Introduction to Post Office Local
This document will evolve as the project progresses and
so it is important to revisit it each time you are due to
complete onsite support for this model. You need the most
up to date information to contribute to the continued
success of this project.
Index: Page
Model Outline .
Funding
Training Schedule
Existing site Conversions
PREP & SET UP DAY
Being Discreet
e PSA
e Balancing & Trading
Periods
e Branches with Lottery
e Security
Compliance
Assistants
Transactions & Stock
POCA
B de C Buy Back
POPOS Leaflets
Insurance Cover
Issues During Training
Feedback
e
rPRoOWU WM OD WDAWDOATI ITT HUU BWD
oo
1week before you attend a PO Local branch to provide training support,
YOU must contact the branch to confirm that they have received &
completed a copy of the Onsite Training Schedule to organise staff to be
available for you to support (forward a version to them via
email were possible, if they haven’t completed one, with
the instruction to complete it and return it to you
a.s.a.p. , it is on page 5) &toconfirm that all staff members due
to undertake Post Office training have completed or will have completed by
the first day of support, the mandatory Post Office Foundation online test
for compliance .
This will be dependant upon them having access to Horizon prior to Go-live,
so we may want to emphasise this and clarify that as a minimum the
training should be completed if Horizon is not available.
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MODEL OUTLINE
Post Office Ltd is committed to exploring opportunities
to maintain access to products and services by providing
an alternative form of convenience outlet. Post Office
Ltd has been trialing new concepts for delivering Post
Office services falling under the branding of Post Office
Local.
N.B Post Office® Local was referred to as Post Office®
essentials for part of the pilot phase and you may still
see branding & references to Post Office® essentials:
going forward all branches will be branded Post Office®
however, if there are any outstanding references to Post
Office® essentials in any documents it should be assumed
these references apply to Post Office® Local (e.g.
Operating Manuals). Internally, Post Office Ltd will
refer to this branch segment/model as Post Office® Local
to distinguish it from the other models we are rolling-
out,
The Post Office Local service is available all the hours
that the retail host is open which in most cases will be
7 days per week
e The new service is designed to be automated in almost
all areas which reduce costs significantly.
e Automated services are straight forward to follow as
all the instructions are available on the HOL screen
meaning staff can keep up to date with transaction
easily.
e This service offers a wide range of core Post Office
products and services, including electronic banking,
bill payments and budget payment schemes, Post
Office® Card Account withdrawals, Postal Orders and
postage, inland letters / packets and parcels
(including recorded delivery, special delivery &
express48), international letters / packets, or the
individual country limit for small packets or printed
papers. Customers can also Pre-Order foreign currency
for collection the next day.
Services not available via Post Office Local include:
cheques as a method of payment, transcash bills (non
automated payments), paper-based banking transactions and
Parcelforce Worldwide International (including BFPO parcels) items
are not accepted.
e Post Office Local open plan service point is located
alongside retail till.
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e Post Office Local branches will EITHER be Retailer
(Operator) cash funded OR will receive POL
remittances in the normal way.
Apart from this all the procedures and processes are the
same,
Please make sure you read (without printing) the
appropriate Post Office Local Operating Manual EITHER
Retailer (Operator) Cash Version OR Post Office Ltd Cash
Version. This will give you all the information you may
require.
A copy of the Operating Manual will be sent via Email,
directly to the Operator by HR (Farnworth) prior to
commencement of the training, the FCA responsible for the
office before it goes live will also provide the Operator
with a copy of the correct manual but if it is claimed
that this has not been received or deleted in error; the
Field Support Advisor should email a copy* to the
Operator at their first opportunity. (*if we have a
version available)
FUNDING
Branches will EITHER be Retailer (Operator) Cash Funded
OR will receive POL remittances in the normal way.
Sometime in the week before you are due to attend the
office to complete “Set-up” you should be contacted by or
YOU should contact the FCA responsible for the office to
discuss details of the office & Operator/ staff mix and
training expectations: they will be able to answer any
questions you have. In most cases it makes sense for the
FSA to call the FCA and you should plan to make the call
while you are preparing for the support as the
information you need may be answered easily by the FCA.
POL Funded Branches
Cash is received in the normal way via CiT. Stock will be
supplied to PO Local branches via the cheapest method
which in most cases will be by using RMSD, even when an
branch is POL cash supplied.
Stock & cash can also be returned via CiT along with
“BdeC Pre-order buy backs” and the standard Remittance
Handouts should be used as it applies to this model.
Retailer Cash Funded Branches
(2.9 Inputting and Removing Cash Process Handout)
Stock
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Stock will be received and returned by Special Delivery
(Shared Service), but still needs to be remitted in & out
on HOL.
Cash
The funds required for retailer cash funded branches are
provided from the shop till by means of the process in
the Operations Manual, using icons ‘Loan To PO’ and ‘Loan
from PO’. (After automation new icons will be “Operator
Cash - In/Out”).
ALL OPERATOR CASH IN/OUT MUST BE ACCOUNTED FOR
IMMEDIATELY AND FULLY ON HORIZON WHEN THE CASH IS MOVED.
You_must ensure that the Operator understands the
Settlement Procedure -
Please make sure you & the Operator have read and
understood the:
Handout for Automated Settlement (leave a copy onsite).
Use the Daily settlement Example from the PO Local EASE
file and email copies of the spreadsheets contained at
the foot of that example to the Operator preferably on
the set-up day (Daily Settlement/ Daily Settlement
Printable).These will help you explain the process (one
is a working excel spreadsheet that has all the necessary
formulas and the other is a manual version for use if a
computer isn’t available)
Ensure there is enough money in the Post Office at the
start of each day for that day’s transactions. Cash
needs to be monitored on a daily basis and any surplus
cash needs to be banked by the Operator in their
nominated bank account as soon as possible. The Post
Office will reclaim surplus cash via direct debit 3 days
after a surplus has been declared.
During the training support it will be possible to judge
how much money is required for each day’s trading from
the deposits made to the Post Office and the cash
declared figure at the end of day (ONCH to be completed
before 19.00).
For Retail Cash funded branches the Best Practice is to
keep a float of approximately £3000 in the Post Office to
start each day, depending on the transactions in
individual offices
TRAINING SCHEDULE
PO Local Offer for new branches:
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The current PO Local Offer for new branches is for the
Operator is to be fully trained on all transactions and
products and up to 5 assistants are expected to be
trained on basic transactions and products. Each office
will receive 1 day Set-up & 1 day Induction Training and
then additionally the maximum of agreed assistants to be
trained and onsite support period should be detailed on
the Vacancy Report but should not exceed:
= 6 days on site will be scheduled for 1 Operator and
1 Assistant
= 7 days for 1 Operator and 2/3 Assistants
= & 8 days for 1 Operator and 4/5 Assistants.
A FUB (follow up balance) will be added at the end of the
onsite support and although PO Local branches can do
their BTS at any time of the appropriate day, under BAU
for the FUB you need to tell the Operator that we will
attend from 1600.
If full training for the Operator and all the assistants
is completed early, the above time can be reduced —
contact your FTL to discuss.
Assistant Tick-lists should be started for as many
assistants as the time and the assistants availability
allows. There is no maximum on the number of tick-lists
that can be started but it is the Operator’s
responsibility to complete these tick-lists once onsite
support has ended. When starting a tick-list, priority
should be given to compliance completion and use of the
HOL equipment followed by training on basic transactions
and products. The rough number of assistants eligible to
be trained at any site should be relayed to you during
the conversation with the FCA before set-up. The length
of training you will be expected to complete (6/7/8 days)
will be detailed on the Network Support Schedule and any
worries should be raised with the FCA responsible for the
opening of the office.
Below is a spreadsheet for the Operator to schedule their
staff during the onsite training time. The FSA will be
on site for normal core hours (approx 8.30 - 18.00 Monday
to Friday and Saturday morning until 12,30). The
training schedule needs to be in place and agreed with
the Operator before any set up or onsite activity begins.
The FCA should have already made the Operator aware of
this spreadsheet and you should have spoken to the branch
in_ the preceding week to confirm this activity has been
completed. This is necessary to maximise the use of the
onsite support so that our support is structured. It
will help focus the Operator on when they and their
assistants need to be available for training, maximum two
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people at any one time, and everyone receives training
during the allocated time on site.
Onsite Training
Schedule v2.0
For the Operator a standard PSA should be used (including
Action Plan) for assistants tick lists should be
completed and any training gaps on the assistants tick
list will be picked up by the Operator. Both PSA & tick
lists are to be printed from EASE to ensure up to date
versions.
