A long interval

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Controversy has dogged the project to renew and revitalise the Octagon theatre in Yeovil.

Readers will recall that South Somerset District Council (SSDC) had a project plan to spend £27m to significantly expand the theatre. That plan was abandoned when SSDC was folded into the new Somerset Council in 2023.

In its place, a new council offered a new plan. It will focus on tidying up the front of house, making improvements to access and cost £15m.

Under that plan, as recently as March 2025, the council said the theatre would reopen in “early 2027”. Now estimates are late 2028 or possibly 2029. That will mean the theatre will have been closed for at least five years and quite possibly longer.

Despite the offerings available at the Westlands Entertainment Centre, that is a big loss to the cultural life of South Somerset.

But even the current plan is still subject to some critical decisions. It is, for instance, entirely contingent on the Department of Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) agreeing to keep the original £10m grant it had pledged to the original project. That would be two-thirds of the new £15m budget.

two-thirds of the new £15m budget

A further £3.75m is to be provided by Yeovil Town Council via a Public Works Loan Board application. The interest costs will add to council tax for Yeovil taxpayers, but this is not an unusual arrangement. Frome Town Council, for instance, has financed the purchase of several important local buildings through this method.

This is a critical project for cultural life in Yeovil, so we were surprised when we asked Somerset Council a series of questions on the project, to be told to submit a Freedom of Information (FoI) request. The questions we asked should all be straightforward matters of fact, but more importantly of public interest given the importance of the project.

Before we go any further, it is worth itemising those questions that the council will not answer without an FoI here:

• Can you confirm the date that the Final Business Case plans were submitted to the DCMS?

• Can you confirm that the DCMS have now approved those plans and guaranteed their £10m grant to the project?

• How will the £10m be paid? Will it be against invoices?

• Has Yeovil Town Council secured the £3.75m PWLB money needed to complete the project?

• How much money has Somerset Council spent maintaining the building since 1 April 2023?

• Has all asbestos in the building been removed, or will that work be part of the £15m budget?

• Is it correct that the plans for the revamp will leave the number of seats in the theatre unchanged at 622?

• Have contractors been appointed?

• If they have been, was it via a competitive process and if so how many bidders were there for the work?

• What contingencies are in place for any cost overruns associated with the project?

• Will the refurbishment include having a new hearing loop?

• Will the refurbishment include air conditioning in the auditorium?

Having been refused a direct respone we were unwilling to wait 20 days for an answer (and that is assuming Somerset Council answer a FoI request within the statutory 20 days).

So we pushed back on this and the council, to their credit, did offer partial answers to two of our questions. They told us they could confirm:

• The Final Business Case is currently with DCMS and Arts Council England for review and approval.

• Procurement activity has commenced, although we are not currently in a position to comment on the process while that work is ongoing.

But insisted all other answers could only be given via an Fo request.

all other answers could only be given via an Fo request

Which caused some raised eyebrows here at Somerset Confidential. For instance, if the procurement process to find a contractor has started, how come they cannot tell us details from the specification regarding hearing loops and air conditioning?

If they can tell us the Final Business Case is currently with DCMS then how come they cannot say on what date they submitted it? Could it be that the answer would be embarrassing?