Public Consultation
Residents of the Parish of Yeovil are invited to share their views on a proposed contribution from Yeovil Town Council towards the Octagon Theatre Project.
In the coming days, letters accompanied by an A5 brochure outlining the project will be delivered to households within Yeovil Town. The letter will ask residents whether support the Council making a financial contribution to the project – funded in part through borrowing - and whether they agree to a resulting increase in the Council Tax precept to fund this borrowing.
Residents can take part in the consultation by completing the form enclosed with the letter and returning it to Yeovil Town Council, or by submitting their response online via the following link: Online Form Each member of the electorate of the household may respond.
The consultation ends on 21st September 2025.
Other useful documents will be displayed here when available:
Public Information Events
To allow residents the opportunity to learn more and discuss the project and associated borrowing plans, two open events will be at held at Westlands Entertainment Venue:
-
Thursday 28th August 2025, 2:00pm – 4:00pm
-
Wednesday 3rd September 2025, 6:00pm – 8:00pm
Project Funding Overview
The total project budget is £15 million, with funding sources as follows:
|
Funding Source
|
Amount
|
|
Government Funding (DCMS)
|
£10,000,000
|
|
Yeovil Town Council
|
£3,750,000
|
|
Ticket Levy (collected by Somerset Council)
|
£541,000
|
|
Fundraising and other grants
|
£444,000
|
|
Somerset Council
|
£265,000
|
|
Total
|
£15,000,000
|
Of Yeovil Town Council’s £3.75 million contribution, £639,500 will be allocated from reserves. The remaining £3,325,000 is proposed to be funded through borrowing from the Public Works Loan Board (PWLB) over a period of 20 years, at an estimated rate of 5.8% This would result in annual repayments of approximately £283,000.
The repayments will be funded through:
- £173,000 from the ticket levy
- £110,000 from a proposed increase in Council Tax precept, equivalent to a 3.3% rise
A breakdown of the expected impact on Council Tax bands is shown in the table below:
