A BIG red ribbon was cut into several pieces by children from two Crediton primary schools to mark the official opening of a new bookshop.

Contracts were exchanged last month to bring the shop into community ownership less than 11 months after a community share offer was launched with support from The Co-operative Enterprise Hub.

To date almost 300 people bought shares to become members and co-owners of the not-for-profit society set up to save Crediton's popular book shop.

Its previous owner, Jill Holden, had run The Book Shop for 30 years and wanted to retire. Various people determined that it should remain part of the town's High Street, and so it has.

Ken McKechnie, who is co-chairman of The Crediton Community Bookshop with Jo Little, said their dream had become a reality.

"We are keen to support literacy projects and encourage the next generation of readers and writers," he said, adding: "We will also support local authors and provide a hub for reading and writing groups in the area."

At the opening ceremony, Ken said that among the many people who had helped make it all possible were Lorna Turner from The Fruit Tree for Business, who had advised them on behalf of The Co-operative Enterprise Hub, Ashford's Solicitors, Stapleton's Accountants, Awards for All and the Patrons Dame Babette Cole, Michael Morpurgo, Mal Peet and William Trevor.

Shares in Crediton Community Bookshop are still available from £20. For more information visit http://www.creditoncommunitybookshop.co.uk">www.creditoncommunitybookshop.co.uk .

Community groups interested in co-operative solutions to running businesses and services can contact The Co-operative Enterprise Hub by visiting http://www.co-operative.coop/enterprisehub">www.co-operative.coop/enterprisehub .

There has been almost a 25 per cent increase in UK co-operative enterprises since 2009.

Mal Peet congratulated everyone on their achievement saying it was "a wonderful perversity" to open a book shop when independent bookshops were "dying like morning stars.

"But then, Crediton has a long tradition of not being like anywhere else," he added. Mal is a best-selling author, mainly teenage books, receiving two literary awards for his first Keeper, and the Carnegie Medal in 2005 with his second "amar, and he won The Guardian Prize in 2009.

He and his wife are now writing stories for younger children and they have written, together and separately, more than 100 books for young schoolchildren and teachers.

Also taking part in the opening ceremony was Lawrence Sail, the nationally known poet from Exeter, with an international reputation.

He grew up in Exeter, still lives there and read a few pages from one of his books, to delight of his audience.

Dame Babette Cole was to have been at the opening, but had been delayed and did not make it in time to read to customers, but did chat to one or two final customers and provided a lot of encouragement and advice for future events.

The Community Book Shop looks forward to welcoming her back soon so that she can share her wonderful stories and illustrations with younger readers.

Both Lawrence Sail and Mal Peet spent a while signing autographs.

Sue Read