Eden Project to slash jobs due to rising costs

The departure of 80 employees would lead to a 20% payroll reduction, bosses said

The Eden Project has announced it will cut about 80 jobs due to increased costs and declining visitation.

The visitor attraction, which has its largest site in Cornwall near St Austell, said it had "explored every option" and the decision would "ensure the long-term economic stability of the organisation".

A spokesperson said the departure of 80 employees, including 19 who elected to leave voluntarily, would lead to a 20% payroll reduction.

It said it was facing "significantly increased costs" at a time when the visitor economy in the South West was contracting.

A consultation period lasting at least 45 days would now begin, said the spokesperson.

They said "every effort" would be made to minimise job losses, with alternative roles or retraining offered where possible.

"Affected team members will be supported by the Members Assembly, the Eden Project's staff representative body," they said.

Explaining the reasons behind the decision, the spokesperson said: "A number of factors including the contraction of the visitor economy across the South West as well as significantly increased costs to businesses have made this process necessary.

"This process will set us on a path to continue our vital work as an environmental charity and a thriving visitor destination for our second quarter century and beyond."

The Eden Project said it was facing "significantly increased costs"

Jon Hyatt, from Visit Cornwall, said the job losses were "desperately sad" news, adding: "Our thoughts are with all the staff and the team at Eden."

Mr Hyatt said "staff-heavy" tourism businesses had been hit by the increase in National Insurance announced at the last budget.

He said the changes, which will come into place in April, had "come at a bad time" with other costs also rising, and was "causing some difficult conversations".

He said the region's tourist sector had "already had too many attractions" close or downsize.

Bernard Donoghue, chief executive of the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions (ALVA), said the news was "sad, but unsurprising".

He said what Eden was going through was "fairly typical" of what other visitor attractions were experiencing.

'End of the road'

Mr Donoghue said there had been a "perfect storm" of the knock-on effect of the Covid-19 pandemic, cost-of-living crisis and higher inflation.

He said the problems Eden was facing were affecting "museums, galleries, zoos, safari parks and botanic gardens" across the UK.

The former boss of Cornwall's tourist board, speaking before he stood down, described 2024 as the "flattest year" he could remember.

Malcolm Bell, who stepped down as Visit Cornwall executive chairman in October, attributed a decline in visitors to a combination of poor weather, the general election and cost-of-living pressures, and a two-day tourism summit in Truro earlier this month also heard tax hikes could be "the end of the road" for some.

From attractions, such as the Eden Project, to hotels and holiday parks, 2024 was a tough year for many in the tourism sector.

Regarding National Insurance increases for staff from this April, the government said those measures were part of its "Plan for Change", which would "get Britain building, unlock investment, and support business so we can make all parts of the country better off".

It has left many tourism bosses considering how many people they should have on their payroll.