Yeovil Wetherspoons shuts its doors for major revamp

JD Wetherspoon's The William Dampier pub in Yeovil
-Credit:Western Gazette


Yeovil's beloved Wetherspoon pub, the William Dampier, is set to undergo a significant facelift. The boozer is closed - and will be until April 2025, as renovation works are ongoing.

Wetherspoons are now on site at Yeovil to create a new garden at the back of the pub in the current service yard, and refurbish the pub with a new carpet, redecoration, toilet refurbishment, kitchen upgrade, overbar glass racks etc. This will give the pub an extra 2,100 sq ft garden, and gives an extra 500 sq ft customer area in the pub, a JD Wetherspoons spokesperson told SomersetLive.

Wetherspoon spokesman Eddie Gershon said: “We are delighted to have started development work at our Yeovil pub. We believe the addition of a new garden and updated interior will be welcomed by customers and staff. We look forward to welcoming customers into the new-look pub.”

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The company applied in late-March 2024 to create an outside seating areas for its customers, removing part of the service yard which backs onto the town's bus station and the vacant Glovers Walk shopping centre.

In June 2024 Somerset Council gave the plans the green light, with the new area expected to be up and running within the next few months. The company secured permission for a similar facility in November 2019, but due to the coronavirus pandemic these changes were never implemented.

What the new look William Dampier Wetherspoons could look like -Credit:JD Wetherspoon
What the new look William Dampier Wetherspoons could look like -Credit:JD Wetherspoon

When the plans were submitted, a spokesman for Nineteen47 (representing the developer) said: "The demand for beer gardens and other forms of external seating have risen exponentially, particularly since the Covid-19 pandemic, with many of these spaces becoming critical to the viability of the hospitality sector while restrictions were placed on indoor capacity.

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"Since then, many have retained a preference to sit in an outdoor setting, particularly during the sunnier months. The application site is south- and west-facing and will therefore benefit from prolonged periods of sunlight during the trading hours of the public house.

"This will introduce a new offering to the public house and support the continued viability of a business which remains operational despite the recognizable struggles of other businesses in the surrounding area."

Mickey Green, the council's executive director for climate and place, said when approving the scheme: "The proposal represents an acceptable change of use of a small portion of the existing service yard, and would provide for a permanent external seating arrangement for this well-established public house situated in Yeovil's town centre.

"It is not considered such which would harm the vitality and viability of the town centre. The proposal would cause no harm to the character and appearance of the area; and would not adversely effect residential amenity or highway safety."

Named after the renowned English explorer, naturalist, and sometime pirate born in East Coker, William Dampier - who has the distinction of being the first Englishman to map parts of Australia and the only person to navigate the globe thrice.