A Shrewsbury post office named as an alternative to the threatened Ditherington store has temporarily closed. Customers today found the Sentinel Gardens branch shut until further notice.But Royal Mail said it hoped to reopen the Whitchurch Road post office as soon as possible.

A sign on the window said: “We regret to inform you the Sentinel Gardens Post Office branch will be closed temporarily as of 12.30pm on August 2.”

But the Sentinel Newsagents, where the post office is based but run as a separate entity, was open as usual.

Staff said they had arrived to find the post office closed.

A Royal Mail spokeswoman apologised to customers for any inconvenience.

“It is our intention to maintain a service locally and we are working hard to find a solution as soon as possible,” she said.

The branch was suggested as an alternative to Ditherington Post Office, which faces closure this month under proposals by Post Office Ltd.

Pete Shemar, who runs Ditherington Post Office and a shop, said Post Office Ltd should reconsider closing his site.

He said: “I think it’s disappointing from a customer’s point of view. They are closing me down in two weeks’ time.

“The Sentinel continues to have a staffing problem and what is Post Office Ltd going to do about it? They obviously do not care about the people. They should send someone out from London or Birmingham to look at the area and see what the situation is really like.

“A lot of customers have come to me today from the Sentinel and they are not happy about it. Leaving me open is certainly an option.”