)
• Horsham (RH12, RH13)
• Ilford (IG1-IG6)
• Leeds City (LS1-LS5)
• Lewisham (SE13)
• Magherafelt (BT45, BT46)
• Margate (CT7-CT9)
• Rugeley (WS15)
• Somerton (TA11)
• South Ockendon (RM15)
• South Woodford (E18)
• Upper Holloway (N7)
• Wandsworth (SW18)
• Wellington (TA21)
• Widnes (WA8)