Royal Mail staff are self-isolating after two confirmed cases of coronavirus at a sorting office in Snodland.

"A small number" of employees at the Medway Valley sorting office, in Sortmill Road, were instructed to self-isolate by the test and trace service and the office is running as normal, a company spokesperson said.

The spokesperson did not respond when asked how many employees are self-isolating.

They said: “A small number of staff are self-isolating through the Test and Trace service, following two confirmed cases for coronavirus at The Medway Valley Sorting Office.

"The office is operating as normal and deliveries are being made daily. Throughout this crisis, every decision we make puts the health of our people and customers first.

"We were the first UK company to put in place social-distancing measures in relation to parcel delivery. We pioneered contact-free delivery.

"Standard ways of working have been revised to ensure that colleagues stay two metres apart.

"Despite our best endeavours, it is possible that some areas of the country may on occasion experience a temporary reduction in service levels due to coronavirus-related absences and necessary social distancing measures at their local mail centre or delivery office.

"In such cases, we always work hard to get back to providing a normal service as quickly as we can. We always endeavour to keep our customers as informed as we can of any changes to our services."

The news prompted local MP Tracey Crouch to praise the work of Royal Mail staff and urge people to be understanding about "small delays."

Ms Crouch said: “Our local posties are doing an incredible job in really challenging circumstances. Not only are they having to physically operate very differently but with the massive boom in online shopping they are being asked to deliver more parcels than ever before.

"I know from talking to my own postman that they all take their rounds very personally and don’t want to let anyone down but please be understanding about any small delays experienced at this particular time.”

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