A syndicate of 14 postal workers from Oxford have scooped a lottery win of £55,639.
Members of the syndicate which calls itself the Breakfast Club - as they all start work at 5 in the morning - have won just under £4,000 each.
They matched the winning numbers of 14, 26, 29, 31 and 40 plus 7, the bonus ball on the Saturday 9th February draw.
The postal workers from the Oxford Mail Centre in Cowley, who were all involved in last year’s series of strikes, previously only managed to win £113 after 4 years of playing the National Lottery.
The syndicate consisting of 13 men and a woman, who all work as drivers for Royal Mail – have already thought about how they are going to spend their cash.
59 year-old Geoffrey Townsend is the syndicate organiser and has worked for Royal Mail for 29 years. He said, “Most of us have worked together for 20 years.
“I’m going to spend the money on a holiday with the wife to Tenerife.
“I usually check the tickets every Saturday evening, but we had gone out on this particular night.
“I make sure everyone knows which numbers we have so they can check themselves if they wish.
“It didn’t take long for the message to get round all 14 members.”
The postal service in Oxford has been criticised by the public recently due to late post, dumped mail and big queues at post offices.
A series of strikes last year between June and October didn’t help the postal service’s reputation among the public.
Most notably, postal workers were on strike for a week last July after two colleagues were suspended for alleged misconduct.
One of the suspended workers has recently returned to work and the other is likely to soon.
Communication Workers Union representative Bob Cullen said, “They didn’t win a huge amount, but I don’t think the public will mind – I’m chuffed for them and it’s good to see normal people win something for a change.”
The funny thing is Geoffrey Townsend was frequently ribbed for the fact the syndicate wasn’t making any money on their £1 a week investment before their win.
53 year-old, Peter Sinclair a postal worker for 26 years and part of the Breakfast Club, said “I’m going to buy some new golf clubs and take my girlfriend on holiday.”
Another Breakfast Club member, 64 year-old, Ernest Moss added: “Two weeks ago I ordered some double glazing, so this will pay for that – I’m well pleased.”
