English Heritage is considering plans to make at least 189 redundancies, as part of an organisation-wide restructure.

The heritage charity, which has a total of 2,535 employees, confirmed that it is consulting on proposals that would result in at least 189 redundancies – 7 per cent of the charity’s workforce.

The proposals also include plans to reduce opening hours at about 10 per cent of the heritage sites in English Heritage’s care, including the closure of 21 of sites over winter.

A spokesperson for English Heritage said that the proposals followed a review of the charity’s structure, saying they will “allow the charity to meet the opportunities and challenges of the next few years from a position of strength”.

They said that the pandemic and its aftermath led to lasting changes in visitor expectations and behaviour, both domestically and internationally, while many visitors and members were facing cost-of-living challenges.

“High inflation has increased the cost of conservation work at our sites but significant and ongoing expenditure is still required if the condition of the sites in our care is not to deteriorate,” the spokesperson said.

On the proposal to reduce opening hours at some sites, the spokesperson said: “The reality is that we welcome a tiny number of visitors to these particular sites when they are open at weekends during the winter months (for instance over one weekend in November, a number of these sites only welcomed 11 visitors).”

The charity will be looking to find different ways of operating 22 of its other sites, with the spokesperson saying: “Our usual way of opening isn’t necessarily suitable or sustainable at these sites, and for instance offering special guided tours, temporary exhibitions or partnering up with the local communities for special events will provide a richer experience than what we currently offer.”

The spokesperson said the charity was committed to working with its employees and trade unions to find ways to avoid and reduce redundancies.

“Under these proposals, we will continue to have a team of more than 75 expert curators, historians and conservators,” the spokesperson said, adding that the proposals will allow it to gather these experts into a single centre within the charity.

“A more joined-up way of working will mean we are better able to look after and understand the great sites in our care and better able to share their stories with everyone.”

They added that the charity no longer received or relied on regular funding from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport to care for its National Heritage Collection.

“Like many organisations, we are operating in a challenging environment and the aim of these proposals is to ensure that English Heritage is financially resilient and can fulfil our charitable purposes,” the spokesperson said. 

The charity has started to consult its staff and unions on the proposals, with the process expected to be completed in April.