A HUSBAND and wife team have taken over at the helms of the Rotary Club of Pershore and its female equivalent, the Inner Wheel Club of Pershore.

Robert and Nicky Clark, of The Old Off Licence, Peopleton, are believed to be the first married couple for many years to have been in the posts at the same time.

Mr Clark, aged 60, runs an engineering company, Energy Solutions (Lighting). Mrs Clark, 57, is a retired journalist, who was the London-based correspondent for an American news agency during the swinging 60s.

The couple, who have two children, have been involved with Rotary and Inner Wheel for around five years.

Mrs Clark said there would be advantages to their joint year in office, as they would be able to raise funds for charities they were both keen to help. "We thought it would be a good thing to do it together," she explained.

"It will be nice to dedicate the year to local charities and to work as a team and that's the reason we did it, because we can support each other."

Among causes they are particularly eager to support are the NSPCC and St Richard's Hospice.