The latest round of post office closures has begun.

A branch at 13 Preston Road, Brighton, shut its doors yesterday.

It was the first of 41 in Sussex earmarked for closure by the Post Office in an attempt to curb millions of pounds in losses.

The hit list was the subject of a six-week public consultation in which residents campaigned to keep their branches open.

Prakash Patel, sub-postmaster at the Preston Road branch, fears his small shop may not survive without the extra revenues of an in-store post office.

He said: "I've got a mortgage to pay and two years left of the lease on this shop so I can't go anywhere. I will probably lose half my business because of the post office going. I will do the best I can but it worries me."

Mr Patel said the six months since closure was first mentioned had been an emotional roller coaster.

He said he would never work for the Post Office again.

He said: "The Government keeps taking business away from us. They took away the giro, child benefits and pensions.

"There's nothing left now to make it profitable."

A further eight branches won a temporary reprieve when the Post Office agreed to extend the consultation period.

The branches are in Seaside, Eastbourne; George Street in Hastings; Collington Mansions in Bexhill; Lee Road in Lewes and Station Road, Queen Street, St Leonards Road and North Parade in Horsham.

One sub postmaster waiting to hear the outcome, who did not want to be named, said: "It's frustrating. It's like somebody telling you you're going to be sacked but can't tell you when."

Mohammed Rehman, of St Leonards Road Post Office in Horsham, said: "We've heard nothing. It's quite bad because they said they would let us know at the end of February.

"It's not fair to keep people in the dark about what's happening.

It means we can't even look for jobs."

This year the Post Office proposed closing a further 21 branches in West Sussex as part of a second wave of closures linked with Berkshire and Surrey.

Meanwhile retired electricity worker Jonathan Coe hopes to overturn the Post Office's decisions by launching a legal challenge.

Mr Coe, whose wife Judy Brown is disabled, has applied for a judicial review of the closures citing disability discrimination.

A similar challenge has been launched against post office closures in Greater London. Mr Coe is waiting to hear back from his lawyers about the challenge.

If it reaches court, the programme of closures could be put on hold.