Existing Agent to New Operator, On-site Conversion
If a new PO Local branch is opened by converting an
existing Agent with existing staff & an existing location
they will receive 1 day set-up, 1 day Induction* and 2
days Onsite, this is to deliver open plan training &
security regulations and cover off the basic transactions
for the new members of retail staff.
Full timetable embedded here:
PO Local Existing
Agent Nov 2011
*(on-site for the remainder of 2011-12 but potentially
this will become a classroom activity depending on
numbers from April 2012)
PREP & SET UP DAY
You can either print all the items from the EASE file or
you make a request to receive a pack containing most of
the items printed from the EASE file directly from Admin
Support. It is essential that you are familiar with the
material before the training support begins and printing
the items yourself may be time well spent. Feel free to
print some extra items you may think relevant (handouts
etc) from the EASE files to use on site for training with
the Operator - you might want to suggest these as best
practice via your Line Manager. An easy guide to the use
of the materials can be found by following the PO Local
EASE Guide. You may need to allow extra time for personal
development if this is the first PO Local office you are
training or if you haven’t delivered one recently, so
please discuss this with your line manager.
The Operator & all their staff MUST read:
e “Working in an Screenless Environment”
This should be completed on setup day or for any staff
not available on that day, before they start working at
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the PO Counter. This is a vital part of their security
training and should be revisited when new staff members
are employed.
Here are some best practice and tips from the pilot
branches:
e You MUST carry out a transaction on set-up day using
a bank card (pin pad) as the method of payment or
for a balance enquiry. This is to check that the
system is working correctly. If the transaction
fails report it straight away - if you wait until
opening day, the fault is business as usual and
therefore not a priority
e Check HOL Help is working - report it to the NBSC if
it is not.
e Ensure that the Horizon system is in the correct TP.
e Not all PO Local Branches are now in GROUP C for
Trading Period as they were with the earlier pilot.
If the office is a new opening then ask the FCA if
they know which group the office is aligned to. If
it is still unclear, default to Group C. If the
branch is a conversion, it should continue in the
group it is currently aligned to (use the All
Branches Database to determine their current trading
group) and the Branch Code will remain the same.
e Allow the operator to remit in the stock, then take
them through a balance and roll over to the next BP.
This will give them extra balancing practice.
e Check that the Stores Ordering icon is working, if
not you need to report it to the NBSC.
e During the set up ensure that the Operator and any
assistants who will be working in the post office
are able to load and unload the safe as this will
need to be done before the retail opens or after it
closes and you may not be in attendance at those
times.
e Enter the Paystation opening times on Horizon.
- From the Front Office screen select:
- Licences & G
Compliance ({
Paystation hours (Bay
When entering the hours it is important to remember to
“backspace” 00:00 otherwise the system won’t let you enter any
figures.
Being Discreet.
Make the staff aware that they need to consider the
importance of the open plan environment and they have a
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responsibility to keep as much information as
confidential as possible - confirm that this is
understood using the bullet points below:
e Do Operators/staff realise the importance of being
discreet?
e Do they know how to be discreet?
e Do they lower their tone of voice appropriately?
e Do they know to be as discreet as possible when
counting cash?
Customers appreciate all the effort that is made to
protect their privacy, so remind the Operator & staff to
always take the time to consider the person they are
serving and the other customers waiting in the branch.
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Standard PSA completed for OPERATORS
You will need to use the standard PSA process for the
Operator/OIC and you should get the latest version from
EASE. There is now a “Tab” specifically for use with PO
Local branches- use this version. You will complete all
the normal aspects including the Learning Action Plan
which should reflect the ongoing focus for the
Operator/OIC to continue staff training using the
Assistant tick-lists to identify knowledge gaps.
Additionally, the Learning Action Plan will serve as a
reminder to the Operator to meet POL security
requirements and maintain a good standard of house
keeping.
In cases were the branch has multiple “Officers’ In
Charge” you need to put one of the names against the PSA
& only one PSA should be completed at any branch. The aim
is to cover everything detailed on the PSA and add notes
against the areas that you feel may need additional
focus.
BALANCING & TRADING PERIODS
It is at the Operators discretion whether they complete
an office balance on a Wednesday for a Balance Period
(BP) between Trading Periods (TP).
