Member of Parliament for Houghton and Sunderland South, Bridget Phillipson has praised the hard work of the staff at Royal Mail delivery office in Houghton-le-Spring and passed on Christmas greetings and her support for their hard work during the Christmas period.

Christmas is the busiest time of year for postal workers. Independent research commissioned by the Royal Mail found recently that 89 per cent of people still prefer to receive a traditional Christmas greetings card, while only 11 per cent favoured an electronic message or a social media one.

The research also found that people on average will send 17 cards this year, the same as the last two years.

With this research showing there is no let-up in the demand for sending greetings cards this Christmas, postal workers have a huge task to make sure everyone gets their cards on time.

Last week, Bridget visited the Houghton delivery office to observe first-hand the hard work and dedication of postal workers.

Speaking after the visit, Bridget said:

“It was great to have the opportunity to visit the Royal Mail Delivery Office in Houghton-le-Spring.

I was very interested to learn a bit more about the hard work done by postal workers, especially at this time of year when they are busiest.

It was also useful to learn of the hazards they face in making sure mail is delivered on time, from adverse weather conditions to risk they can face from dogs.

I want to thank all the postmen and women for their exceptional hard work. They do a really important job all year round, but particularly during the festive period when so many people are waiting for deliveries.

I want to wish them all the best for Christmas.”

Gerard Gilroy, Royal Mail Delivery Office Manager at Houghton-le-Spring, said:

“Our postmen and women are working extremely hard to deliver Christmas cards, letters and parcels to people across Bridget’s constituency.

We are grateful that Bridget visited the office to see our operations and to support the team during our busiest time of year.

We’d like to remind out customers to post early so that friends and family have longer to enjoy their Christmas greetings.”

The last recommended posting dates for Christmas are:

Second Class -; Thursday 18th December
First Class -; Saturday 20th December
Special Delivery -; Tuesday 23rd December