Consultation on key Yeovil theatre's future launched

The council originally intended to undertake a £30m revamp of the venue (which was temporarily closed in April 2023), but this was put on hold in October 2023 in light of high inflation and interest rates.

The council is now pursuing a scaled-down redevelopment costing £15m, with officers intending to submit the revised business cases to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) by the autumn of 2025.

Yeovil Town Council - which will run the venue once the redevelopment is complete - launched a formal consultation on Wednesday (August 13) asking residents for their view on the amended proposals, including an increase in council tax bills to support its running costs.

But two weeks before this consultation was launched, Somerset Council officers agreed an urgent decision to spend £1.4m on moving the project to the next phase of design work.

Here's everything you need to know:

What will the new theatre look like?

Revised artist's impressions of the new theatre, released by Somerset Council, showcase several details of the improved venue, including a light-filled atrium, a large café bar area and a dance studio.

The front-of-house area will be greatly enhanced, with more toilets, a changing places facility and various alterations being put in place to make the building more accessible.

The full details of the facilities being provided will be revealed once amended plans are formally submitted in the coming months - with these amended plans having to come before the council's planning committee south for final approval.

While the original design envisioned capacity being increased to 900, the amended proposals will involve "around 620" seats - similar to the venue's original capacity when it closed its doors in April 2023.

The main auditorium will be "refurbished with new seating and carpets"

Council deputy leader Liz Leyshon told the council's communities scrutiny committee on August 7 that the new design still included the fly tower for sets, which would be critical to attract larger productions to Somerset.

She said: "We have ensured that we can get the fly tower in within the £15m cost.

"Without the fly tower, we would not be able to be confident that Yeovil Town Council could extend the programme and do more with the theatre."

How is this being paid for? Will my council tax bills go up?

If you live in Yeovil, the short answer to the latter question is: yes.

Of the £15m budget for the theatre's regeneration, £10m comes from a ring-fenced DCMS grant, which was first secured in March 2021.

The town council would contribute £3,964,500 (including stamp duty) towards the project - which would entail the council borrowing £3,325,000.

To help fund this, the town council is proposing to increase its share of council tax bills by 3.3 per cent in next year's budget, which will be set in February 2026.

This is the equivalent of £11.60, or 22p per week, for an average Band D property over a 20-year period; however, more than 85 per cent of Yeovil household will end up paying less than this, since they are rated as Band A, B or C.

The remainder of the necessary funding will be provided via a number of sources, including the existing ticket levy (£541,000), contributions from Somerset Council and local housing developments (£265,000) and "fundraising and other grants" (£444,000).

Why has the council agreed to spend £1.4m now?

Council officers revealed in April 2024 that it was costing in the region of £140,000 to keep the venue closed and in a good condition until the project could move forward.

The project needs to move through various design stages which are estimated to cost £1,725,000 - a cost which will be split between the two councils.

To date, £776,000 has been spent on moving the project forward - of which £303,000 (which was split between evenly between the two councils) was spent on the first stage of the design work.

Officers agreed on July 30 to spend £1.4m for the second stage of design work - of which £700,000 will come from Yeovil Town Council, £654,609 from Somerset Council and £45,391 from "other grant and income-raising sources".

Chris Hall, the council's executive director for community, place and economy, said in his written report: "This spend is critical to progress to phase two of the project and to maintaining the schedule of the programme, which will culminate in a scheduled reopening date for the theatre in the autumn of 2028."

If this design work is not undertaken, it will delay or hamper the council's chances to moving the project forward and could lead to the DCMS grant being withdrawn.

How have councillors reacted?

A week before the town council's consultation was announced, members of the council's communities scrutiny committee met to discuss the proposals in Taunton on August 7.

Councillor Henry Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat, Castle Cary) served as a member of South Somerset District Council's executive when the original Octagon Theatre project was first given the green light.

He said: "The whole of this plan was predicated on saving £200,000 a year, which it what the subsidy was to run the theatre.

"At the time, I suggested that we actually try to get patrons from the theatre community in Somerset. There are quite a lot of well-off people, like Cameron Mackintosh - but nothing was done about it.

"Has anyone looked into trying to get funding from them? That would seem to me a useful method of getting in some outside funds to take this forward."

Mr Hall responded: "Some of those conversations have been had.

"There are other grant funds held that have come from external sources, and there was an arrangement on top of the ticket levy where people could contribute some funds towards the new seating, and we've kept that pot as well."

Councillor Edric Hobbs (Lib Dem, Mendip Hills) said he was concerned the lack of additional seating would end up making ticket prices unaffordable for patrons.

He said: "I was led to believe in the early stages that one of the problems with smaller, provincial theatres is the inability to attract big acts at an affordable cost, because the tickets have to be unaffordably expensive due to the limited seats.

Mr Hall replied: "If we had a 900-seat theatre, we would attract different shows.

"The Octagon was routinely operating at up to 90 per cent occupancy, and therefore it's believed that we can attract the right things that audiences will want to see.

"Will we be able to attract the really big shows and compete around the country? That will be a challenge."

Councillor Marcus Kravis (Lib Dem, Dunster) questioned whether there would be any further delays to the project, in light of how long it had taken to reach this point.

He said: "We're now talking about 2029, realistically - that's almost ten years since the project started.

"I assume we're just in a circumstance where these things take time and none of these are avoidable. Have we done everything in our power to make this happen as quickly as possible?"

Mr Hall replied: "We originally terminated the project because it was not viable.

"The clock restarted when we re-applied this to the capital programme."

Councillor Susannah Hart (Conservative, Glastonbury) said it was "irresponsible" to pursue this project further given the other financial pressures on the council.

She said: "It's like a family saying to me: 'Yay, we're gonna put in a cinema room with surround sound, and it's gonna be amazing', when the ceiling is leaking in the baby's bedroom, the baby hasn't got a cot to sleep in, and the hot water is on the blink.

"The ticket levy is only an estimate - and we know our estimates to date with this project have been not very accurate.

"We're not living in an ideal world right now, and I think there are other things we should be spending our time, focus and money on."

How can I have my say?

Yeovil Town Council will be sending letters to every household in the parish from Monday (August 18), inviting them to give their views.

To take part in the online consultation, visit www.yeovil.gov.uk/octagon-theatre before September 21.

Alternatively, if you wish to give your views in person, drop-in events will be held at Westlands Entertainment Venue on August 28 between 2pm and 4pm and on September 3 from 6pm to 8pm.

Town council leader Andy Soughton said: "This is your opportunity to have your say on the funding of the Octagon Theatre and ultimately, ensure that the new and improved venue reopens.

"We believe that the Octagon Theatre is a vital part of the cultural and leisure offering of our town and Yeovil Town Council can play a big part in the future of our town and the success of the theatre.

"I would urge all residents who live in the parish of Yeovil to read the information presented to you in the letter we send and have your say through either returning your consultation form or completing it online."

What happens next?

Once the town council's consultation has concluded, the council will formally submit a planning application for the revised regeneration scheme, which will go out for public consultation.

Assuming this is approval by the council's planning committee south (which handles major applications within the former South Somerset area), construction can move forward in 2026 and the DCMS grant will be officially drawn down.

After the building has been completed, the venue will be officially transferred to Yeovil Town Council and will reopen to the public.