PATIENCE has run out for a group of angry Wellington residents who plan to put Somerset Council on the spot for its failure to protect the town’s most important heritage site, Tonedale Mill.

The recently-formed Tonedale Mill Action Group (TMAG) is to hold a public meeting with the council invited to explain its ‘actions, or lack of them’.

The council received nearly £20 million of Government money three years ago for a ‘Vision for Tonedale’.

But, as of last month the authority had spent only £283,425 of it, or, 1.4 per cent of the grant.

A TMAG spokesperson said: “Three years after this money was awarded, and when plans were already in place to spend this money, the council has failed utterly to use the money.

“It has sat on it.”

The spokesperson said a series of questions needed answering, including:

  • What has happened, apart from endless meetings and much talk, since the grant was awarded
  • Why did the council not start work on the ‘Vision for Tonedale’ immediately after receiving the money
  • Why has so little been spent
  • Will the council make public its accounts relating to the use of the grant money
  • Can the council meet the Government’s extended deadlines for contracts to be in place by next April and the remaining funds spent by April, 2028
  • Is it the council’s hidden agenda to allow the mill to crumble away so it has to be demolished, allowing housing to be built on the site

The spokesperson said council statements about the importance of Wellington’s heritage rang hollow with residents.

Tonedale Mill, in Wellington, has continued to fall apart as Somerset Council is alleged to have 'sat on' nearly £20 million of Government given to protect it.
Tonedale Mill, in Wellington, has continued to fall apart as Somerset Council is alleged to have 'sat on' nearly £20 million of Government money given to protect it. (Iliffe Media)

A previous pattern of ignoring concerns, together with an apparent lack of urgency now left many people ‘somewhat annoyed that heritage is being allowed to waste away’.

The spokesperson said: “To discover the council is to divert funds away from Wellington to Bridgwater, which is money specifically earmarked for Wellington, is beyond the pale for many,

“The council has a lot to answer for, being that councillors are elected to carry out the wishes of the people who elected them, and not what they think is best for the people.”

Tonedale Mill, which closed in the 1990s and is currently privately owned by Mancraft Ltd, is a grade two starred listed building and is on the national ‘at risk’ register.

The action group said there appeared to be a stalemate over the site because the council did not want to take ownership due to the cost, while the owners did not have the funds to develop the mill.

The spokesperson said the mill’s ‘Block H’ adjoining Tonedale House had continued to deteriorate and only recently part of the roof had fallen in, while the council acknowledged ‘Blocks A and B’ were also fast deteriorating.

The action group, founded by Alyson Bashford, is hoping to find a way for Tonedale Mill to be taken into public ownership either through the council or by setting up a not-for-profit building preservation trust.