Further job losses are inevitable at the Charity Commission following the Chancellor’s announcement today that its budget for 2015/16 will fall by a further £1m.

In announcing his spending review for the final year of the current administration, George Osborne shaved an additional 6 per cent off the sector regulator’s funding settlement, taking it to £20.4m.

This compares with £29.3m at the height of its settlement in 2010/11.

The Charity Commission said the cut would inevitably lead to a further reduction in posts, “but we are seeking to minimise the impact of any changes on our frontline activity”, it said in a statement.

The regulator had attempted to convince the Treasury to maintain its budget and warned that a further 10 per cent cut, as had been mooted, would seriously impact on its ability to regulate the sector effectively.

“The fact that we succeeded in securing a lower-than-anticipated reduction demonstrates that they have accepted some of our concerns,” the regulator said.

“However, we recognise the challenge we face to continue regulating the 163,000 charities in England and Wales in behalf of the public in an effective way.”

It added that it would be evaluating the impact of the new budget on its strategic plans over the coming weeks, including looking at the jobs structure that could be sustained.

It currently employs 303 full-time equivalent staff, down from 466 in 2010/11.