UP to 19 managers and office staff could lose their jobs as Musgrove Park Hospital in Taunton battles with its budget.

Talks are taking place with affected employees and the posts are expected to go within six months.

The redundancies are part of plans for £13million of savings this year from Musgrove’s £252million budget, with similar cuts in the future.

A spokeswoman said the hospital was changing its structure, reducing its current directorates from nine to five “with some additional restructuring in other directorates and corporate areas, giving greater focus on leadership”.

“Musgrove, like most of the NHS, is facing significant financial pressures,” said the spokeswoman, who added that the trust has to work “more innovatively” to meet the challenges.

“This is not new but a growing challenge we have been facing for the past few years as we treat more and more patients and strive to improve the quality of care we deliver, but with no additional money to pay for this increase in future years.

“This means we, as a whole organisation, need to deliver financial savings this year of £13million, with similar amounts required in future years.”

She added: “We are not making these changes straight away but will now enter a period of consultation with staff, where we want to gain views about the plans from as many people as possible from across the whole of the hospital.”

Feedback from staff will be considered when the consultation period ends on September 5 before the plans are finalised.