Homemade scones sold at the National Trust's sites could soon become history due to job cuts

Daily Mail​

2 days ago

They've long been a highlight of any trip to a National Trust site, their mouth-watering flavour crowning a historical day out.
But the delicious scones served at the charity's cafes are set to become a thing of the past amid sweeping job losses.
Some National Trust venues are planning to stop baking their own sweet treats, replacing them with products brought in from a central source, The Times reports.
This has led to fears the new scones will lack their signature homemade freshness.
One sceptical volunteer suggested the cost-cutting measure would lead to 'severe disappointment' among visitors across the country.
The move is a concerning consequence of the National Trust's decision earlier this month to remove 550 jobs in a bid to slash its wage bill amid soaring costs.
The conservation charity, which looks after 500 historic houses, castles, gardens and parks, cited Labour's move to hike employer national insurance contributions, as well as a recent increase in the minimum wage, claiming these policies had cost it £10 million.
The National Trust insisted that less than 10 per cent of cafés would be affected by job cuts.
But Steve Thomas, of the Prospect union which is representing staff facing redundancy, said: 'Whether they are chefs or curators, National Trust staff are as integral to the experience of visiting our iconic historic sites as the properties themselves.'
He predicted that the move could put some people off visiting affected sites.
Tasty scones have long been a key draw of National Trust properties and have even inspired a popular book and a dedicated website.
In 2023, Sarah Merker completed a vast audit of the snacks, usually accompanied by a dollop of jam and clotted cream, visiting all 244 of the charity's cafes over the course of 10 years.
She discovered that the National Trust's least popular locations served the worst scones.
The charity said: 'The proposed changes would affect less than 10 per cent of our cafés, all of which are smaller outlets where rising costs are making it increasingly difficult to be financially sustainable.
'We would still have food and drink available at these cafés, however, and in more than 90 per cent of our cafés there would be no change to what we offer.'
It comes after the National Trust told staff it needed to reduce the pay bill as well as finding savings worth £26m.
The plans are expected to create a reduction in jobs of around 6 per cent across the charity's workforce of around 9,500 people.
At least 550 full-time workers could face job loses and the charity has begun a 45-day consultation with its staff.
In its most recent annual report, published in September last year, it revealed that total visitor numbers rose to around 25 million for the 2023/24 financial year, up 5 per cent compared with the previous year.
It also revealed that there was a 12 per cent increase in non-members visiting the sites, paying on the day for individual trips.