More jobs ‘to be lost at Daresbury’

Feb 12 2008 by Ben Schofield, Liverpool Daily Post

THE closure of a cutting edge North West science unit will cost almost double the number of jobs that was originally estimated, it was claimed yesterday.

Eighty jobs were scheduled to go at Daresbury laboratory, near Warrington, when one of its particle accelerators shuts in September.

But the outfit that runs Daresbury, the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), announced 150 job losses last week when the Synchrotron Radiation Source (SRS) is decommissioned.

Thirty further posts will also go next year.

The Daily Post revealed last month that STFC planned to cull 350 of the 500 staff working at Daresbury by April, 2009.

The council appeared to give some of those staff a reprieve in the announcement, saying no jobs would go before Sir Tom McKillop finishes his report into the future of the site.

But critics have lambasted the outfit for extending the programme of SRS redundancies.

Dr Graeme Clark, a representative for scientists’ union Prospect, told the Daily Post: “I think they’re pushing out on the worst case scenario as far as they can at the moment.

“It’s certainly a bigger hit for the SRS closure – they have done a deal somewhere along the line.

“Until recently, it was 80 this year and 30 the following year, but the figures are 70 higher.”

Managers at Daresbury sent out more than 300 letters to staff last week putting them on redundancy warning because their jobs are at risk.

It is thought the extension of the programme will take staff off a sister accelerator, known as Alice, which was a prototype for the next generation light source.

STFC insists Daresbury is preparing a bid to host the new light source and, if it wins, the contract will be a boost for the site.

But Dr Clark said losing Alice would hit their prospects of securing the light source.

The Daily Post understand the SRS redundancies will not impact on the total number of jobs going from the site.

The McKillop review is expected to be complete by the summer.

It will assess the current and potential contribution of the Daresbury campus to the science economy in the UK and North West in particular.

STFC was not available for comment.

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