Nearly £5m of central government funding will be spent on new housing above retail units in Yeovil town centre.

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 impact of 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.

The newly-renamed Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has now agreed that the remaining £4.8m within the original grant can be used on different properties, delivering new affordable homes in the heart of the town centre.

The four sites which will be redeveloped using this grant funding are:

The Glovers Walk shopping centre

66 Middle Street (near the new amphitheatre and outdoor LED screen)

96 Middle Street (opposite the William Dampier pub)

Grimsby Corner on Wyndham Street

The council announced in late-April that it would be spending up to £1m to demolish the now-vacant Glovers Walk site, and confirmed in mid-May that it was in the process of purchasing the land for redevelopment.

The shopping centre, bus station and part of the adjoining land on Lower Middle Street was put on the market in late-October 2023 at a guide price of £1.75m.

Under the council’s plans, the site 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.

Councillor Ros Wyke, portfolio holder for economic development, planning and assets, said: “As we see the majority of public realm works coming to completion, this latest news is positive and exciting in the delivery of an attractive, flexible, income generating mixed use development for Yeovil and its town centre.

“Key to success will be consultation with the community and partners Love Yeovil and Yeovil Artspace, as providers of events, activities and entertainment moving forward.”

The acquisition of Glovers Walk is anticipated to be completed within the coming months, with the appointment of a demolition contractor expected in August and the actual demolition work beginning in the autumn.

Ms Wyke reiterated that Yeovil bus station would remain open during this work and would form an integral part of any regeneration plans for the site.

She said: “To be absolutely clear, Yeovil bus station is not closing and will not be affected by plans for the Glovers Walk site.

“We will be working closely with the bus station owners to ensure that the bus station remains fully operational throughout the period of works to the Glovers Walk site and into the future.”

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), Tim Carr secured planning permission in April to build ten flats across the first and second floors.

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 said these developments could not be delivered using Homes England funding, as had previously been utilised at the Saxonvale regeneration site in Frome.

A spokesman said: “The funding is targeted at specific costs  to kick-start these developments.

“These developments are not of a large enough scale to apply for Homes England funding based on current parameters.”