PEOPLE living and working in Glastonbury will be able to quiz councillors and officers on Saturday (April 13) regarding a range of regeneration projects which are ramping up in their town.

Glastonbury was one of 101 towns across the UK – and one of only two in Somerset – which has received funding from the government’s towns fund, with £23.6m being provided for projects designed to enhance the town centre and improve the town’s fortunes.

A total of 11 projects are being funded by the town deal and are at various stages of development and delivery – though the majority have already secured planning permission.

To provide residents with an update, the Glastonbury Town Deal Board is staging its annual open day at Glastonbury Town Hall on Saturday (April 11) between 11am and 3pm, allowing residents to ask questions to the various partners which are helping to secure the town’s future.

The 11 projects which were approved by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) are:

  1. The regeneration of the Baily’s Buildings on Beckery Old Road, creating a zero-carbon hub for local businesses
  2. Delivering the Glastonbury Enterprise and Innovation Hub, converting the Beckery Resource Centre on Beckery Road into “a dedicated centre for the town’s vibrant business community”
  3. Completing Building C of The Life Factory off the A39 Street Road, finishing a the creation of “an iconic building for businesses, learning, young people and community uses”
  4. Implementing the Glastonbury Clean Energy Project, with solar panels and other green energy technology being installed across the Beckery Village area
  5. The Robert Richards Initiative, delivering new multi-user paths to link the different projects and join up with the Glastonbury Way
  6. Enhancing St. Brigid’s Chapel and Field, creating a new visitors’ centre and improving the appearance of and access to this historic site
  7. Building the Glastonbury Food and Regenerative Farming Centre on Porchestall Drove, creating a “community-led agroecological facility”
  8. Delivering new facilities for the “non-bricks and mortar” community in and around the Beckery Village, providing more suitable accommodation and enabling other projects in the area to progress
  9. Creating a community health and well-being centre at St. Dunstan’s House on Magdalene Street, allowing community groups to meet in covid-safe spaces and for residents to receive support on health living, employment and computer skills
  10. Improving the entrance to Glastonbury Abbey, creating an attractive piazza space with a new ticket office, toilets, shop and café
  11. Creating the Glastonbury community sports and leisure hub, refurbishing the existing Tor Leisure Centre on the A361 Street Road

Dr Lynne Sedgmore CBE, chair of the Glastonbury Town Deal Board, said: “A lot of hard work has been going on in the background getting the projects ready to do their build works.

“This background work from the board, partners and projects is now paying off and I’m delighted our community will now see things taking shape.

“We have diverse and inspiring projects that have started on-site or are about to start. This year and next are set to be a transformational time for the town.”

Many of the new projects are designed to intersect physically or thematically, such as the Robert Richards initiative, with the new paths serving to connect the town’s residential areas more easily to local green spaces and leisure facilities.

These paths intersect with the Glastonbury Way, which was enhanced using ‘accelerator funding’ during the coronavirus pandemic and encircles the entire town (including Glastonbury Tor).

Councillor Ros Wyke, Somerset Council’s portfolio holder for prosperity, assets and development, said: “You might have been to the Tor Leisure site and used the new multi-use paths which we put in last year. This is the start of improving our path network.

“By 2026 we aim to create 2.5km of paths for walking and wheeling, making sure we link with existing pathways, to the projects and beyond to help people make the most of all that Glastonbury has to offer.

“We have already had an overwhelmingly positive reaction to the Tor Leisure paths and look forward to bringing so much more to the town over the next two years.”

Each of these projects has to be completed by the end of March 2026, with the town deal board seeking to work with local businesses wherever possible.

If you run a local business and wish to get involved in the Glastonbury town deal, visit www.somersetsupplychain.co.uk.

Mayor of Glastonbury Indra Donfrancesco said: “Everyone is welcome to come to the open day – whether you want to volunteer, get your business involved or just find out what’s happening on your doorstep.

“There’s no need to book, just drop in and find out about the things which are important to you.”

For more details on the open day or the town deal projects, visit www.glastonburytowndeal.co.uk.