Appleton Wiske Post Office is to re-open again after a year of campaigning by villagers and their MP.
The branch housed in the village shop closed in January when former postmaster and village shop owner Tony Lawson retired.
Although a replacement postmistress came forward the Post Office did not process her application and fears grew that the service would lapse permanently.
Villagers wrote to Rishi Sunak, MP for Richmond, who took up the matter with the chief executive of the Post Office, Paula Vennells.
Now the post office has agreed that Jackie McReddie, who is running the shop with Yvonne Hills who previously worked for Mr Lawson, can re-open the post office in the Front Street premises in January.
Mrs McReddie said: “This is fantastic news. My business plan has been accepted by the Post Office and I’ve been told we should be able to open early in the New Year.
“I would like to thank the villagers and the parish council for all their support, to Yvonne Hills for helping with the transition arrangements, and also for the pressure on the Post Office applied by Mr Sunak.”
Mrs McReddie said after consulting villagers she had revamped the shop’s stock, with an emphasis on selling local produce like Osmotherley honey, Appleton Wiske bacon and other meat products supplied by the Hutchinson Hobbs farm shop at nearby Yarm. Three local bakeries were now supplying bread and cakes.
She also thanked the village’s In Bloom group which recently constructed a flower border outside the shop to make the frontage more welcoming.
After meeting Mrs McReddie at the shop, Mr Sunak said he was delighted that the post office had agreed to let Mrs McReddie take it on.
“This is really good news for the village and the half dozen communities nearby which used the old post office and for almost a year now have been travelling to Yarm or Northallerton,” he said.
“The post office is vital to sustaining the village shop and I very impressed with Mrs McReddie’s plans to develop the business and its service to the village.”
Mr Sunak thanked the Post Office management for eventually responding so positively to his and the villagers’ concerns. “The delay has been frustrating,” he added “but we now have the result the village was seeking.”
The shop is open seven days a week and can be contacted on 01609 881480 or via its facebook page @VillageShopAppletonWiske. The post office opening hours will be similar to that of the shop.