Ambitions to regenerate Yeovil’s former cattle market have been officially “cancelled” as part of a new agreement with central government.

As part of the Yeovil Refresh regeneration programme, South Somerset District Council (and its successor Somerset Council) attempted to bring forward disused brownfield sites within the town centre for redevelopment, including the Glovers Walk shopping centre on Middle Street and the former cattle market off the A30 Reckleford.

The government provided £9.75m from its future high streets fund towards the Yeovil Refresh, part of which was focussed on unlocking these sites for mixed use redevelopment through co-operation with private landowners.

But a lack of progress in these negotiations, coupled with the coronavirus pandemic, prompted officers to rethink back in August 2022 and ask the government if some of the funding could be redirected to other sites within the town.

Somerset Council has now signed an agreement with the newly-renamed Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), which lays out how more than £4.9m of the remaining grant funding will be spent on redeveloping four key sites.

As part of this agreement, the cattle market project has been officially cancelled – along with any planned improvements to the Poundland store at 72-74 Middle Street.

The removal of these two sites was confirmed in the agreement (known as a memorandum of understanding between the council and MHCLG, which was recently published on the council’s official website.

READ MORE: Yeovil regeneration: £2.7m to be spent on former shops

The agreement also confirms both the public realm locations which are being improved and the four residential development sites – namely:

  • The Glovers Walk shopping centre – £2,728,019 
  • 66 Middle Street (near the new amphitheatre and outdoor LED screen) – £502,000
  • 96 Middle Street (opposite the William Dampier pub) – £301,500
  • Grimsby Corner on Wyndham Street – £1,440,500

Under the council’s plans, the shopping centre will be flattened to “form a temporary, ‘meanwhile’ use” while a master-plan for the location (funded by Homes England) is completed.

This will then lead to further public consultation on plans to deliver a mixed use redevelopment on the site, including new flats and commercial space.

The council confirmed on Thursday (August 15) that the contractor for the demolition works had been officially appointed, in order to meet the government’s deadline that all contracted associated with the remaining future high streets fund grants had to be in place by September 30.

The demolition is expected to begin in the autumn and take up to six months to complete – during which time the pedestrian route from Yeovil bus station through the shopping centre will be closed off.

The other three sites in question will see “affordable residential accommodation for young professionals, key workers and student apprentices” created above the existing ground floor commercial space in the town centre.

At 66 Middle Street (the former Turquoise Kitchen restaurant), the council will help to deliver 18 flats along and bring the ground floor commercial space back into use (before marketing it to a suitable tenant).

At 96 Middle Street (between the 94 Club and the Kaspa’s restaurant), Abbey Manor Developments put forward plans in June 2020 to demolish the existing premises and replace it with a ground floor commercial outlet with nine flats across the first and second floors.

A decision on these plans has been repeatedly delayed by the phosphates crisis, which has held up the delivery of around 18,000 homes across Somerset since Natural England issued its legal advice in August 2020.

At Grimsby Corner (at the western end of Wyndham Street), Acorn Homes secured permission in late-January to demolish the existing buildings and replace them with a block of 48 flats.

The council will work to deliver 43 affordable flats on this site, working alongside the developer.

All of the remaining future high streets fund grant must be spent by April 2025.

The council will shortly begin the construction of several ‘missing links’ within Yeovil’s active travel network, making it easier for people to walk, cycle and wheel into the town centre.

While this forms part of the Yeovil Refresh, this element of the programme is being funded by a separate grant of £1.2m provided by Active Travel England (part of the Department for Transport).