When Ron Stannard started life as clerk of Nordelph Parish Council in 1952 some homes in the village had no electricity.

The village did, however, boast having a few pubs and shops, a church and a thriving community atmosphere.

But now almost 60 years as parish clerk and seeing his village transform beyond recognition, Mr Stannard, 83, has retired to allow a younger generation to take on the future challenges.

He said: 'I have lived here all my life and some of my family were on the parish council when I applied to be clerk.

'The previous clerk had been there for a good 20 years but he was leaving because he was getting on a bit so I applied because I was really interested in the village.

'There has been a lot of change in the village over the years and I really enjoyed being involved and just doing my job.

'If anybody wanted anything I tried to help and if I didn't know I could point them in the right direction.'

He added: 'When I first started as clerk, I would get one or two letters a week to deal with.

'But today we get something everyday and it has even got to stage when we get lots of e-mails everyday as well.

The 83-year-old worked with eight parish council chairman in his time as clerk and never missed a parish council meeting. He was also clerk for Downham West for a short time.

Former Nordelph parish council chairman Richard Balls said: 'Ron did far more than his clerk salary covered him for. He was and still is the person you go to if you have a problem or a question.

'His knowledge of the village and its history is incredible. He was a tremendous help when I was chairman and made everything so easy.

'To have never missed a meeting in all of his time as clerk is also an amazing achievement. I cannot praise him enough for the work he has done.'

Current parish council chairman, Andrew Marshall, added: 'He is a mind of information and knows the village inside out.

'He was the tower of strength for the parish council for decades and we won't be able to replace the experience and information he has got.

'He is just an amazing guy and to be clerk for 58 years is truly a tremendous achievement.'

Nordelph's borough councillor Vivienne Spikings has also spoken highly of Mr Stannard.

She said: 'He is always a gentleman and so helpful - nothing is too much trouble.

'The amount of years he worked as clerk shows what dedication he had. He lived his life around the parish council and didn't miss a meeting.

'He is going to be missed but you really have to hand it to him for being prepared to do what he did for as long as he did it.'