The NSPCC will enter a month of redundancy negotiations with staff tomorrow after announcing the closure of two of its ChildLine branches and the integration of a further two into the main NSPCC branches themselves.

There are currently 14 ChildLine bases across the UK with approximately 20-30 staff in each. The NSPCC has announced the closure of its Exeter and Edinburgh Childline bases and the relocation of the Leeds and Swansea bases into main NSPCC offices.

Speaking with civilsociety.co.uk, Peter Liver, director of ChildLine advised that over the next month the charity would "work with staff to find suitable alternative employment within the organisation".

"NSPCC is a big organisation, there are opportunities," he said. "Staff affected by the closures will be given priority for these roles." 

But, he advised, the charity was not yet in a position to advise how many jobs will go. 

Staff changes will not be limited to the lower end of scale, Liver advised. The charity is also to restructure its senior management team, moving from six assistant directors to three new area manager posts, halving the staff at this level, he advised.

Not motivated by savings

"The restructure is not motivated by saving money," Liver said. "It's about making ChildLine as streamlined and effective as possible. It's about spending less of our resources on buildings and more on the services for children."

The Scottish Herald highlighted that £300,000 of Scottish Parliament money had been used to fund the setting-up of the Edinburgh office four years ago. The Edinburgh office has been open for just two years.

But Liver advised that not all of these funds will be lost. "In terms of the £300,000 contribution by the Scottish government, much of this was spent on infrastructure which will be used in the other offices. Our other two offices in Scotland, in Glasgow and Aberdeen, we're committed to sustaining those bases," he said. "Our Glasgow base is one of the largest of all our bases and the support from the Scottish government is greatly appreciated, and very welcome."