recognition

Never the only one - the power of shared experience

Why the post office scandal has caught the nation's heart.


Dubbed the “most widespread miscarriage of justice in British history" which destroyed the lives of hundreds of postal workers, the post office story has gripped the heart of the nation. A tale of right and wrong, big institution vs the people, trust and duty. Just why has this story captured our attention and moved us to the core? 

anneka wallington


recognition

Never the only one - the power of shared experience

Why the post office scandal has caught the nation's heart.


Dubbed the “most widespread miscarriage of justice in British history" which destroyed the lives of hundreds of postal workers, the post office story has gripped the heart of the nation. A tale of right and wrong, big institution vs the people, trust and duty. Just why has this story captured our attention and moved us to the core? 



Anneka wallington


For those just joining this story, here is a recap of the facts.

Between 1999 and 2015, the Post Office prosecuted hundreds of sub-postmasters and mistresses after a faulty computer system called Horizon made it look like money was missing. There were more than 900 convictions linked to the scandal which resulted resulted in some 230 employees going to jail on false charges of theft, fraud and false accounting.


Accused of similar offences, thousands more people were forced to pay back non-existent losses accrued due to the software failure, driving many to financial ruin, serious ill health and, in several cases, to suicide. The sub-postmasters’ contracts with the Post Office rendered them accountable for any deficits incurred by their respective branches, meaning they were forced to repay the erroneous losses out of their own pockets.


The hit ITV Drama “Mr Bates vs The Post Office” has powerfully depicted the trauma experiences by the victims and the devastation it causes to their lives. The four part series has sparked widespread calls for mass exonerations and compensation for victims with Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak this week calling it the “most widespread miscarriage of justice in British history.

For those just joining this story, here is a recap of the facts.

Between 1999 and 2015, the Post Office prosecuted hundreds of sub-postmasters and mistresses after a faulty computer system called Horizon made it look like money was missing. There were more than 900 convictions linked to the scandal which resulted resulted in some 230 employees going to jail on false charges of theft, fraud and false accounting.


Accused of similar offences, thousands more people were forced to pay back non-existent losses accrued due to the software failure, driving many to financial ruin, serious ill health and, in several cases, to suicide. The sub-postmasters’ contracts with the Post Office rendered them accountable for any deficits incurred by their respective branches, meaning they were forced to repay the erroneous losses out of their own pockets.


The hit ITV Drama “Mr Bates vs The Post Office” has powerfully depicted the trauma experienced by the victims and the devastation it causes to their lives. The four part series has sparked widespread calls for mass exonerations and compensation for victims with Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak this week calling it the “most widespread miscarriage of justice in British history.



There were more than 900 convictions linked to the scandal which resulted resulted in some 230 employees going to jail on false charges of theft, fraud and false accounting.


So what is this story really about?

This is a story about ordinary people. Ordinary people, representing the soul of Britain - dedicated hardworking individuals who selflessly served their local communities by running their small businesses and offering Post Office services. For many this was a dream, a life they’d saved to create and a role they prided themselves in stewarding. Subpostmasters date back to 1831 (Postal Musueum.org, 2024) and make up the very fiber of British society. Spanning from north to south, east to west, privately owned sub post offices make up 85% of the post office network providing essential, every day services whilst at the same time ‘providing a vital service to the community’, as described in the Post Office SubMasters guide. 


Their responsibilities lie from selling stamps to stamping their approval on the neighborhood gossip, processing identity documents, to identifying when their regular customer is not themselves, helping an elderly customer access essential services to being the one connection they had that day. Day in day out, whatever the weather subpostmasters are there to serve their communities. Young, old and spanning diverse cultural backgrounds and faiths, sub masters represent values many of us hold dear - integrity, trust, hard work and service.


Known as pillars of their community, these subpostmasters were humiliated, stripped of their reputation and dragged through the mud.

Not only has this story moved us for the injustice caused to these people but moved us for the very people themselves. It has yet again reminded us of the importance of every individual and the many service roles our country relies on. 


