ANOTHER local Post Office is set to close -- the seventh this year.

Post bosses says they have agreed with the sub-postmaster at the Burnden Post Office in Manchester Road, Bolton, that it will shut its doors for the last time in July.

The move is part of the organisation's national programme of urban closures needed, they say, because there are currently too many post offices competing for too little business.

It has already been announced that the Darcy Lever post office will shut, along with other sub post offices at Manchester Road, Tyldesley; Manchester Road, Swinton; and Wigan Road and Hindsford Road, Atherton.

The Lostock sub-post office shut earlier this month after no one could be found to run it.

The Post Office's area head Eddie Herbert said: "In the case of Burnden, a declining number of customers, increasing running costs and increased customer choice as to how their benefits are paid following the introduction of direct payment into accounts, have prompted the sub-postmaster to want to leave our organisation."

People who use the Burnden post office will now have to travel to Crescent Road or Rishton Lane.

Local councillor Don Eastwood said he regretted the closure of the post office. "It will be bad for some people, but there are not a lot of houses round there," he said.

"It will be a loss, but I understand the reasons for it."

In Westhoughton, councillors are guarding against any potential post office closures in their area.

Cllr David Wilkinson said he wanted to know from post office bosses whether they were carrying out surveys of the six post offices in Westhoughton. He said it was important to find out now what information was being gathered before post offices bosses announced any plans to close a post office so there was plenty of time to make people aware of the situation.

"When they make their mind up to close post offices, usually they have already agreed a redundancy package with the postmaster or postmistress," he said.

"When it's advertised, the public only have about four weeks to object -- and by the time people find out about it, it is really too late."

" I really want to know what survey have they considered in Westhoughton in relation to the possibility of closure."

Cllr Brian Clare said that he supported Cllr Wilkinson's suggestions and called for a breakdown on post office performance.