Delivery and Sorting
It's not always easy.
Our people are on their feet or on the road throughout the day delivering and moving letters and parcels around the sorting facilities, into people’s homes and to local businesses. But it’s worth it. Our teams are proud to be an essential part of their communities, helping everybody to get what they need, stay in touch with loved ones and essential services. While it can be hard, we always make sure they have the support they need to thrive and the development opportunities to build a career delivering for the community.
Our Posties and delivery drivers are the iconic face of Royal Mail and their work wouldn’t be possible without the dedication of our sorting teams. Every letter and parcel goes from the letter box, parcel box or parcel locker into one of our sorting centres where it’s directed to the right postie to take on their route.
Typical roles
Our delivery and sorting teams work together across our network to make sure the right letters and parcels get to the right address, at the right time. Whether you’re a postie, a dedicated parcel delivery driver, a specialist driver, or a mail sorter, you’ll be playing a vital role in keeping the country connected.
Shifts will vary depending on the role you do. Some roles require flexibility to work earlies, lates and nights shifts and because we’re a 24/7 operation there may also be some weekend working required. In all our delivery and sorting roles, our colleagues are part of a real community who look out for each other, help each other succeed and make the most of doing a job they’re proud of. Find out more about each role below:
As a postie you’ll be responsible for collecting, sorting, and delivering letters and parcels to homes and business on a set route. Each morning, you’ll hand-sort mail into street order then head out on delivery in the local area on foot or in a van. As the face of Royal Mail, you’ll become a well-known presence in the community, delivering each letter and parcel in a timely manner. We’re powered by Posties walking up to 12 miles a day in all weather conditions to deliver more for their community.
From afternoon to evening, our dedicated parcel delivery posties brighten our customer’s days, one parcel at a time. As part of the multi-drop driver team, you’ll deliver up to 90 items each shift on a set route. You’ll prep your van and workload, scan items into a route planner and head out on delivery in designated areas. This is a demanding driving role, with lots of jumping in and out of the van. While you’ll have a support network on hand at the delivery office, you’ll spend most of your shift working on your own.
As a collection driver, it’s more than just driving and deliveries. You’ll have the keys to check our cherished post boxes, pop into post offices, and visit our business customers. You’ll collect mail of all shapes and sizes, drop it off at our processing centres and play your part in keeping the country moving. You’ll sort your mailbags and make sure each item gets to the right place, at the right time.
Our processing teams across the country make sure all letters and parcels are sorted by postcode, playing a vital role in connecting the country and keeping our mail centres running like clockwork. 24 hours a day. 7 days a week. You’ll be on your feet, keeping up the pace, unloading mail from vans, moving it around in trolleys, sorting parcels and letters by hand, or operating machinery. A mail centre can accurately process over a million items in a shift, so you might not be outside in all weathers like your delivery colleagues, but you’ll be an essential part of delivering for the nation.
As a specialist driver for Royal Mail Relay, you’ll help redefine delivery by offering services like scheduled collections, stock replenishment, and Click & Collect. You'll plan routes, deliver items, and ensure accurate tracking. With a valid UK driving licence, you should be self-motivated, reliable, and flexible to service demands. Comfortable with multi-drop delivery, you’ll provide excellent customer service and pass background checks. Enjoy the benefits of being part of Royal Mail while working with Relay’s unique customer-based and take pride in going the extra mile.
Find out more about Royal Mail Group
Parcelforce Worldwide
Parcelforce Worldwide is our dedicated Express parcels business. We have 54 depots around the UK, 3 automated sorting centres and an international hub. From birthday presents to vital business deliveries, our team is dedicated to delivering more for our customers. From warehouse sorters to Collection and Delivery drivers and more, click to find out about roles near you.
Royal Mail Relay
Established in 1999, Royal Mail Relay offers market-leading tailored, scheduled, and guaranteed collections and deliveries for organisations across the UK. With 15 depots and 350+ employees, we provide specialist logistics services to major sectors including financial services, government, premium retail and medical. Operating independently to the core Royal Mail delivery business, we provide bespoke solutions, from security screening mail for Man Utd to supporting National Film Transport to service over 900 cinemas and beyond. Our drivers cover 10 million miles a year with late and out-of-hours services, key access, specialised routes, and Click & Collect. Our team benefits from being part of Royal Mail, the UK’s most trusted delivery company, and takes huge pride in going the extra mile for our specialist customers.
