Paul Heckingbottom is expecting 'a tough old summer' and admits there will be mass changes to his squad ahead of the 2017/18 season.

With ten games to play, the Reds are likely to finish in mid-table as they are currently 11th in the Championship, 12 points off the play-off places and 15 clear of the relegation zone after a run of one win in eight matches.

Heckingbottom is not expecting any of his six current loan players to return next season while he is aware that out-of-contract stars such as Josh Scowen and Marley Watkins might move to other clubs despite Barnsley's ongoing attempts to extend their deals which expire in the summer.

Players such as captain Marc Roberts, who is in contract until 2018 but is a target for Premier League clubs after a superb first Championship season, could follow the likes of Sam Winnall, Conor Hourihane, James Bree and Alfie Mawson in being sold on.

The head coach has also stressed the importance of bringing in a chief executive (CEO), a position which remains vacant at Oakwell since Linton Brown left in January.

Heckingbottom told the Chronicle: "It's going to be a tough old summer.  With six loans leaving us and possibly some of our out-of-contract players leaving too, we will have to bring in a lot of players in every position.

"If we finish the season how we want to finish, I would expect bids for our players as well. But we have to have a plan and be ready.  If we are only going to be left with a dozen players, we can't be selling anyone else before we have brought people in.

"It comes back to the CEO role, and that is why it is important we get the right person in and get them up to speed as quickly as possible.

"We're always looking to get better and this is an opportunity to build a better team. It will be like starting again and that is difficult in this league."

He added: "You have to view it as an exciting challenge and embrace it. There will be lots of different challenges next season. The players got a subconscious lift this season out of the fact we are in this league for the first time and we are going to some big teams and big grounds. It gives us an extra five per cent energy. But we won't have that next season so we will have to find other motivations.

"I would like to think we will have players in our squad next season who are established Championship players after this season, and now they have to focus on becoming the best in their position in this league."

The Reds have brought in approximately £15million from player sales – and the sell-on fee for former Oakwell academy star John Stones – in the last year. Some of that money is likely to be used on transfer fees and wages in the summer, but Heckingbottom says the Reds will still have to sign players mainly from League One and below because they cannot compete with their Championship rivals.

He said: "Most of our permanent signings, if not all, will be from below.  But if we get the opportunity to buy a young talented player from a Championship club for a good fee like we did with Alex Mowatt (signed from Leeds in January) then we will look at that. "We have brought in lots of money and Patrick (Cryne, the owner) has shown we are willing to spend money on players like Bradders (Tom Bradshaw), Moncs (George Moncur) and Alex Mowatt.

"The difficulty is that our spending power is not comparable with other clubs in the Championship. "Our loan targets will be different because the loan market lets us get players who we normally couldn't afford."

Heckingbottom has praised Matty James, on loan from Leicester until the end of the season, but says the Reds will not be able to sign him permanently because of the wages he is receiving from the Premier League champions on a contract until the end of next season.

"I don't think there is any chance that he will stay with us. The gulf in wages and money is too big. I would like to think that he would like to stay with us but it's just not going to happen.  We are thankful to Leicester for subsidising his wages because he really wanted to come to Barnsley and he's doing really well for us."

Heckingbottom is also doubtful that Adam Armstrong, Ryan Kent, Gethin Jones, Callum Elder or Saidy Janko will return next season. He said: "We probably won't be able to keep any of our loan players. You never know but I would be surprised. If loan players perform well for us, other clubs become interested and we price ourselves out."