Bicester communities raise £130,000 in efforts to save Weston-on-the-Green village post office shop

  • ITV News Meridian's Ciaran Fitzpatrick spoke to the community about its beloved shop

A community has raised more than £130,000 in efforts to save an essential village shop from closing.

The Weston-on-the-Green Pantry and Post office in Bicester, Oxfordshire is the only shop in the village.

Shop owner, Yasemin Olcay is moving on after seven years but hopes that more funding can be found to reach the £650,000 target to keep the vital local asset.

She said: "I’m really pleased it’s coming to fruition - that some random person isn’t going to take it over and change it or even close it.

"We’re here for the people that rely on us. Whether it’s the elderly, or the vulnerable, or the little kid who wants to run around here and treat themselves to something.

"Or all the businesses and the cottage industries around here who rely on us for not just postage but for banking."

  • Yasemin Olcay spoke to ITV News Meridian about the shop's future.

Community groups, spearheaded by resident Sam Sharp, came together to raise the six-figure sum but around £150,000 is still needed to take over the shop.

They have been helped further along the journey with £250,000 of government grants.

Chair of Weston SOS Sam Sharp said: “The shop cares about the people that live here.

"If people don’t turn up to collect their paper, the staff will make sure they’re ok.

"The whole village has come together. Not just Weston on the Green, but the local villages, Chesterton, Middleton Stoney, and Kirtlington.

"They lost their post office back in October. So I think they’re starting to see how important it is that we save ours."

The shop has been hailed as the lifeblood of the community. Credit: ITV News Meridian

Middleton Stoney resident, Amanda Goodge said: "I think it’s critical. So many things are changing and it’s relevant to individuals, local businesses and everyone."

Weston-on-the-Green Resident, David Sweetnam said: "It’s more than a shop, it’s the central hub of our community.

"Without this, we would just be a collection of people, but with this, we are a proper community.

"We’ve lost our school and we’ve lost so much else. This is one of the few shops that serves us so completely."

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