Yeovil

Yeovil is a town in south Somerset, close to the county’s southern border with Dorset, about 28 miles east of Taunton. The 2021 census recorded 31,633 people in the parish and 50,170 in the built-up area, so it is a sizeable town as well as a base for the villages around it.

The town’s name comes from a Common Brittonic river name meaning forked river, an earlier name of the River Yeo. In the 1800s Yeovil was a glove-making centre and its population grew quickly, and the football club’s nickname, the Glovers, still refers to that past. Today Leonardo manufactures helicopters in the town, continuing a long link with Westland Helicopters.

For open air, Yeovil Country Park covers 40 hectares in the south-east, built around Ninesprings Country Park and linked by a cycle way to nearby walks. It is an easy way to get out of town without getting in the car, and suits a morning stroll or a family bike ride.

Beyond the town, the village of Montacute, home of the National Trust’s Montacute House, is about 4 miles west, and the Dorset border puts a different county within easy reach for day trips. Choose Yeovil if you want a larger base with everyday facilities, with Montacute about 4 miles west and the quieter villages of south Somerset a short drive away.