UK’s most appreciated postman receives almost £2,000 in tips to fund his wedding

Phil Hammond was left speechless when he was gifted almost £2,000 as a Christmas bonus from local residents, as the money will help him pay for his upcoming wedding

We rely on our posties to bring us our mail every day, and they work tirelessly to make sure everyone gets their letters and parcels on time.

And one neighbourhood’s beloved postman has received huge praise for his hard work, after generous residents teamed up to try and raise a £100 Christmas tip – but ended up raking in almost £2,000.

Jodie Hoskins set up the fundraising page to encourage people in the area of Worthing, West Sussex, to chip in and support their “wonderful” postman, Phil Hammond.

Eager locals flooded the page with thoughtful messages to the “best postman ever” and ended up smashing the £100 goal set by Jodie – with a total of £1,845 donated to Phil.

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The postman, who is due to get married soon, said of the kind gesture: “I would like to thank all my customers and wish them a very happy Christmas. I’m very proud to serve them in my job at Royal Mail.”

Royal Mail have also heaped praise on Phil, insisting they are “proud” of all their employees who deliver post in “all weathers”, six days a week.

A Royal Mail spokesperson said: “We know that local communities really value what our postmen and women are doing in these challenging times, and we are proud of them, too.

“It is always gratifying when our customers recognise the hard work of their postmen or women who deliver in all weathers six days a week.”

On the initial fundraising page, Jodie called for everyone to “club together” to treat Phil for Christmas.

The post read: “We’re raising £100 for our wonderful postman Phil who always goes the extra mile for our estate. Merry Christmas Phil.

“All club together for our wonderful postman Phil so he can treat himself for Christmas on us.”

And the page received dozens of comments from local residents who have been touched by the postman’s kind heart over the years.

Ellie Richardson, who has had her post delivered by Phil for five years, said: “He’s just an amazing bloke. He’s always around and makes time for all his customers that he’s delivering to.

“He doesn’t just post the letters he knocks on the door and says hello. He just makes everyone feel like he’s part of the community as well.

“What makes him special is that he knows exactly who everyone is who he posts to, he knows them by name. He sees us in the street and says hello.

“Because we knew he had a wedding coming up we thought it would be a good idea to contribute and make his wedding happen basically. He can have his special day.”

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