A council governance review found only 35.3 per cent of Ansford residents supported the proposals
View Of The Station Green Development Site From Castle Cary Railway Station(Image: Local Democracy Reporting Service / Daniel Mumby)
Proposals to combine a rapidly expanding Somerset town with its neighbouring parish have been abandoned following a lack of backing from local people. Castle Cary has seen substantial growth in recent years, with considerable housing development occurring across both the town and the adjacent parish of Ansford, which encompasses Castle Cary railway station.
The scale of this expansion has left existing parish boundaries outdated – with one boundary line running directly through the middle of a residential dwelling. After local councillor Henry Hobhouse submitted a petition, Somerset Council initiated a governance review in late-2025, with findings presented to the council’s constitution and governance committee in Taunton on February 5.
However, given the limited public appetite for the changes, the committee determined that no merger plans would proceed at present.
Steven Lake, the council’s electoral services manager, informed the committee in his written report: “The consultation demonstrates that there is insufficient support from both communities to proceed with the proposals to merge the two parishes.
“Whilst there was an overall approval rate of 53.6 per cent to the proposals, the rate of approval from the responders from Ansford was only 35.3 per cent. There is, however, sufficient evidence to review the administrative boundaries to ensure that there are clear, definitive boundaries between the two communities.”
Castle Cary currently has 1,883 individuals on the electoral register, in contrast to Ansford’s 1,174. Despite the two parishes maintaining their individuality, a series of minor boundary adjustments will be put into effect.
These modifications include shifting the Crown Pet Foods factory entirely into Castle Cary parish (where the boundary currently bisects the main building) and relocating 57 to 67 Churchfield Drive into Ansford parish.
St. Andrew’s Church in Ansford(Image: Local Democracy Reporting Service / Daniel Mumby)
Summer Easeman, a disabled mother and the youngest member of Ansford Parish Council, warned the committee that merging the two parishes would “silence a vital local voice” at a pivotal moment for local democracy.
She said: “We have consistently demonstrated what can be achieved when we work collaboratively and base our decisions on evidence. Because of our constructive relationship with Somerset Council and local developers – and because we invested in proper, evidence‐based reports – we now have the prospect of three zebra crossings being delivered in Ansford.
“That’s not abstract policy; that’s safer routes for children, older residents, disabled people, and families. It’s exactly the kind of practical, community‐driven outcome that only a functioning parish council can deliver. Dissolving this council would silence a vital local voice at the very moment when our community is proving what it can achieve.”
Fellow Ansford resident Fiona Houlton pointed out significant distinctions between this proposal and the planned merger of Langport and Huish Episcopi.
She explained: “The nature of community identity, the strength and clarity of opposition, the response rates and the demographic profile are all materially different. Ansford is getting younger, with significant numbers of new housing and many families moving in.
“Proceeding now would create a long-term legitimacy problem by acting against the views of the very residents who will shape the parish’s future.”
Castle Cary resident Simon Bebbington offered a contrasting perspective, suggesting that uniting the two councils would make it simpler to obtain new facilities from property developers.
He reasoned: “The extension and ongoing development taking place has effectively blurred the boundaries and made them a single natural community. Our larger voice carries more weight when bidding for National Lottery funding, developer contributions, or government grants for projects like the Donald Pither pavilion.”
Trevor Oats, chairman of Castle Cary Town Council, added: “I can see great merit in the formation of a new council to move forward and start to focus on the needs and wants of everyone, and not be continually being accused of not paying heed to the parishioners of Ansford.
“All the new council parishioners will have equal access to elect the members who they wish to represent them, and enjoy the services that will be provided across the whole of the community.”
Councillor Tim Kerley (Liberal Democrat, Somerton) described this as a textbook case of needing to honour public opinion despite any professional evaluation.
He said: “It looks to me that it suits the governance for them to come together, but we have to accept that we need to take the public with us on the journey. Having set through a similar one in Langport and Huish Episcopi, I see the arguments are pretty much the same.
“The difference here is the local population haven’t been taken with the argument, and I think we have to respect that.”
Following less than half an hour of discussion, the committee voted against proceeding with the merger.
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