A PLAY area for toddlers and young children could soon be built at an Isle of Wight pub, if the plans are approved by the Isle of Wight Council.

An application by the Eight Bells in Carisbrooke has been lodged with the Isle of Wight Council seeking permission to build a children’s indoor play area.

A number of alterations will be needed to ensure the space is self-contained.

Internal and external alterations will also see the cellar relocation, alongside a single storey building to house chiller units, with two externally mounted cooling units.

The plans will go live on the council’s website on Friday.

A spokesperson for the pub said: “We believe these changes will benefit our customers and will be a welcome addition to the amenities currently on offer.

“If you have a moment, from Friday onwards, please take the time to go online and add your support via the comments section.”

Updated Wednesday 9am

The plans could offer a two-store soft play climbing frame, and a dedicated toddler area. The playroom will be self-contained but not isolated from the main dining area.

Kelly Early who owns the pub with her husband Kevin, said although the pub already has an outdoor play area, they had been discussing the idea of introducing an indoor play area for a couple of years.

Mrs Early said: “We have a young child ourselves and can appreciate that colouring sheets are no longer enough to keep children occupied during a family get-together.

“We recognise that the Island is lacking in venues that can offer these kind of facilities and we therefore saw an opportunity to improve and grow our business, whilst remaining family-orientated.”

The proposals will make several alterations to the building, in order to generate sufficient space for the equipment. However, the plans will remain ‘sympathetic’ to the character of the building.

Mrs Early added: “Planning consent is required for some of these changes and details concerning our application were posted on our Facebook page in order that we might begin to generate support for our proposals from current and potential future customers.”