WRAP facing up to 25 job losses following cuts to government funding
17th January 2018 | Recycling
Influential waste advisory body says it will continue to focus on tackling food waste, plastics, and other areas, as charity confirms restructuring is underway.
Just days after the government launched its sweeping new plan to tackle plastic waste, the UK’s leading waste advisory body has announced it could cut around 25 roles in response to funding cuts. WRAP announced proposals for “fundamental changes to the organisation”, which could lead to around 25 job losses out of a total headcount of around 180. A staff consultation about the proposed changes are already underway.
WRAP was set up by the government in 2000 and has played a major role in promoting waste reduction best practices and working with the public and private sector to boost recycling rates and curb waste levels. It oversees the Courtauld Commitment to curb waste in the retail sector and has launched a series of campaigns to tackle waste from textiles, packaging and food, among other areas.
WRAP
The agency was spun out from government in 2014 as part of Defra’s cost-cutting drive and subsequently secured charitable status. It has continued to work on government projects alongside private sector initiatives, but the organisation announced that “successive cuts in government funding along with challenges in diversifying its revenue streams mean WRAP needs to cut fixed costs to offset the significant drop in income it has faced since 2015.”
WRAP chief executive Marcus Gover said the organisation had little choice but to make cost savings. “We are in an environment where there is continued pressure on public spending, as well as ongoing economic uncertainty, and WRAP is not immune to that,” he said. “We have been able to achieve great results by combining our resources with others to achieve impact with less funding, and that approach will continue. But we have now reached a point where we also need to make significant costs savings.
“Sadly, we cannot achieve the scale of savings we need without losing staff. This has been a difficult decision and is always a last resort. I am determined that the process of redundancy will be as fair and as compassionate as possible.”
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