National Archives slashes its budget by £4.2m
Need to cut costs could lead to job losses and reduced opening hours
The National Archives in Kew is cutting £4.2m from its budget as part of a plan to reduce its running costs by 10 per cent by 2010.
The cuts are a result of a standstill budget announced in the last comprehensive spending review.
Measures in the proposed restructure include reducing opening hours to five days a week by closing to the public on Mondays, and cutting the number of employees by 35 to 660, mainly in administration and management roles.
A spokeswoman for the national archive said: "Our funding from central government has been flat - with no increase for inflation - for a few years now, and we do not anticipate any increase in it in the next few years. But at the same time, our running costs continue to increase.
"As a result, we need to reduce our running costs to make sure that we can continue with our core activities and still have enough money for investments and contingencies."
The proposals were announced to employees in June, and are now the subject of a public consultation.
A final decision will be announced this month, for implementation before the end of March 2010.
The cuts are a result of a standstill budget announced in the last comprehensive spending review.
Measures in the proposed restructure include reducing opening hours to five days a week by closing to the public on Mondays, and cutting the number of employees by 35 to 660, mainly in administration and management roles.
A spokeswoman for the national archive said: "Our funding from central government has been flat - with no increase for inflation - for a few years now, and we do not anticipate any increase in it in the next few years. But at the same time, our running costs continue to increase.
"As a result, we need to reduce our running costs to make sure that we can continue with our core activities and still have enough money for investments and contingencies."
The proposals were announced to employees in June, and are now the subject of a public consultation.
A final decision will be announced this month, for implementation before the end of March 2010.