A MOTHER-DAUGHTER business duo have spent £400 on stamps to avoid the biggest price hike in almost four decades.

Marie Parker, 43, of Wood Road, Heybridge, and her mother Ann Fosbrook, 63, who together own Fosbrooks Wills and Probate, have not been the only ones rushing to the district’s post offices, leaving a number of branches temporarily out of stock.

The surge comes as people prepare for the sharpest price rise in percentage terms since 1975.

From April 30, the cost of a first class stamp will jump from 46p to 60p and second class stamps will rise from 36p to 50p.

SEE THIS WEEK'S STANDARD FOR THE FULL STORY