ABERYSTWYTH University is relying on students to “fill gaps” in its workforce as it embarks on a job-cutting exercise across all its departments.

Undergraduate and postgraduate students now make up 22 per cent of the institution’s total workforce, a report has revealed, with that level set to rise as the university embarks on its Sustainability Implementation Plan that aims to save £11.4m over the next two years.

The overall job losses from the savings plan are likely to be around 100, and the university’s Annual Equality Report for 2016/17, released this month, shows that gaps are being filled by students working 16 hours a week in term time.

The university, between 2016-17, had 2,067 staff members - down 7.7 per cent from the previous year when 172 jobs were lost as part of a previous cost-saving exercise at the university which has struggled financially amid dwindling student numbers and reduced grant funding.

The reduction in staff, set to continue until 2019, is a “key strategy” of the university’s savings plan, and the Annual Equality Report outlines that more student workers will be needed as the restructuring continues.

On top of the staff numbers, nearly 600 student part-time workers, an increase on the previous year, have been filling positions at the university.

See this week’s south papers for the full story, available in shops and as a digital edition on Wednesday