2009

SU0501 : Stapehill: postbox №s BH21 186 and 522, Cobham Road

taken 15 years ago, near to Stapehill, Dorset, England

Stapehill: postbox №s BH21 186 and 522, Cobham Road
Stapehill: postbox №s BH21 186 and 522, Cobham Road
The ordinary box, on the left, is for stamped mail and is emptied at 5:45pm on weekdays and at 9am on Saturdays. The modern one on the right is for franked mail and is emptied finally at 6:30pm on weekdays only.

Although the industrial estate is named after Ferndown, it is in BH21 (Wimborne) rather than BH22 (Ferndown) postally. Ferndown came under Wimborne until 1990, two decades after the estate was built, so the anomaly was created then.
Business postbox for franked mail

The distinctive business postbox for franked mail was introduced in the mid-1990s. Before the advent of such boxes, franked mail could not be posted in a letter box and thus had to be handed in at a post or sorting office unless the business had a visit from the postman. (The reason for this is that ordinary stamped mail would be sent to the sorting office and postmarked, whereas franked mail is already dated by the sender's franking machine.)

Because it is designed for business mail, it is found usually in business parks and industrial estates or in areas of town which are heavily occupied by businesses – and has relatively late final collection times.

It is opened by pulling down the black handle on the sliding opening, and when the final collection of the day is made it will be locked shut and reopened the next weekday morning (including Saturday if the box has a Saturday collection). This is because, as franked mail is dated by the customer rather than at the sorting office, it must be posted on the same day as the date indicated on the franked impression. By accepting later items which would not be collected till the following day, it would give the false impression that Royal Mail had taken a day longer to deliver the item.


Creative Commons Licence [Some Rights Reserved]   © Copyright Chris Downer and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.
Category: Postbox
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SU0501, 20 images   (more nearby 🔍)
Photographer
Chris Downer   (more nearby)
Date Taken
Monday, 15 June, 2009   (more nearby)
Submitted
Monday, 15 June, 2009
Subject Location
OSGB36: geotagged! SU 059 012 [100m precision]
WGS84: 50:48.6571N 1:55.0236W
Camera Location
OSGB36: geotagged! SU 059 012
View Direction
East-northeast (about 67 degrees)
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Image classification(about): Geograph (Second Visitor for SU0501)
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