WORK has begun on a supermarket takeover that will see Felixstowe lose a valuable post office.Builders moved in this week and by the end of October the Safeway store in Grange Farm Avenue will have been transformed in to a Morrisons supermarket.

WORK has begun on a supermarket takeover that will see Felixstowe lose a valuable post office.

Builders moved in this week and by the end of October the Safeway store in Grange Farm Avenue will have been transformed in to a Morrisons supermarket.

The existing Safeway store includes a much-used post office which will be scrapped in the revamping of the store, despite a barrage of protests from furious residents.

Morrisons general manager Tony Gee says residents will, however, benefit from a number of improvements: "Since our takeover of Safeway in March we have had very positive feedback from shoppers.

"Once the conversion work at Felixstowe is completed in October we are confident the Morrisons brand will very quickly become an established favourite for shoppers in the area."

The store will feature the Morrisons Market Street format – a collection of individual fresh food counters.

Mr Gee said: "We are changing the name above the door and introducing the distinctive Morrisons format with more choice on fresh foods, very competitive general pricing, alongside many special offers and extra value throughout each store."

The decision to axe the post office sparked a wave of protest when it was announced last month.

Residents banded together to campaign against the move and councillors wrote to Morrisons chief Ken Morrison to protest against the closure.

An alternative location is now being sought.

The post office is the only one in the west of the town and serves a population of around 7,500 people.

It opened a decade ago and forced the closure of an existing post office in Wadgate Road.

The Morrisons store will officially open on October 7.