THE determined villagers of Slaley have reached a significant milestone in their Herculean efforts to save their village shop.

Earlier this year, the community launched a share offer scheme and formed the co-operative group, Slaley Community Shop Limited, inviting people to invest in a project aimed at raising enough money to buy Slaley Village Shop.

The shop’s previous owners, Roy and Margaret Ward, retired in April 2017, and after that the community rallied around to take on the daily running of the shop to ensure their community did not lose its vital services.

The shop is open every day except Christmas Day, and is now run by a team made up entirely of volunteers. More than 60 people give time to serve behind the counter or take on one of the many administrative tasks involved with running it.

The group had agreed to buy the shop within three years of the Wards retiring, at a cost of £200,000, minus the rent accumulated over that period, and now they have until May next year to secure its future.

So far 67 people have invested anything from £100 to £10,000 each, and the group hopes that other investors will sign up over the next few days and weeks to help them reach the total of £190,000.

Norman Watson, the chairman of the shop board, said: “I hope that we’ll meet our target.

“I’m absolutely delighted that so many people here want to save the shop for the village.”

The venture invites people to become shareholders by investing in the business, which is a similar project to the one that saved the village’s Rose and Crown pub in 2013.

Any shortfall between the sum raised through investments and the purchase price for the shop will be bridged by a commercial loan, but the group is keen to raise as much through share offers as possible so they are less dependant on a loan.

Helen Savage, secretary of Slaley Community Shop Ltd, said as long as the investments reached a total of £140,000, they could be confident to secure the loan, but the group were issuing a final push to get them as close to the final amount of £190,000 as possible.

Mr Watson added: “Huge thanks are due to everyone who’s come forward so far to invest, but we now need to make sure we finish the job.”

As well as providing all the basic necessities of daily life, the village shop seeks to showcase local producers and also runs a successful self-service café, which is becoming a favourite venue for local groups to meet.