Ever wondered what it's really like to be a Postie?
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"I like being outside and a great plus is being paid to exercise! I also love that in the mornings, you work as part of a team and you can have a laugh whilst prepping your mail. Then when you’re out on delivery you get time to yourself or build great friendships with your van share partner!
What I found most challenging was my previous job was a night job getting used to getting up in early hours to start my job but I did soon adjust to the difference of my shift times. Yes, the walking is hard at first, but it is surprising how quickly your body adapts! There is also a lot of career aspects at Royal Mail, I myself have become a trainee manager to further my career."
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"Great atmosphere in the office. I like being organised, I like prepping deliveries and arranging my van for the day. I’m a friendly person and like talking to customers on delivery. Being out and about is great for my mental health.
It surprised me how much I would enjoy being a Postie. I have enjoyed finding out how Royal Mail works in the office and how we deliver all the mail every day. The physical side of walking so far, every day is challenging, when I first joined, I found it really hard and didn’t know if I would be able to last but you do get used to it."
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"This role has always been perfect for me as I prefer early starts. I like to be active and with this job you get your steps in (and then some) every day. I love chatting to my regular customers, you feel a part of the community. I genuinely do love my job, there is a massive sense of achievement day to day. I try to go above and beyond to help my customers as it makes me feel good and, in some cases, you get to see some beautiful places.
The most challenging part has always been our weather and keeping the mail as dry as possible! I actually have a list of my top 5 worst rainy days."
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"What I enjoy most about my role is interacting with the public, working outdoors providing me with exercise to keep myself fit every day.
What surprised me most about the role is the scope of royal mail…and what they achieve on a day-to-day basis. I found the level of fitness very challenging, the amount of steps done each day and how tired I was when first starting the role."
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"I enjoy working as part of a team, and the walks are challenging at times but who doesn’t love a challenge?...the people are friendly, the managers are supportive and understanding. There are programmes in Royal Mail to support mental health which is a great idea if anyone is struggling.
The most challenging part in my job is making sure I keep in the time frame when delivering parcels because if I deliver them late this could cause the customer to complain."
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"This role suites me down to the ground. I love that I'm like my own boss in my own van as long as I do my job. I love working as part of a team but also alone.
What has surprised me the most about my job is how easy it actually is. I’ve worked as a carer up until I started with Royal Mail and I must say that was amazing but extremely stressful. This job is challenging but also amazing. The only thing I have found most challenging was when the PDA was updated, but now I find the update much easier to do my job. I don't like change, but I was walked through the platform step by step and picked it up easily. The First couple of weeks I was a little nervous but now I feel it is the best job I've ever had and I'm proud to be a postie."
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“I really enjoy working for the Parcel Delivery team as working for Royal Mail gives me a sense of security. One of the things I most enjoy is working as part of a big team as I get a lot of support where needed.
I think that the spirit we have, and how we all come together to ensure the customers receive their parcels, is amazing. We are a close-knit team that all come together to get the job done”.
Day in the life of a Postie
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What's in it for you?
We offer a variety of perks and benefits designed to suit your lifestyle, and support your mental, physical, financial and social wellbeing. Our standard core benefits are below, but role-specific benefits and variations may apply. You'll find these listed on the job description.
Save for your future
Connect to our hiring managers
Apply online
Submit your application through our website.
Online tests (if applicable)
Complete required assessments online.
Interview
Meet with the Hiring Manager.
Driving Assessment
Complete a practical driving assessment.
Offer and checks
Receive offer and complete background checks.
Onboarding
Begin preparing for your new role.
Application Process
Join our Talent Community
Join our Talent Community and get personalised job opportunities and insights from our Talent Acquisition team.
Discover more
Temporary roles
We get extremely busy at certain times of year and are always looking for flexible workers to help us ensure everybody’s mail arrives on time. Find out more about temporary and seasonal jobs available near you.
Early Careers
At Royal Mail, the learning never stops. With a variety of apprenticeships and graduate entry programmes on offer, we give our people the training and support to keep developing themselves.
What matters to us
Learn more about what matters to us. We're committed to creating an inclusive space where everyone can thrive personally and professionally, and using our platform to support our communities and the planet.