A KIRKBY Lonsdale café will represent Cumbria at a prestigious awards show.

The Crossing Point Café has been shortlisted in the ‘Independent Café of the Year’ category at the awards that take place in London next month.

Owners John and Renata Strange said the news came as a 'fantastic surprise'.

John said: “We are proud to be an independent café so being recognised in national awards is a brilliant nod to the hard work that we’ve put into The Crossing Point in making it the best it can be.”

The Crossing Point Café, on Market Square, opened its doors in November 2014.

Offering more than simply café fare, The Crossing Point also plays host to popular Wednesday ‘Winesday’ evenings, and it recently added an extra dimension to their unique offering with a wine and cigar shop.

The café is also rated number three on Trip Advisor, ranked only behind two restaurants, making it the highest rated café in the town.

Renata said: “To be representing Cumbria at the Café Life Awards 2016 is something we are absolutely ecstatic about. We love living and working in Kirkby Lonsdale, so it’s quite an honour for us to be putting the town on the map in this way. We’d both like to say a huge thank you to our customers, both regular and new, for all their support over the last two years.”

John added: "We have some brilliant plans lined up for the rest of 2016 and we’ll also be introducing the new menu to our customers over the next few weeks, so the coming months are set to be very exciting ones.

"And of course, fingers crossed we’ll be walking away with the award for Independent Café of the Year at the Café Life Awards – that would be the perfect end to a fantastic year!"

The ceremony will be held on September 21.