The government has ordered the closure of 2,500 Post Offices across Britain.

With so many communities in the UK relying heavily on their local branch, these closures are bound to have a wide-reaching impact on residents of both rural and urban areas all over the UK.

Furthermore, postal regulator Postcom has called for restructuring with private partnerships as a "silver bullet" to rescue Royal Mail's ailing profitability.

But let's not forget that the reason Post Offices are underperforming financially is because the majority of their retail capability was stripped and sold to the private sector in the first place.

So many of you registered your opposition to the closures - and to the looming spectre of privatisation - on our Post Offices comment board that we wanted to give you the means to get your voice heard on a wider scale. That's why we've launched our Save our Post Offices campaign.

We look at ways you can voice your rejection of the government's proposals and also petition for change to make a real difference in your local community.

Quick links
- Petition central government
- Write to your MP
- Campaign in your local community
- Make your voice heard online

Petition central government
One of the great things about living in a democracy is that, if enough people register their dissatisfaction about officials' policies and actions, the government has to take notice. After all, public servants work for us, and should be held accountable for decisions that affect our lives.

There are loads of petitions against Post Office closures on the 10 Downing Street website. If at least 200 people sign a petition, then the government is obliged to respond.

- Add your name to the petition to stop the closure of village Post Offices

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Write to your MP
If your local branch is under threat of closure, you should write to your local MP to inform them of your opposition.

While you are likely to feel strongly about the subject matter of your letter, try to compose it with a certain degree of emotional detachment - if you write a ranting stream of abuse, your complaint is likely to be disregarded.

You should set out, in your own words, a well-reasoned argument as to why you oppose the closure of a particular branch, stressing the social importance of your local Post Office to the community. Bear in mind that it's important that your letter includes a call to action. Simply complaining about something doesn't let you MP know what you want them to do about it. Tell them how it can be resolved.

Make sure that the branch in question falls within the MP's constituency. It's also vital that you are resident in that constituency.

A good way to further your cause is to contact other local residents and encourage them to do the same. However, don't coerce others or prompt them on what to write. A high volume of identical correspondence is considered spam and is likely to be ignored.

You can write to your MP at www.writetothem.com, or by entering your postcode in the box below:

Find out more about your local MP at www.theyworkforyou.com.

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Campaign in your local community
Local action groups are forming all over the country to protest Post Office closures. Find out if anyone is campaigning in your area by inspecting public announcements at your branch, or search the internet.

Start a petition and ask local businesses to display copies on their premises. Collect signatures on your high street or at public events like fetes and at community centres and in parks and shopping centres. Educate like-minded residents to write to their MP, and let them know how to go about it (see above).

If you are campaigning in your local area then we want to hear from you! We will feature the most compelling real life case studies here, providing publicity for your cause. Tell us what you're up to.

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Make your voice heard online
What do you think should be done to get Post Office sorted? Where do you think the blame for its infrastructural inadequacies lies? Could the rise in new communication technology be partially responsible? Can privatisation solve the problem? Share your views:

- Post Offices comment board
- Join the debate in the State of Britain forum
- Meet people from your area in the local forums

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WriteToThem.com, TheyWorkForYou.com and Petitions.pm.gov.uk are projects from MySociety.org