We are told this is part of the "reshaping" of the post off-ice network, which, in Govern-ment and civil servant speak, means making it smaller and giving a poorer service for all.
The local post office is a focal point in village life in West Vale and, I suspect, in Stainland also.
It is the place where people meet, perhaps to draw some form of benefit, but it is also the place where contact with a friend or loved one far-away, or a business contact, starts with the purchasing of postage for a letter, parcel or form.
True state benefits can now be paid into bank accounts and stamps can be bought at many shops and other places, but those in authority who think that these replace the contact of the local sub-post office are living in a bureaucratic world where human beings are red-uced to a number or statistic.
I am sure that sub-postmasters or mistresses know many of their regular customers, particular the elderly, and can sort out the weekly problems that the pensioner may have in dealing with financial matters.
Benefits may be paid into a bank account but how do individuals get hold of cash? Shopkeepers want money, not a credit card, for small transactions. In any case, for many these cards are too difficult to use and, I suspect, not wanted.
In West Vale we no longer have any banks and there are no cash machines other than those in shops, where there is a charge for using them.
If people cannot get hold of cash to spend on daily necessities, then the shops in West Vale will die and the village itself will die. A community cannot exist on takeaways!
I realise that, for now, the sub-post offices at Upper Greetland and Holywell Green are to remain open, but these are some distance away, both uphill and both served by an infrequent bus service.
Alternative post offices suggested by the "network development manager" are those at Elland, Skircoat Green and Southowram.
While there is a regular bus service to Elland, can the Post Office explain to a lady who called to see me in some distress yesterday which bus she is to get from West Vale to Skircoat Green Road or Law Lane in Southowram?
If places such as the local post office close, then part of our community dies. It is the breakdown of community that has contributed to the society that has developed over the last 20 years.
Now, it all right moaning or feeling aggrieved at the proposed closures but unless there is a concerted campaign to protest at the decision then they will happen.
I have written to local MP Chris McCafferty expressing my objections and asking her to do what she can to stop the decision, particularly since the closure programme came at the behest of the Government.
I believe our local councillors should take an active part in organising the campaign by setting up the necessary petition to the Govern-ment through the MP and sending our objections to the network development manager.
This is a real issue that will effect our communities. Do nothing, councillors and villagers, including businesses, and you will regret it in the future.
Peter Broadley