Local News Tuesday 22nd February

Tuesday, 22 February 2022 at 06:00

Increases in labour and material prices have pushed up the cost of funding the regeneration of Yeovil town centre by a further £1.7 million pounds. Red Kites have been spotted in Somerset. Anyone who has taken part in Ilminster Carnival in the past is being asked to contact the organisers of this year’s Carnival and he date for holding this year’s Shindig Festival has been announced.

Increases in labour and material prices have pushed up the cost of funding the regeneration of Yeovil town centre by a further £1.7 million. It comes seven months after the South Somerset District Council voted to borrow a further £2.8 million to allow key parts of the scheme to begin, as planned. There are two separate budgets allocated for the Yeovil Refresh project, the capital budget (which covers new infrastructure such as roads and cycle lanes) and the revenue budget (which handles day-to-day project costs, including staff time and design work).
Under the proposals, the Yeovil Refresh capital budget will rise by £1,059,000 (funded through borrowing, bringing its new total to £21,838,000), while the revenue budget will rise by £606,000 to £1,994,000 (with the additional funding coming from the council's existing regeneration reserve). To finance the additional borrowing, the council will also increase its overall revenue budget by £44,000, bringing the total additional cost of the Yeovil Refresh programme to £1,709,000. The Yeovil Refresh project received around £9.75M from the government's future high street fund, which has to be spent in full by March 2024. In addition to the extra upfront funding, the council will also set aside £4,784,000 from its existing reserves, which will be used to replace any grant funding that has to be handed back to the government. Taking this new reserve into account, the council could end up spending an additional £6,493,000 on the Yeovil Refresh compared to its original budget.
The Yeovil Refresh funding proposals will come before the full council for final approval as part of its annual budget-setting meeting on February 28.

Red Kites have been spotted in Somerset. The bird of prey was nearly extinct but has been part of a long-running reintroduction programme in the Midlands. It's thought some of the birds have moved to Somerset for the farmland and hedgerows.

Anyone who has taken part in Ilminster Carnival in the past is being asked to contact the organisers of this year’s Carnival to help celebrate Ilminster Carnival’s 100th birthday. In particular, they’d like to hear from anyone who played the part of a king, queen, prince or princess. If you were part of the Ilminster Carnival in the past, please contact ilminstercarnivalcommittee@hotmail.co.uk they'd love to hear from you.

The date for holding this year’s Shindig Festival has been announced. The event, which hasn’t been held for 2-years due to Covid, will take place on the Dillington Estate near Ilminster from Thursday, May 26th to Sunday, May 29th. Organisers say the festival will be rammed with old favourites, plenty of new faces, and some very special collaborations

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