Vet Futures report launch at London Vet Show

Join us at the London Vet Show between 1.20pm and 3.20pm on Friday 20 November for the launch of the Vet Futures report, the culmination of a year of engagement and research with the veterinary and veterinary nursing professions.

Vet Futures began at London Vet Show 2014 when we and the British Veterinary Association (BVA) joined forces to embark on an ambitious project to help the veterinary profession prepare for and shape its own future.

Over the last 12 months the project has undertaken extensive research with veterinary surgeons, veterinary nurses, members of the wider veterinary team, pet owners, key stakeholders, and the general public.

At every step of the journey we have reached out to the veterinary profession through news, guest blogs, polls, surveys, and roadshow events to capture the issues of today and start to think about the issues for the future.

From that feedback from vets, nurses and stakeholders, alongside research and evidence, six major themes have emerged and the Vet Futures report will set out clear ambitions and recommendations under each theme: animal health and welfare; veterinary professionals’ wider roles in society; health and wellbeing; diverse and rewarding careers; sustainable businesses and user-focused services; and leadership.

Speaking ahead of the launch, BVA President Sean Wensley said:

“When we launched Vet Futures our aim was to engage the veterinary profession and wider veterinary team in a discussion about where we want to be in 15 years’ time, and understand what we need to do, collectively and as individuals, to get there. Since then we have seen a fantastic level of engagement and an enormous amount of work has gone into putting together a report that is ambitious for our future and we are very excited about presenting it at BVA Congress at the London Vet Show.”

RCVS President Bradley Viner added:

“Ultimately we all want a profession that is confident in itself and one in which members are proud to call themselves veterinary surgeons. Our research, discussions and debates have helped us to set out a very clear list of ambitions and recommendations that we are looking forward to sharing with our colleagues on the veterinary team, and others with an interest in our future. The next stages will be turning those recommendations into actions and we hope everyone will want to play their part.”

The report will be launched at the Vet Futures session, as part of BVA Congress at the London Vet Show.

The session takes place in the Pillar Hall and includes a panel debate, chaired by Helena Diffey, President of the Association of Veterinary Students, at which some of the key themes of the report will be discussed and debated.

Alongside the BVA and RCVS Presidents, the panel comprises vets working across a wide range of fields: Ally Anderson, recent graduate working in large animal practice; Amanda Boag, VetsNow; Gary England, Veterinary Schools Council; and Robert Huey, CVO Northern Ireland and former board member Federation of Veterinarians of Europe.

The session is open to all London Vet Show delegates. Members of the media are invited to attend the London Vet Show for free but must register first.

BVA tweets at @BritishVets and RCVS tweets at @RCVS_UK Tweets relating to the Vet Futures project use the hashtag #VetFutures