Wetland centre cuts winter opening hours
WWT WashingtonA wetland centre is cutting its winter opening hours.
Washington Wetland Centre is currently open seven days a week except for Christmas and Boxing Day.
However, from 1 September the site will be shut for at least two days a week, except for the week after Christmas and the October and February half-terms, until 1 March.
Site manager Gill Pipes said the centre had been around for 50 years and the move would help ensure it survived for the "very long term".
She said the reduction in opening times at the site, which celebrated its 50th anniversary last year, were as a result of rising costs.
"Animal feed costs more, all of our energy costs more, the water rates are higher," she said.
WWTBrexit also played a major role in rising costs, she said.
She said a lot of the centre's animal feed and building materials came from Europe and import costs had gone up.
The cuts mean that the site will be closed on Wednesdays and Thursdays between 1 September and 31 October except for the October half-term.
Between 1 November and 31 January, the site will be shut for four days each week between Monday and Thursday - except for the week between 27 December and 3 January.
Meanwhile between 1 to 28 February, the centre will be shut on Tuesdays and Wednesdays except for the February half-term.
The centre will remain open seven days a week during the summer.
Pipes said decisions over which days to shut had been made based on visitor numbers.
She said no jobs had been lost though some staff would be working reduced hours during the winter.
"These are our visitors' wetlands," she said.
"What I am really passionate about is making sure that it stays here as this community and health resource."
