Royal Mail is rolling out 3,500 solar-powered “postboxes of the future” across the UK, featuring a digitally activated drop-down drawer so customers can send parcels as large as a shoebox.

The new design – the biggest change to the postbox in its 175-year history – was trialled in Hertfordshire and Cambridgeshire earlier this year, and will now be installed in cities including Edinburgh , Manchester, Nottingham , Sheffield and Sunderland.

Customers scan a barcode on the Royal Mail app to open the drawer, which is designed for parcels too large to fit through the traditional slot.

The redesigned boxes also feature a separate slot for letters, as well as a solar panel to power the scanner and drawer mechanism.

Proof of posting and parcel tracking is available through the Royal M

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