The National Trust is likely this month to reveal redundancies across the UK following a structural shake-up.
The trust was unable to say how many of its 5,000 staff would be affected, but under its Going Local strategy, it is axing three regional offices, devolving decision-making to 180 property and general managers, and creating a National Trust Consultancy at its Swindon base to offer specialist advice.
A spokesman said the aim was to reduce duplication: “It is not clear how many staff will be involved in the process. The final number may not be known until July.
“This is the way a lot of organisations seem to be looking. It is not about making it more efficient, it is about making it more effective.
“It will probably save us some money in the long term, but until we have got through the design stage – possibly in early July – we have no figures.”
The restructuring involves reducing the number of English regions from nine to six, plus Wales and Northern Ireland.
Staff union Prospect said it was involved in talks, but it was “very early days”. The trust said regional directors would have a “new, more external-facing role” and that devolving management to properties meant regional offices “need no longer be based on operational size”.
Historic properties director Sarah Staniforth said redundancies were “possible”, but added that some specialist staff would be taken on in Swindon now it was free to pay market rates.
“There is no pressure to make savings,” she said. “There is a scenario where we can increase resources because we currently use a lot of external consultancies. We don’t have any architects and civil, mechanical or electrical engineers on staff because we have quite a rigid wage structure.”
Staniforth said local managers would have flexibility to pay more, which would make it easier to recruit catering staff, for example. Under the new structure, properties will be able to keep a percentage of profits and be encouraged to be more entrepreneurial, by staging special events to encourage repeat visits, for example.
• The nine English regions become six
• East and West Midlands are merged
• Thames and Solent and South East become the South East region
• Wessex plus Devon and Cornwall become the South West region
The trust was unable to say how many of its 5,000 staff would be affected, but under its Going Local strategy, it is axing three regional offices, devolving decision-making to 180 property and general managers, and creating a National Trust Consultancy at its Swindon base to offer specialist advice.
A spokesman said the aim was to reduce duplication: “It is not clear how many staff will be involved in the process. The final number may not be known until July.
“This is the way a lot of organisations seem to be looking. It is not about making it more efficient, it is about making it more effective.
“It will probably save us some money in the long term, but until we have got through the design stage – possibly in early July – we have no figures.”
The restructuring involves reducing the number of English regions from nine to six, plus Wales and Northern Ireland.
Staff union Prospect said it was involved in talks, but it was “very early days”. The trust said regional directors would have a “new, more external-facing role” and that devolving management to properties meant regional offices “need no longer be based on operational size”.
Historic properties director Sarah Staniforth said redundancies were “possible”, but added that some specialist staff would be taken on in Swindon now it was free to pay market rates.
“There is no pressure to make savings,” she said. “There is a scenario where we can increase resources because we currently use a lot of external consultancies. We don’t have any architects and civil, mechanical or electrical engineers on staff because we have quite a rigid wage structure.”
Staniforth said local managers would have flexibility to pay more, which would make it easier to recruit catering staff, for example. Under the new structure, properties will be able to keep a percentage of profits and be encouraged to be more entrepreneurial, by staging special events to encourage repeat visits, for example.
Restructure at a glance
• The nine English regions become six
• East and West Midlands are merged
• Thames and Solent and South East become the South East region
• Wessex plus Devon and Cornwall become the South West region
