HE HAS organised demonstrations, co-ordinated marches and collected thousands of signatures of protest - but far from being a troublemaker it was all in a day's work for Andy Day.

The long-serving council officer was at the forefront of the Save Haslar Hospital campaign and it was his job to make sure the public protest against the closure was heard and encouraged all the way to Westminster.

According to Andy, 40, the campaign will be one of the hardest things to leave behind when he bids goodbye to Gosport council after 23 years of service.

He said: "When I look back it was certainly a highlight of my time in Gosport to organise a march that saw 24,000 people protesting at the closure of Haslar."

In a career that has seen him rise from junior clerk to head of committee services, Andy is taking up a new post with the West Berkshire Council.

On Thursday councillors and colleagues will join the Mayor of Gosport Dennis Wright to pay tribute to Andy's achievements. Council leader Peter Edgar said: "It has been an absolute pleasure to see Andy do such a marvellous job."