USE it or lose it — that's the appeal going out to residents in the Bere Ferrers area where lack of trade has forced a reduction in hours at the village shop and post office.

Kathy Grinstead and her husband Trevor have run the shop for the last five years, but recently trade has plummeted, forcing Kathy to take work elsewhere to supplement the family income.

'We don't open till 9am and we have to shut for an hour at lunchtime,' said Kathy. 'It used to be 7am to 7pm, but it's got desperate now.'

Kathy said shopping habits in the village have changed over the years. She felt as more commuters moved into Bere Ferrers, the habit of using the village shop was being lost.

'For a small village like this, having a post office, pub and hairdressers is very unusual — but it really is a case of use us or lose us,' Kathy said.

The village shop stocks fresh meat and free range chickens from Gunnislake, beer and wines, and fresh vegetables.

Kathy said: 'We can get quite unusual fruit and vegetables if they're requested and we don't have to buy in large amounts, so it's always fresh. I also get stock from Kilworthy Kapers in Tavistock and we have Bill the Bakers coming on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays.'

Bere Ferrers resident Jane Musgrave said: 'It's such a valuable local facility and it's such a shame we are in danger of losing it.

'It's a particularly good village shop, they go out of their way to order anything you want. It's a bit like a Tardis, it's amazing the range of stuff they have in there.'

Mrs Musgrave said the shop was also particularly valuable for children in the village.

'It's somewhere they can go to spend their money — you can't do that in towns, but our village is really a very safe environment,' she said.

Cllr Christine Grills, who is also the mayor of West Devon, said she would be 'very sorry' to lose the shop altogether.

She said: 'It would be a great loss to the village, it's a vital component of village life.

'There is quite a proportion of elderly people in the village who rely on it, I don't know how they would manage without it.'

And Cllr Grills urged people to back such an important local facility.

'I don't think some people realise what they could lose,' she said.