VILLAGE shopkeeper Mary Quigley has put out a warning to residents in West Overton save the store by using it, or it could close by the spring.

Her ultimatum came after growing rumours the shop was being forced to close.

Mrs Quigley says no sudden closure is on the cards, but she has warned the shop's destiny was controlled by the villagers.

"If they don't use it they could lose it," she said.

"If every household spent £5 a week in the shop that would be enough to keep it going. I have some very loyal customers who go out of their way to use this shop but there are not enough of them."

It has been nine months since mother- of-three Mrs Quigley gave up the Post Office counter because Consignia cut her hours.

She said it was no longer financially worth her continuing to run it.

Mrs Quigley, whose husband works in TV in London, admits that her dream of running a village shop has been rather soured by her experience since taking over the Overton Stores 18 months ago.

Mr and Mrs Quigley had lived in the village for seven years, and she admits she had liked the idea of running a village stores. When the shop came on the market it seemed like a dream come true.

She said: "Before it came on the market I always thought it would be a nice thing to do. When it came on the market we had been looking to buy a reasonable sized place, so we decided to buy it."

Mr and Mrs Quigley had two children, Cally, now eight, and Hamish, now four, when they moved into the shop and little Iona, one, was born a few months later.

But the income from the post office fell, when Consignia decided to cut the hours and the pay.

Mrs Quigley said: "They decided they would only have half day opening. Obviously we had to keep the rest of the shop open until 5.30pm, but they were only going to pay me until 1pm."

Without the post office, Mrs Quigley said the number of customers using the shop had dropped off significantly, almost to the point where she was no longer making any money at all.

"I don't mind doing the work if it pays the family food bills," she said.

"It has got to the point where if things have not started to improve by the spring then the future of the shop will be shaky."

Retired farmworker Ken Twine, who has been using the shop for about 50 years, said it would be a great loss to the Kennet Valley villages because, apart from the garage at Fyfield, it is the only shop left.

Mr Twine said: "It would not be very good at all for the village if it closed."

Fyfield and Overton Parish Council chairman George Robinson said: "It would be a terrible loss. It keeps the village together. You go down to the shop not just to buy something but also to meet people."

Coun Robinson said the council was looking into ways of making it easier for village shops to survive."If there wasn't a shop I don't know what we would do."