At the heart of this story, is a story of ordinary people being seen. Dedicated servants often under praised, ringing bells of pandemic Britain clapping hands on doorsteps for our nation's heroes, being recognised. Not a man on a platform or fantasy hero’s wearing a cape - just ordinary people, serving their country through their ordinary jobs. No fuss, no feathers, nothing special. Just humble individuals counting their contribution as valuable and important. The nation watches on in agreement and applause not just their contribution but most importantly the individual as valuable and important. 

At the heart of this story, is a story of ordinary people being seen. Dedicated servants often under praised, ringing bells of pandemic Britain clapping hands on doorsteps for our nation's heroes, being recognised

This story not only speaks to our heart for justice but our heart to recognise those that have not only served our country but also been wronged in the process. Here lies the heart of recognition - not in just recognising the contribution of an individual but the experiences they have walked through and who that has made them. Seeing the whole person.  


The human spirit loves the underdog. David vs Goliath. Subpostmaster vs the UK Government. We are hardwired to be moved by stories like this as it speaks to something in our very makeup - the infinite value of every human being and our core need to be treated with value. When someone rises above they don’t only attribute value to themselves they attribute value to others - to every single other person who sees something of their own story in that person. 


We may not have been a Subpostmaster but many of us have experienced injustice in our own lives. Great or small, we all know what it feels to be overlooked, wrongly accused and to give of ourselves and it not be appreciated. The post office scandal resonates deeply to these parts of us that long for justice and recognition. 


Seeing people is always about the one but never just about the one. recognition uncovers, unmasks and leads to unity, connection and change. 

The beauty of this story is the community and connection that recognition brings. The empathy we now feel for our local subpostmasters, the comradery as a nation to uphold values of justice and the collective power of voice to bring change and overturn years of legalisation as Rishi Sunak announced emergency laws to swiftly exonerate and compensate victims. 

Seeing people is always about the one but never just about the one. recognition uncovers, unmasks and leads to unity, connection and change. The beauty of this story is the community and connection that recognition brings. 

Perhaps the greatest lesson of this story though is the reminder of the power of two and the strength that is found in shared experience. 

The irony of this story is the very message that was used to isolate subpostmasters ‘you’re the only one’ has bitterly backfired in a movement which is powered precisely by the power of solidarity. 


This message so often rings true in our own lives. How often are we led to believe we ourselves are the only one? These repetitive thoughts so often cause shame and isolation meanwhile our fantasies run wild about how others live. Whilst somewhere we know these beliefs to not be true, how reel they can feel. It is apt to point out that the majority of mental health issues thrive on permissive lies we tell ourselves, leaving us trapped to false narratives. The crime in this story - this was done to them. Each subpostmaster was led to believe that they were the only one experiencing the problems they were having. A perfect example of gaslighting which caused the very victims themselves to question their integrity, knowledge, competence and professionalism.


The redemption of this story was that this was far from the truth. This week the sheer scale of this scandal has come to light, identifying thousands of victims, highlighting just how much these people weren’t the only ones. 

ITV’s drama so powerfully depicts the relief and reassurance that came from this group of people meeting for the first time by a help group set up by Alan Bates, founder of Justice for Subpostmasters Alliance. The recurring message which is shared at the first meeting is ‘I thought i was the only one’.


We in our own lives can take comfort in knowing we are never the only ones. There is always someone who has walked a similar path to you, who can empathise with your pain. However much you are led to believe you are, evidence would suggest you aren’t. 


As Physiotherapist, Penny Coleman shares, shared experience causes us to reach outwards.

“We offer to others what we have been offered. Empathy and therefore the capacity to recognise is fundamental to us. Held in our unconscious is it about being human. To reach out to someone in their own situation with all the complexity that might hold. To communicate understanding. To convey empathy and concern. In that moment there is an invisible connection a togetherness a feeling of not being alone. This reaches beyond words.”


This is a story about ordinary people. Ordinary people, representing the soul of Britain - dedicated hardworking individuals who selflessly served their local communities by running their small businesses and offering Post Office services. For many this was a dream, a life they’d saved to create and a role they prided themselves in stewarding. Subpostmasters date back to 1831 (Postal Musueum.org, 2024) and make up the very fiber of British society. Spanning from north to south, east to west, privately owned sub post offices make up 85% of the post office network providing essential, every day services whilst at the same time ‘providing a vital service to the community’, as described in the Post Office SubMasters guide. 

