An outgoing Post Office owner has explained the reason for its "unforeseen" closure, confirming it will be reopening.

After Post Office announced that the Bovingdon branch in High Street was closing from Wednesday (November 28), several residents were left confused over whether it was shutting for good.

Gary Cullum, who is a friend of the outgoing owner Kay Hirani, was asked to pass on the message that the closure is only short-term while it transfers to new ownership.

"The Post Office closure is temporary, though it might take several months for the PO side of the business to pass hands from Kay Hirani to new shop owners Amit and Vikash Undakat,” Mr Cullum, who edits and publishes The Bovingdon Villager newspaper, said.

“The new business owners want it up and running as soon as possible and Amit will be training up to be the responsible sub postmaster.”

He added that the outgoing owner had to be away from the business for an unknown length of time due to family health matters in India.

“She had volunteered to keep the Post Office running until ownership can change,” Mr Cullum added.

“She remains responsible for the Post Office side of the business until it can transition across to the new owners.

“The only option was for Kay to personally pay for a locum to be appointed by the Post Office while she is away, at substantial cost to her, though she would remain fully liable for any ‘mishaps or errors’ in her absence.

“This is not an option.”

The initial letter sent out by the Post Office said: “We are writing to inform you that, regrettably, due to unforeseen circumstances, the above branch will be closing at 5pm on November 27.

“The provision of a Post Office service to our customers in the local community is important to us, and I can assure you we are currently investigating the possibility of restoring a service to this area in the near future."

The Post Office declined to comment beyond this when approached by the Watford Observer.