An inseparable Minster couple who were sweethearts at school have celebrated their diamond wedding.

Leslie Peters can remember the date he first set eyes on his wife Maureen – it was November 5, 1948.

She was 12 and he was 13 and he used to walk her home from the Central School in Queenborough.

Mr Peters, 79, said: “I saw her and that was that. People say ‘oh young love, it’ll never’ last but it did.”

When he joined the Army at the age of 17 they were separated for a spell as he served overseas in Germany but they got hitched in 1954 while he was on leave.

He bought a suit from a tailors in Sheerness High Street for 15 guineas on a Wednesday and tied the knot the following Saturday.

They went on to have two sons, one of whom died when he was 16. They have four granddaughters, one grandson and eight great-grandchildren.

They lived in Queenborough and even worked together for many years at the potteries in the town until they moved to their current house in Cliff Gardens 30 years ago. Spending so much time together has not dulled their fondness for one another, said Mrs Peters, 78.

She said: “We have always been together and it’s been fine. We have never had a bad argument. We are all for each other, we always have been. No problems at all. We go dancing three times a week, we walk, we do everything really.”

So what advice did she have for any newlyweds out there who want to know the secret to a long and happy marriage? “You’ve got to give and take,” she said. “And never go to bed on an argument.”

The pair celebrated the 60-year milestone with a Chinese meal on Thursday, a party on at Sheerness East Working Men’s Club, Halfway, on Saturday with 130 guests and a family do at Merlins in Leysdown on Sunday.