Progress is being made on a brand new bar and cafe housed in Whitehaven's former bus station.

The new 100-seater bar and cafe is to be called The Peddler, and is certain to be a major addition to the town's food and drinks scene as soon as its doors are able to open.

An application for a licence variation has now been submitted to Copeland Council for the Bransty Row premises, revealing details of the proposed hours of operation for the major new bar.

The application requests permission for The Peddler to host live music on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, from 8pm until midnight.

It is also requested that the venue has permission to play recorded music on Mondays to Wednesdays from 9am until 11.30pm, on Thursdays and Sundays from 9am until 12.30am, and on Fridays and Saturdays from 9am until as late as 1am.

The applicants, Osprey Management Group, hopes to sell alcohol from 10am to 11.30pm, Mondays to Wednesdays, on Thursday and Sunday until 12.30am, and on Fridays and Saturdays until as late as 1am.

Osprey Management Group have expressed excitement at the prospect of operating The Peddler, which will be housed on the ground floor of the former bus station - with office space on the first floor.

Craig Lowery, director of operations at Osprey, said: “We envisage The Peddler to be a unique proposition to the local area.

“It will showcase the amazing artisan food and drink products available in the county. Fresh, locally sourced, sustainable foods will become the foundation of the menus.”

The renovation of the former bus station is part of the North Shore scheme, led by BEC, with the help of partners including Copeland Council and the Whitehaven Harbour Commissioners.

Sellafield has put £2.6m of funding into the bus station project.

Michael Pemberton, chief executive of BEC, explained: “The development revives neglected places.

“Craig Lowery and the team at Osprey have taken a similar approach to developments, choosing places that need to be revitalised and returned to the communities that house them, providing leisure spaces for society to thrive and supporting employment opportunities on the coast of Cumbria.”

BEC’s head of property and development, Rob Miller added: “Food innovation will be key at the Bus Station, and it will also act as a hothouse for tech, digital, media, and creative start-ups.”