The National Trust is planning to cut around 550 jobs as part of efforts to slash its wage bill after grappling with cost pressures including increased national insurance contributions.
The conservation charity said rising costs were outstripping growth in visitors and donations.
It told staff it wanted to reduce its pay bill and find savings worth £26 million.
The proposals are set to lead to an estimated 6% reduction in jobs across its workforce – which, at the end of February, amounted to 9,575 people.
This is expected to amount to at least 550 full-time roles. The charity has begun a 45-day consultation period with its staff.
Recent increases to employer national insurance contributions and the national minimum wage have added more than £10 million to its annual wage bill, the charity said.
The tax hike was a central tenet of Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ autumn Budget, to raise billions of pounds for the Treasury.
But it has been met with fierce criticism among businesses affected, many of whom have said they would be forced to pass on the higher costs through job cuts or price rises for customers.
The National Trust said in a statement: “Although demand and support for our work are growing with yearly increases in visitors and donations, increasing costs are outstripping this growth.
“We know how difficult this is for our people and are incredibly grateful for their skill and professionalism.
“We are working hard, with the union Prospect, to make the transition as painless as possible.
“This follows months of other cost-saving measures. We always want to avoid job losses.”
The charity stressed that the proposed changes will enable it to “keep on caring for and championing our shared historic and natural environment in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, long into the future”.
Steve Thomas, deputy general secretary of trade union Prospect, said the proposed cuts will bring “huge uncertainty and worry for staff”.
“We understand the cost pressures the trust is facing but management decisions, as well as external factors, have contributed to the financial situation and once again it is our members who will have to pay the price,” he said.
“Our members are custodians of the country’s cultural, historic and natural heritage – cuts of this scale risk losing institutional knowledge and skills which are vital to that mission.
“Prospect will be working with National Trust to try to minimise the negative impact of these cuts on both workers and on the operation of the trust.”
The National Trust was founded more than 125 years ago, and looks after protected areas across the UK’s coastline, historic sites and green spaces.
In its most recent annual report, published in September last year, it revealed that total visitor numbers rose by 5% to about 25 million for the 2023/24 financial year, compared with the previous year.
There was an even higher jump in non-members visiting the sites – those who pay on the door for individual trips – with a 12% year-on-year rise.
The charity said it was noticing a shift with more people opting for single-entry tickets rather than taking out memberships – reflecting “tactical” spending decisions amid cost-of-living pressures.
