Jersey Heritage has confirmed that it has been forced to shed 20 jobs as part of the agency's bid to reduce annual spending by 10 per cent.

Three independent studies conducted on behalf of the island government revealed the organisation requires an additional £550,000 plus capital investment of at least £465,000 a year. Efforts to curb spending have already forced the Hamptonne Country Life Museum tourist attraction to stop opening daily, with the job losses the latest measure to be implemented.

Jersey Heritage has revealed that 13 of the 20 positions to be cut have been taken through voluntary redundancies, with the remainder through unfilled vacancies being withdrawn. Other plans to reduce spending will see Jersey Museum and the Maritime Museum close during the winter; the outsourcing of support services and the introduction of admission fees for some groups that currently benefit from free access.

Jersey Heritage director Jonathan Carter said: "We have pushed visitor figures and commercial income towards the limit in recent years - we had a fantastic year in 2009 despite the economic climate and pressure on tourism. "But the service was established in a different tourist market and that business is no longer sufficient to sustain everything we do. Changes are therefore necessary, to services, to funding or to both."