The branch has to complete a Trading Statement on the
Wednesday that their Trading Group is scheduled to end
their Trading Period (TP).
This should be done at a quiet time - it doesn’t have to
be completed at the “traditional” end of the day. If the
quietest time is 8am or 10am or 2pm, a Trading Statement
can be completed (**see note below regarding offices with
Lottery).
The office must then REOPEN for business once the Trading
Statement is completed regardless of what time of day it
is (8.30am or 10.20am or 2.38pm) and continue trading and
completing transactions. It does not have to be done at
the same time each Trading Period either - just a quiet «&
undisruptive time for customers.
Transaction Corrections will NOT be generated if the
office starts their new Trading Period immediately.
For branches of this size, an office balance (using the
Stock Balance Summary held in the PO Local File on EASE)
should not take long and should cause minimum disruption
to customers.
**For Branches With Lottery.
In line with normal practices for an office with a
Lottery terminal, a separate stock (usually names OOH -
Out Of Hours) should be set up by the FSA during the
office setup. This stock should deal with Lottery
transactions and suitable training should be given during
the onsite support.
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At Trading Period end, the normal counter stock should be
rolled to the new TP as suggested above with the office
continuing to trade in the new TP; the OOH stock should
be dealt with on the Wednesday evening so the lottery
sales for the day are taken in to account as per standard
practice. The OOH stock can then be balanced & rolled in
to the new TP and the offices Trading Statement can be
produced.
SECURITY
In all cases ensure Operator and assistants are aware of
security requirements for open plan working. Full details
are accessed via a Link in the PO Local file held on
EASE. Ensure a copy of ‘Post Office Local Security
Standards for PO Local’ is available and has been read
and understood by you and the agent.
COMPLIANCE
The Operator is responsible for ensuring all existing and
future members of staff serving at the Post Office Local
have completed the Post Office Foundation online test
along with any future compliance tests which will be sent
directly to the branch. This activity must be confirmed
as completed prior to your attendance at the branch to
begin onsite training support. None completion should be
feedback to the FCA & via the feedback forms to Sue
Richardson.
ASSISTANTS
Registering
All the assistants should have been registered with HR
prior to the office going live; you should confirm that
this is the case and supply P250 forms etc if this hasn’t
been done. Please take one spare set of forms to leave
with the Operator, for registering new assistants (P250
held on EASE) and stress the importance to the Operator
of filling these in; stressing that new assistants’
should be registered before they work in the Post Office.
The Operator should contact the HR centre when they
employ new people who are going to work on the HOL
system, to request up to date forms (usually 2 weeks in
advance of them beginning work).
TRANSACTIONS AND STOCK
PO Local branches offer limited transactions and stock
items. The FCA responsible for opening the branch will be
happy to speak to you sometime in the week before the
set-up day and you should take the time to you aware of
any additional “Bolt-on” transactions (eg. Local Collect,
Bureau de Change or Mvl’s). Feel free to give them a
call. Please be aware that the bolt on transactions will
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vary from branch to branch. The complete list of
transactions for Post Office Local is in the PO Local
File held on EASE and you should leave a copy of this
onsite. The only Special Stamps that will be received as
stock will be the Christmas Issue. If the Special stamp
icons are unavailable, these items should be booked in
and sold as ordinary stamps,
You will need to be aware that some of these branches may
previously have been SPSO’s and did a full range of
transactions, there will be publicity available to make
the public aware of the difference of the new offer.
Please read the handout ‘Objection Handling’ and leave
this with the Agent to cascade to his assistants.
Pens, Paperclips, staplers, etc are provided by the
Operator and are not included in the stores pack.
POCA
PO Local branches hold all POCA forms. These branches
only issue Vault Cards and complete automated
transactions. A customer asking for POCA form should be
handed the appropriate form, but for the customer to have
the form processed, they should be directed to the
nearest Post Office branch that isn’t a PO Local.
BUY BACK
The PO Local model has the standard Pre-Order BdeC
transaction as part of their offer. Training should be
given on all aspects of this transaction especially the
buy back arrangements.
e For POL funded branches, CiT will take currency
pouches using normal remittance procedures;
currencies should be returned with the next
collection if POL funded.
e For Retailer (Operator) funded branches the Shared
Service (RMSD) should be used. In these cases the
buy back/s should be returned when the value reaches
£2500 or before the end of the Trading Period -
which ever happens first.
