Bognor Regis soft play cafe is voted the 'best family friendly place to eat in Sussex'

Little Piggies Cafe, in Bedford Street, Bognor Regis, took home the gold at this year's Little Ankle Biter Awards, winning 'best family friendly place to eat in Sussex', despite having been open for less than a year.

The cafe, which features a soft-play area for children, opened last summer after mum of two Jessica Smith quit her career in TV production to open a space for busy parents like herself.

“If you’ve got children in Bognor, there aren’t really a lot of places around that have everything in one place. You have lots of amazing little baby groups you can go to, lots of sensory stuff and toddler groups, but they’re all very separate," she told The Bognor Regis Observer last year. "So I kind of wanted to create a hub, something that puts everything under one roof."

A year on and the cafe has become a town-wide success. For Mrs Smith, the Little Ankle Biter Award is just the icing on an already-impressive cake.

"It’s tough out there at the minute, not just for small independent businesses, but for families," she wrote on the Little Piggies Cafe Facebook page. "It’s a survival game at the minute and with prices rising on a lot of things we have no control over, we have to make those cut backs. And I just want to say thank you for your continued support.

"When I started this I wanted to create a place for families to feel comfortable and just let kids play and parents to chill and not worry if the baby is crying. And I really hope I've managed to give some of you a place that I feel was needed.

"They drive us nuts, but thank god for kids! They have a hidden talent to get you through some of the toughest times!"

This marks the first year The Little Ankle Biter awards have come to Sussex. An organisation dedicated to 'celebrating local businesses and charities that provide an outstanding service to families and carers,' Little Ankle Biter Award winners are both nominated and voted for by local people.

“We would like to once again congratulate all of our amazing winners and also each of the runners up. We have learnt about some incredible local businesses through the awards and cannot wait to try them all out!" said Gina Lee, editor of Little Ankle Biters Sussex.

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