Managing Mental Health in the Workplace for Everyday Veterinary Leaders

A series of CPD workshops are being offered on different days for current or aspiring veterinary managers and leaders, including those in niche roles across the veterinary sector.

Each course runs from 10:30 - 15:30 and will be held online unless stated otherwise. In-person courses include lunch and light refreshments.

Course dates:

• Friday 20 March
• Monday 20 April
• Monday 11 May
• Monday 18 May
• Friday 19 June (this course will be in-person and will run from 10:00 - 15:30)

This course aims to embed key concepts from the online ‘Managing Mental Health in the Workplace’ RCVS Mind Matters Academy course by bringing them to life through discussion, self-reflection, and practical exercises. 

With a practical focus on recognition (in-person and remote), communication, and self-care, participants will gain skills and knowledge they can immediately apply in the workplace.

• Describe the importance of a mentally healthy workplace and the manager’s role in fostering it.
• Recognise early signs of stress, burnout, and poor mental health in themselves and others.
• Practise key communication and conversation skills for supporting colleagues.
• Apply strategies, which are relevant to the veterinary workplace, to create psychologically safe, supportive team environments.
• Identify personal self-care and team wellbeing strategies and know where to access further help.

A member of the RCVS Mind Matters team will open and close the day. The workshop will include 30 minutes for lunch.

The course will be delivered by Dr Felicity Baker and Dr Jackie Allt from Ultimate Resilience.

Dr Felicity Baker is a Cambridge University-trained Chartered Clinical and Coaching Psychologist with over 30 years of experience helping individuals and organisations thrive under pressure. She combines academic rigour with two decades of leadership in NHS psychological therapy services, before she moved into private practice and co-founding Ultimate Resilience Ltd in 2013.

Her work spans leadership coaching, resilience training, and organisational consultancy, blending evidence-based psychology with practical strategies for sustainable workplace resilience and wellbeing. 

Felicity has co-facilitated significant research initiatives, including the 2024 and 2025 HR Mental Wellbeing Survey, which revealed the profession’s high rates of burnout, anxiety, and depression. She was instrumental in creating the UK’s first HR supervision programme, adapting clinical models to provide HR professionals with the kind of structured emotional support long established in healthcare.

Dr Jackie Allt is a highly experienced Consultant Clinical Psychologist and Executive/Leadership Coach (EMCC Global Accredited EIA Senior Practitioner). Until April 2025, she worked as Chief Psychologist at Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust. She is also a highly experienced trainer having previously worked as Clinical and Academic Tutor at the Salomon’s Institute of Applied Psychology, Christchurch University.

Delegates will be asked to do some pre-reading ahead of the day. This will be detailed in the follow-up email once you have signed up for the event.

If you’d like to access the related CPD course on this topic, it is available on the RCVS Academy here: Managing mental health in the workplace.