A WEST FIFE postie has proved he is first class by landing a top award.

Big-hearted Alan Petrie won the hearts of the Kingseat community through his efforts during lockdown.

As reported back in March by the Press, the dad of three organised epic games of noughts and crosses and hangman on the doors of cooped-up householders as well as running the odd message for them in his own time.

Local residents showed their appreciation by nominating him for the notonthehighstreet 'Thank You Postie' campaign where he was chosen as one of six winners from a massive 20,000 nominations.

Alan, 47, said he was "gobsmacked" when he discovered he had won.

"My boss pulled me aside and said I had won a competition. I said, 'What are you talking about, I didn't even know about it!'," he said. "I couldn't believe it when I heard. It was just something so simple.

"I thought, 'The kids are going to be bored because they are stuck inside all day and how can I keep them entertained?' It was just a small thing. I didn't think it would blow up like this. The kids loved it. There was hangman and noughts and crosses but I wasn't really very good at it. I didn't win very many games."

Alan, who lives in Wellwood, has been delivering around Kingseat for the last three years and said the the pandemic had meant he had become a well-known figure.

"During lockdown, a lot of people were shielding. I have got a lot of elderly residents and they were relying on me. Sometimes I would be the only person they would see that day so they looked forward to me coming round so I would spend two minutes seeing how it was going. I like a chit-chat with my customers.

"I did the odd message for a few of them. A lot of them still write to their friends so it was just bits and bobs as they couldn't get out. I collected their letters they wanted posted. I didn't see it as a big thing at the time. They were scared to go out and if I can do something for them, it was not putting me out."

Alan was nominated by local resident Kirsty Miller, who wanted to recognise the impact he had made during his time in her community.

"Throughout this pandemic and every other day of the year, Alan goes above and beyond for our community," she said. "He made socially-distanced games to play with the kids during his rounds.

"He makes sure no-one ever misses a parcel, even if that is personally delivering it off-shift, so we don't have to trail to the sorting office later to get it."

To mark his achievements in the Thank You, Postie campaign, Alan will receive Christmas delivered to his door in the form of unique food, drink, gifts and decorations from small businesses that sell with notonthehighstreet.