More vets and wider team members encouraged to join upcoming VN Vision events

Over the summer and autumn, we're  running a series of VN Vision events aiming to gather insights and help strengthen the role of veterinary nurses in team-based health care.

While veterinary nurse participation has been strong, we're encouraging more vets and other practice team members to attend to give their perspective on how nurses can be empowered to play a more central role in the sector within a collaborative team-based setting.

The initiative, which builds on the impactful VN Vision work carried out in 2024 – aims to inspire a cultural shift in how veterinary nurses can be more effectively integrated within multidisciplinary veterinary teams, and explore why doing so is essential for the future of veterinary healthcare.

So far, two events have taken place in South Wales and Northern Ireland, with a further four due to take place across the country over the next few months.

These are:

• Scotland (SRUC Oatridge Campus, West Lothian) – Tuesday 26 August, 6.15pm to 9.30pm
• Dorset (Lynwood School of Veterinary Nursing, Dorchester) – Wednesday 24 September, 6.15pm to 9.30pm
• London – morning session (Hardwick Street) - Wednesday 10 September, 9.30am to 1.45pm
• London – afternoon session (Hardwick Street) - Wednesday 10 September, 12.30pm to 4.30pm 
• Birmingham (Blaise Veterinary Referral Hospital) - Wednesday 12 November, 6.15pm to 9.30pm

Veterinary nurses possess a unique and vital skillset, but data gathered from the our 2024 VN Vision workshops, as detailed in our recently published VN Vision Snapshot report, showed that many nurses believed their 'skills and capabilities, and the scope of tasks that can be performed within the current legal framework, are not fully utilised'.

"Last year’s VN Vision events focused specifically on veterinary nurses and resulted in some truly inspiring insights. Now, in this new series of events, we’re taking the next step, and need to get the wider practice team involved in order to understand how strengthening the VN role will feed into team dynamics and the professions as a whole."

RCVS Director of Veterinary Nursing, Julie Dugmore, said: "Last year’s VN Vision events focused specifically on veterinary nurses and resulted in some truly inspiring insights. Now, in this new series of events, we’re taking the next step, and need to get the wider practice team involved in order to understand how strengthening the VN role will feed into team dynamics and the professions as a whole.

"Our latest VN Vision events will play a key role in helping us to define long term goals, identify the practical steps needed to achieve them, and determine how success will be measured and shared with the wider public. To make it happen, we need voices from vets, practice managers, support staff, and VNs alike."

RCVS President, Tim Parkin (pictured), added: "It’s been fantastic to see so many veterinary nurses getting involved in actively shaping their futures by joining our VN Vision events, but we need to gain perspectives from across the whole practice team. After all, strengthening the VN role doesn’t just benefit nurses – it enhances the work of the entire veterinary community.

"By supporting the empowerment of veterinary nurses, we can efficiently build more cohesive, effective teams that are essential to upholding animal health and welfare. As fellow veterinary professionals working towards a collective goal, taking a collaborative approach to multifactorial issues is key."

The VN Vision workshops are free to attend, informal, informative and made up of small groups. Supper will also be provided for the evening sessions, and lunch for the London day workshops.

Places are available to book via the dedicated VN Vision Eventbrite collection page. Please note, spaces are limited and will be filled on a first come first served basis.

The snapshot report of the VN Vision work carried out last year, upon which this new initiative has been developed, is available to download in our publications area.

*Please note - this article was updated on 22/08/2025, with the addition of the Birmingham VN Vision session.