AFTER 16 years of working seven days a week to run a village post office and store Bob and Lin Light are putting their feet up and enjoying village life from the other side of the counter.

Ibsley post office closed on February 6 and the village store is due to close today.

On Thursday around 70 villagers gathered at Ibsley Village Hall to wish Mr and Mrs Light well in their retirement and to give them gifts including a garden bench with an inscription, a table and umbrella, framed prints and a lovely bunch of flowers.

Mrs Light told the Journal she would not miss the hard work, but she would miss the people: "It's a very nice community and that's why we are staying.

"I just wish that I'd have known what I do now - all the funny things people said and did and all the idiosyncrasies of some people who have long since gone. I wish I had put it all down in a book!

"Some of them have been hilarious, there's definitely never been a dull moment.

Originally from Romford in Essex, the Lights came down to live in Ibsley with their three children after Mr Light was made redundant and could not find suitable work.

Mrs Light said it had been a wonderful place to live and the villagers had shown the family a lot of love and support when they needed it.

But now the Lights intend to "take it easy and go with the flow."

A spokesman for the post office has said that as the closure is due to the resignation of the post-mistress rather than a listed closure they were looking to restore the service so anyone interested in replacing the post office should contact them on 0845 601 6260.