Up to 40 posts at the Natural History Museum are under threat as the museum looks to reduce annual expenditure by £2.3m ahead of expected cuts in central government funding.
A review of 40 jobs, including 10 posts that are currently vacant, is under way. A statement from the museum said it was making “every effort” to avoid redundancies, “including limiting recruitment, reviewing plans for new posts and closing posts where appropriate”.
The statement added that the reduction in expenditure would provide the museum with flexibility in how it invests in and delivers its new corporate plan priorities.
“It will also increase our resilience to the outcome of public sector funding decisions. We have aimed to be as well prepared as we can for whatever outcome results.”
Staff have been informed of the decision and trade unions are being consulted. The statement from the museum said it recognised that these were difficult times for colleagues and that it had developed a programme of coaching and training for those affected.
The news comes after a bumper year for the museum with 4, 270, 500 visitors in 2009-10, an increase of 14 per cent on the previous year.
A spokeswoman for the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) said that for the past two years, the museum had been engaged in a programme to reduce its staff costs by 15 per cent by March 2011, in anticipation of the challenging funding environment.
“The V&A will attempt to minimise the use of compulsory redundancies, preferring to look at alternative cost-cutting measures such as delaying recruitment, not recruiting to vacant posts and offering flexibility around partial retirement,” she added.
A spokesman for the Science Museum said it had no job cuts planned.
A statement from the National Gallery said it was considering the implications of announcements about possible funding cuts.
A review of 40 jobs, including 10 posts that are currently vacant, is under way. A statement from the museum said it was making “every effort” to avoid redundancies, “including limiting recruitment, reviewing plans for new posts and closing posts where appropriate”.
The statement added that the reduction in expenditure would provide the museum with flexibility in how it invests in and delivers its new corporate plan priorities.
“It will also increase our resilience to the outcome of public sector funding decisions. We have aimed to be as well prepared as we can for whatever outcome results.”
Staff have been informed of the decision and trade unions are being consulted. The statement from the museum said it recognised that these were difficult times for colleagues and that it had developed a programme of coaching and training for those affected.
The news comes after a bumper year for the museum with 4, 270, 500 visitors in 2009-10, an increase of 14 per cent on the previous year.
A spokeswoman for the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) said that for the past two years, the museum had been engaged in a programme to reduce its staff costs by 15 per cent by March 2011, in anticipation of the challenging funding environment.
“The V&A will attempt to minimise the use of compulsory redundancies, preferring to look at alternative cost-cutting measures such as delaying recruitment, not recruiting to vacant posts and offering flexibility around partial retirement,” she added.
A spokesman for the Science Museum said it had no job cuts planned.
A statement from the National Gallery said it was considering the implications of announcements about possible funding cuts.
