DEFIANT protesters have held a 'sit-in' in response to a decision to close Barry Crown Post Office.
A group of people vented their opposition to the closure of Holton Road post office on Friday, October 14 by staging a sit-in.
Margaret Ward, 76, a frequent user of the post office, said: "I was very disappointed when I first heard the post office was shutting.
"Someone told me to use the internet but I'm no good at it and like being able to pop to the building.
"The sit-in in the post office showed that people in Barry are against the crown post office shutting."
A protester added: "We're showing that most people do not want our post office to close - I just hope someone will listen to us."
Earlier this year the Post Office announced the decision to close Barry Crown Post Office, as part of plans to create a sustainable network for the future.
Roger Gale, the Post Office’s general manager of the crown network, said: "Regrettably, in some locations, crown branches are loss-making and we cannot look to the taxpayer to subsidise these.
"The Barry area is well served by other branches, with King Square just over half a mile from Holton Road and a further four post office branches within two miles."
Jane Hutt AM, who was at the sit-in, said that she had launched a campaign to save the Crown Post Office.
She said: "My petition attracted thousands of signatures, demonstrating the strength of public feeling on this issue. I also produced a report as part of the consultation process.
"The Post Office itself has acknowledged that the Christmas peak time is so busy, that it will be delaying closure until after then, which begs the question, how will it cope next Christmas once the Crown Office has closed?
"The Post Office has also acknowledged that there are gaps in provision in the western part of Barry and it will be advertising for a potential operator in that area to supplement service provision. Surely this proves that the closure of the Crown Post Office is not justified? It is unthinkable that Barry, the largest town in Wales, will lose its crown post office.”
The Barry Crown Post Office will close on Saturday, January 7 2017.