Eden Project to cut 80 jobs

One of Cornwall’s most famous tourist and environmental attractions is to axe up to 80 jobs.

Eden Project at Bodelva near St Austell, said the job losses represent about 20% of its current 400-strong workforce.

It is also the second wave of job losses announced by the loss-making attraction in less than two years.

In May 2023 Eden Project said 20 jobs would be at risk of redundancy but said at the time that it had tried to mitigate job losses through voluntary redundancies.

Eden has blamed a slump in tourism and a drop in visitor numbers as well as the rising operational costs for the decision, reports CornwallLive.

In a statement to CornwallLive, a spokesperson for Eden said: “The Eden Project is initiating proactive measures to ensure the long term economic stability of the organisation. We have explored every option and will create a new structure as a result of considerable economic challenges. This will involve reducing our payroll by an estimated 20 per cent, equivalent to around 80 redundancies, including 19 who have elected to leave voluntarily through voluntary redundancy or retirement.

“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 will now begin a consultation period lasting at least 45 days. Affected team members will be supported by the Members Assembly, the Eden Project’s staff representative body, and every effort will be made to minimise the number of job losses, with alternative roles or retraining offered where possible.”