Their responsibilities lie from selling stamps to stamping their approval on the neighborhood gossip, processing identity documents, to identifying when their regular customer is not themselves, helping an elderly customer access essential services to being the one connection they had that day. Day in day out, whatever the weather subpostmasters are there to serve their communities. Young, old and spanning diverse cultural backgrounds and faiths, sub masters represent values many of us hold dear - integrity, trust, hard work and service.

Known as pillars of their community, these subpostmasters were humiliated, stripped of their reputation and dragged through the mud.
Not only has this story moved us for the injustice caused to these people but moved us for the very people themselves. It has yet again reminded us of the importance of every individual and the many service roles our country relies on. 

At the heart of this story, is a story of ordinary people being seen. Dedicated servants often under praised, ringing bells of pandemic Britain clapping hands on doorsteps for our nation's heroes, being recognised. Not a man on a platform or fantasy hero’s wearing a cape - just ordinary people, serving their country through their ordinary jobs. No fuss, no feathers, nothing special. Just humble individuals counting their contribution as valuable and important. The nation watches on in agreement and applause not just their contribution but most importantly the individual as valuable and important. 

This story not only speaks to our heart for justice but our heart to recognise those that have not only served our country but also been wronged in the process. Here lies the heart of recognition - not in just recognising the contribution of an individual but the experiences they have walked through and who that has made them. Seeing the whole person.  

The human spirit loves the underdog. David vs Goliath. Subpostersaster vs the UK Government. We are hardwired to be moved by stories like this as it speaks to something in our very makeup - the infinite value of every human being and our core need to be treated with value. When someone rises above they don’t only attribute value to themselves they attribute value to others - to every single other person who sees something of their own story in that person. 

We may not have been a Subpostmaster but many of us have experienced injustice in our own lives. Great or small, we all know what it feels to be overlooked, wrongly accused and to give of ourselves and it not be appreciated. The post office scandal resonates deeply to these parts of us that long for justice and recognition. 

Seeing people is always about the one but never just about the one. recognition uncovers, unmasks and leads to unity, connection and change. 
The beauty of this story is the community and connection that recognition brings. The empathy we now feel for our local subpostmasters, the comradery as a nation to uphold values of justice and the collective power of voice to bring change and overturn years of legalisation as Rishi Sunak announced emergency laws to swiftly exonerate and compensate victims. 

Perhaps the greatest lesson of this story though is the reminder of the power of two and the strength that is found in shared experience. 
The irony of this story is the very message that was used to isolate submasters ‘you’re the only one’ has bitterly backfired in a movement which is powered precisely by the power of solidarity. 

This message so often rings true in our own lives. How often are we led to believe we ourselves are the only one? These repetitive thoughts so often cause shame and isolation meanwhile our fantasies run wild about how others live. Whilst somewhere we know these beliefs to not be true, how reel they can feel. It is apt to point out that the majority of mental health issues thrive on permissive lies we tell ourselves, leaving us trapped to false narratives. The crime in this story - this was done to them. Each subpostmaster was led to believe that they were the only one experiencing the problems they were having. A perfect example of gaslighting which caused the very victims themselves to question their integrity, knowledge, competence and professionalism.

The redemption of this story was that this was far from the truth. This week the sheer scale of this scandal has come to light, identifying thousands of victims, highlighting just how much these people weren’t the only ones. 
ITV’s drama so powerfully depicts the relief and reassurance that came from this group of people meeting for the first time by a help group set up by Alan Bates, founder of Justice for Subpostmasters Alliance. The recurring message which is shared at the first meeting is ‘I thought i was the only one’.

We in our own lives can take comfort in knowing we are never the only ones. There is always someone who has walked a similar path to you, who can empathise with your pain. However much you are led to believe you are, evidence would suggest you aren’t. 

As phycologist Penny Coleman shares, shared experience causes us to reach outwards.
“We offer to others what we have been offered. Empathy and therefore the capacity to recognise is fundamental to us. Held in our unconscious is it about being human. To reach out to someone in their own situation with all the complexity that might hold. To communicate understanding. To convey empathy and concern. In that moment there is an invisible connection a togetherness a feeling of not being alone. This reaches beyond words.”