PO Local branches DO NOT buy back any Travellers Cheques
POPOS - leaflet list
The only leaflets held in PO local branches at this time
are:
(4th November 2011)
PL5592 - Welcome Leaflets
PL6797 — Guide to customer services leaflets - English
PL6798 — Guide to customer services leaflets - Bilingual*
RMLT21 - Royal Mail made easy Leaflet - English
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RMLT22 —- Royal Mail made Easy Leaflet - Welsh*
RMPME11 - Royal Mail pricing made Easy Leaflet - English
RMPME12 - Royal Mail pricing made easy Leaflet Welsh*
*The Welsh & bilingual leaflets are for offices in Wales
only.
Insurance cover for cash
For both Retailer cash funded & POL cash funded branches
the Operator is responsible for providing suitable
insurance for the maximum amount of cash held at the
branch also for providing appropriate security including
alarms, safes etc as required by the insurance company.
For POL cash funded branches only the Operator can opt to
purchase an insurance waiver from POL to cover cash held
at the branch rather than arrange for their own insurance
policy to include this cover. The waiver covers loss of
cash through burglary and robbery only (terms and
conditions apply).
Issues During Training:
If an FSA experiences any problems with the Operator or
their staff during the training period which impacts on
the training being undertaken, please flag in the first
instance to your team leader. The issue should then be
flagged to the FCA who will liaise with the Operator and
raise further with their RNM if appropriate.
FEEDBACK
As this is a trial there is a need for us to understand
the issues that surround what we are going to deliver for
the network so we have a comprehensive list of feedback
options. In all there is the possibility to complete 5
feedback forms; not all of them are mandatory but clear
communication is needed and the ones that are mandatory
need to be returned in a timely manner.
Initial Opening Hours Feedback
Below is a form to be left both as an electronic version as well as printed by
the FSA (6 copies) at the branch. You must request that the branch make a
note of the number of customers who arrive at a branch and are turned
away because it is not open, along with the service the customer required .
Each form has 20 lines available and each line can take 2
entries (40 customer slots). This feedback is to gauge
the volume of customers who want to use the Post Office
services between Post Office closing and the business’s
closing time if they are different. This is more likely
to occur during the training support but if it happens
outside that time the feedback should continue to be
forwarded up until 28th February 2012.
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You need to organi:
Sue. richardso:
once a month.
Name the document: Turned Away: branch name: branch code.
dd/mm/yy
(eg Turned Away: Huntington: 306614. 261011).
Turned Away
Feedback Formv1.0.
rd this form electronically to:
either once a week or
The 3 pieces of feedback that are mandatory at this point
in the trial are:
e Induction day Feedback
e One Stop Feedback (if it is a One Stop Conversion)
e Level 1 Feedback Form
Induction Day Feedback
This form sits in the induction day training and needs to
be printed by you to take to the induction training. Ask
the Operator/OIC to fill it in while you are at the
branch and hand it back to you. You must then enter the
feedback on to the electronic version on your laptop and
email it to sue.richardson@ Title the
email “PO Local Induction Day Feedback” and then title
the document; “office code. date. office name” (eg.
123321.171111.Newoffice).
Feedback
Questionaire PO Loca
One Stop Feedback
If you are completing a “One Stop Conversion”, you will
also need to fill in the One Stop Induction Day Feedback.
Again, this needs to be sent to Sue Richardson & saved as
- Office name. date (eg. Sandbox.171111).
One Stop on-site
training in Pilotv1 1
Level 1 Feedback Form
The Field Advisor should leave a standard Level 1 form
with the Operator.
The 2 pieces of feedback that are not mandatory but could
improve future support are:
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e Site Feedback for the Stakeholder
e best practice
Site Feedback for the Stakeholder
If you have experienced difficulties or had issues and
you have solutions or want to share your experiences
please fill in the attached Feedback form and forward it
to your Line Manager who will collate
forwarding it on to Gillian.alsteadf
Feedback Form Aug
Best Practice
PLEASE pass any best practice via your Line Manager to
Rita Kendellen using the form embedded below - it could
help your colleagues.
PO Local Best
Practice v2.1
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