Limpley Stoke residents could become stakeholders in their local post office in a bid to save it from closure.

The post office and shop has been on the market for 18 months and could close unless a buyer is found.

Commercial estate agents have failed to find a buyer and the sale is now being handled by Hamptons International, who priced it at £325,000.

Owners David and Agnes Dudding, who live above the shop, are planning to retire and villagers have started up a Save our Shop campaign because they fear a new owner may not want to run the business.

Simon Coombe, who is leading the campaign, said he has already had a lot of feedback from residents keen to help keep the post office open.

He said: "The conundrum for the village is what to do next. There are a number of ideas and working groups looking at a range of options.

"Some of them could involve us raising money to help buy the business or villagers being stakeholders in the business."

West Wiltshire MP Andrew Murrison has given his backing to the initiative and visited the village on Friday to talk with campaigners.

Dr Murrison said they should look to the example of Maiden Bradley, near Warminster, where a campaign saved the post office from closure.

He said: "That was a real success story and I cannot see why the same cannot happen in Limpley Stoke. I can raise the matter of post offices in the House of Commons to help keep up the pressure.

"The fact that Limpley Stoke also has a sorting office should be a good incentive to buy it as it will raise more money for the business."

For Mr Coombe, campaigning runs in the family. His father spent two years campaigning with a steering group to stop plans to move the A36 link road down into the Limpley Stoke valley in the 1980s.

Mr Coombe said: "It is early days but we do know there is plenty of enthusiasm here about the project.

"The village spirit is shining and until you have a cause like this you do not realise how much community spirit there is in Limpley Stoke and how many different skills everybody has that they are willing to put into the project."

Villagers have been sent questionnaires to find out what type of goods and services they would like to see available locally.

The results of these will be presented at an open meeting at 7.30pm on February 11 in the village hall.