Residents and post office bosses are bracing themselves for the next round of branch closures.

Postmasters in Littlehampton, Bognor and Chichester hoped they had escaped the axe after it was announced that 49 branches are to close in Sussex.

But the Government has not reached a decision on branches in the two remaining constituencies and postmasters can expect to find out if they are on the hit-list days before Christmas.

The agonising wait has angered postmasters who will not be able to campaign to keep their branches open until the announcement is made official on January 29.

Premila Patel, postmistress of the Bracklesham post office, near Chichester, said it was like a "slow, painful death".

She said: "The Post Office hasn't told us anything. All I've heard are comments from people coming in the shop who say they will fight back. It's just more stress and anxiety. I would rather just know now if they plan to close us."

The mother-of-two took over the shop in Bracklesham Lane two years ago.

She said: "I'm very concerned. It's my livelihood. If the post office goes all my business and livelihood will go too. I've got a family to bring up. It's a very high risk but I don't have much choice if it goes."

Postmistress of the Elmer Road branch in Bognor, Tracey Johnstone, is trying to sell her business and said the wait has left her in limbo.

She said: "I would just like to know for peace of mind. It's been a year since we first knew there may be closures. We've been trying to sell the shop.

"It means our business and our lives have been on hold for a year. In that time we've lost potential buyers because we don't know what will happen to this branch.

"They forget this post office is our business. When we had the interview to buy it three years ago the Post Office said it was a partnership. But then they do this. Partners don't do that. Partnerships are based on trust and respect."

Previously, Bognor and Littlehampton have felt the pinch of Government cut backs when a branch in Pagham was closed two years ago.

Conservative MP for Bognor and Littlehampton Nick Gibb said: "If there are more going in our area there will be a lot of unhappiness and it's something we will seek to fight.

"These Post Offices are very important to people particularly the pensioners and there's a high proportion of pensioners in Littlehampton and Bognor."

On Tuesday the Post Office began a six week public consultation on the Government's Network Change programme, which proposes closing 49 branches in Sussex and replacing two branches with outreach services, or mobile stations.

The Government argues 2,500 branches nationwide must be closed to plug the £4 million it says post offices are losing weekly.

You can give your views on the proposals by downloading a copy of the consultation document at www.postoffice.co.uk/networkchange, writing to Post Office Ltd at Freepost Consultation or emailing consultation@postoffice.co.uk.

Opponents to the closures can also sign petitions launched by The Liberal Democrats at www.libdems.org.uk, by Hove and Portslade MP Celia Barlow at www.celiabarlow.org.uk and at their local branches.

See a full list of post offices the Government wants to close here

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