PLANS have been submitted to Somerset Council for a new children’s play cafe at Westpark business park, at Chelston, Wellington.

Paige Kemp, of Little Fig Ltd, has applied for a change of use of the industrial unit number 24 at Westpark to allow for a play cafe called Little Fig Play Lounge.

An Instagram account describes the new venture as a ‘calm, beautiful space for children to explore, grown-ups to connect, and everybody to belong’, with Montessori-inspired play.

The play area will be accompanied by a cafe and lounge seating area, with a quiet room and store room, and the provision of a disabled bathroom in the 93 square metre unit which is currently classed as an empty general use industrial space.

The application requires a planning change of use of the building from class E to include and sui generis which would allow for the play area and cafe.

In a planning statement submitted in June, Mrs Kemp said she was seeking permission for the space to be used as a play cafe and community hub ‘providing a safe, welcoming, and inclusive environment for families and carers’.

The floor plan showed an indoor play area for children as well as the ability to serve light refreshments.

Mrs Kemp said her hope was for the space to ‘help combat loneliness and isolation, particularly among new parents, carers, and those with young children, with the provision of refreshments ancillary to the primary purpose of the business’.

Four full-time equivalent jobs were planned and the application showed parking for eight vehicles on site.

An agreement was also in place to use extra parking linked to nearby units 28 and 29.

Mrs Kemp wants permission to open the business between 8 am and 8 pm daily.