TALKS are ongoing between council officials and owners of the former Dolphin Inn pub in Wellington as they look to see if the building could be used by the community.

Town clerk Dave Farrow and the Connect Somerset area champion Pete Joint met recently with Jessica and Ashley Vellacott to discuss how the building in Waterloo Road could be utilised for community use.

The town council’s community committee heard on September 16 that it had been a constructive meeting.

Mr Farrow said: “It was agreed that Pete Joint would come up with some proposals for making the building open for community use and these will be discussed at a future meeting.”

The pub closed in January 2020 after it saw a drop in trade and a community drive to get it back open came to nothing.

But the town council’s community committee met with the Dolphin’s new owners earlier this summer where they were told that there were plans in the pipeline for office accommodation on the first floor and turning the ground floor into a community café.

Councillors have said they would like to see the Dolphin used by local groups – similar to what the council is doing with the former Kings Arms pub in High Street.

Mr and Mrs Vellacott have said they want the new premises to become a key part of the town and they are looking at The Waffle in Axminster as something they want to replicate which is a social enterprise and community focussed.