ASHBURTON Postmaster Stuart Rogers has celebrated his 10th anniversary as the town’s Postmaster by coming up with ideas to help more people across Dartmoor.

During the last decade Stuart and wife Jackie have transformed and revitalised support to the town and surrounding area including adding Ashburton community library in 2015 and raising funds for his community. 

But Stuart is not resting on his laurels. He marks their major milestone by launching his Ashburton Hub initiative to help people across the rural Dartmoor area. 

Already at Ashburton people can visit to use the library, postal services, or personal and business banking on behalf of all the high street banks.

Community-minded Stuart is campaigning for representatives from different banks to visit on different days at his branch at 4 St Lawrence Lane to meet their customers. MP Mel Stride and banking leaders recently met Stuart to hear his vision.

He wants to reduce how far Dartmoor people need to travel to access services. Ashburton is attempting to create a UK first by creating a model that sees profit created by all the services he offers being reinvested into Dartmoor National Park.

Stuart is self-funding his ‘Big Build’, an extension to his existing shop to create more room to provide extra services. 

Work has begun to transform upstairs space in his branch. The library is moving upstairs. For the required work to be done the library closed from 24 April until September. 

A lift is being installed to make the area accessible to those who can’t use stairs.

Stuart already provides outreach services in Widecombe-in-the Moor, Dousland and Buckland Monachorum. In October, he also helped to restore Post Office services in Kingskerswell as a partner branch, overseen by Stuart as an experienced Postmaster.

Stuart now has a former Post Office van which he has transformed into a ‘Green’ vehicle with solar panels fitted to help provide services and initiatives to rural communities across Dartmoor. 

This will allow internet connection for those without, and to support those lacking digital confidence. He is seeking grants and funding to develop this initiative. Ashburton Post Office would provide a Hub and Spoke, serving outlying areas.

In the past 10 years Stuart and Jackie have found many creative ways to support the community. For the past eight years for every ATM transaction on the free-to-use ATM, Stuart and Jackie have donated two pence for each transaction to a community fund. He has worked with local community dignitaries and businesses to ‘match-fund’ his contributions, effectively doubling the amount available for local good causes. This has raised funds for Ashburton as they want to serve and to put back into the community.

Stuart was awarded the British Empire Medal in the Queens’ Birthday Honours in 2018 for his contribution to the Post Office and Community as Postmaster of Ashburton Post Office.

Stuart and Jackie and their team have two weekends of celebrations – their 10th anniversary at Ashburton followed by the King’s Coronation. The Patriotic Postmaster spent his Post Office’s 10th anniversary, with the help of volunteers decorating St Lawrence Lane and his shop with flags, bunting and balloons.

Stuart is helping to organise a street party outside the Post Office as the Platinum Jubilee event that they staged proved very popular. He has organised for a King Charles 50p coin memento for children  in Ashburton in a personalised little wallet.