Derbyshire village postmistress honoured for 30 years of serving community

Carolyn Ludlam is celebrating 30 years in charge of Winster Post Office, earning her a rare long-service award from the company.

Presenting the award, area manager Rachel Bailey said: “Carolyn is at the heart of her community. We want to thank her for her loyal and dedicated service to the people of Winster.”

Having previously worked for three years in busy town centre branches in Matlock and Bakewell, Carolyn’s time in Winster began almost by accident.

She happened to be visiting the village at a time when the former postmaster was looking for a relief assistant, and initially took on some ad hoc shifts.

The following year she took on the full postmistress role, and has seen the operation thrive ever since despite the many changes in the nature of the business and high street economies.

One of the keys to her success has been focusing on running Post Office services, and renting space from other retailers rather than becoming a shopkeeper in her own right.

In 2010 she moved to the village shop, a hub for local life now partly run by a committed team of community and residents.

Volunteers and staff are loyal Post Office customers, and have worked with Carolyn to ensure that the branch could survive even the toughest of tests against a backdrop of ‘modernisation’ reforms that have given the business a different kind of presence in many rural areas.

During the pandemic, the Winster shop and Post Office organised it so that customers would use different entrances to keep people separate, and Carolyn’s son, an electrician, set up a traffic light system to let people know when they could enter.

Reflecting on her time behind the counter, Carolyn said: “The best part of being a postmistress is the people that you meet and serve. There are lots of really lovely people in this and our surrounding villages.

“I have got to know so many people well over the years. I want to thank customers for their support.”

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