Councillors are expected to throw their weight behind a campaign against Royal Mail’s closure of three delivery offices in the district.

Councillor Rizwan Malik (Lab, Heaton) is asking Bradford Council to back a call for the offices at Shipley, Bingley and Bradford West at Thornton to remain open while a full consultation takes place with users.

The motion to a meeting of full Council next week asks the authority’s chief executive Tony Reeves to write to Royal Mail to offer the support of its neighbourhood services department to facilitate the consultation.

Coun Malik’s motion states: “This Council notes with concern the intention of the Royal Mail to close their delivery and collection offices in Bradford, Shipley and Bingley without any public consultation or discussion.

“We recognise that the decision will cause real problems for people who need to collect parcels and packages who will have to travel greater distances and the proposed replacement office has poor public transport links, further disadvantaging people who do not drive.

“We believe that the Royal Mail remains an important public service and that decisions that affect public access to its services should be subject to wide ranging and meaningful public consultation.”

He is also asking that the Council investigates the effect of Royal Mail’s decision and reports back to the executive as a matter of urgency.

The motion comes as a pensioners group has raised a petition against the closure of the delivery offices. Bradford and District Older People’s Alliance says the decision on closures, which was made without any public consultation, has caused “outrage” among its members.

The group says the Royal Mail’s plans to move operation to Inkersley Road, near Forster Square Retail Park in Bradford city centre, will impact on the lives of older people and other vulnerable groups across the district.

Bopa development manager Julie Lintern told the Telegraph & Argus last week: “The fact they haven’t seen the need to consult with people has caused quite a lot of outrage.

“From the comments we have received back it is obvious they are a competitor in the market place and this doesn’t seem to be serving them well in a business sense – people are wanting to take their business elsewhere.”

Royal Mail has said the move will take place this summer as part of the company’s extensive modernisation programme.

A spokesman said it needed to respond to the huge growth in electronic communications and the 30 per cent decline in UK mail volumes in the past five years.

The meeting of the full council will take place at City Hall next Tuesday from 4pm.