1 Apr 2025
The launch of the new resource follows calls at the BSAVA Congress for out-of-date narratives about the sector’s workforce strength to be dropped.
Allister Webb
Job Title
The BVA has launched a fresh guide for members at risk of redundancy as newly published survey data suggested an increasing proportion of unfilled practice roles.
The document is the latest part of the association’s Good Veterinary Workplaces programme, and officials say it will help clinicians to find new avenues to contribute to the sector.
But the group also insisted demand for veterinary professionals remains high after RCVS leaders urged clinicians to help them “refresh the narrative” on workforce issues.
BVA president Elizabeth Mullineaux said the paper was intended to help clinicians end the redundancy process “in a better place” than where they started it.
She added: “With the right support, every member of the vet team can find new career opportunities and continue to make a valuable contribution to animal welfare and the profession.”
The guide’s 31 March launch was accompanied by new figures from the association’s Voice of the Veterinary Profession survey, from spring 2024, which found workplaces averaged 2.6 unfilled full-time equivalent (FTE) roles out of 11.3 FTE veterinary positions.
That compared to 2.3 unfilled positions out of 11.7 FTEs at the same point in 2022.
More than 1,000 vets took part in the latest survey, where professionals in clinical practices reported an average of 2.1 unfilled FTE vet roles, equating to 23% of the average total of 9.2 FTE positions.
Within non-clinical settings, an average of 8.8 unfilled FTE vet roles was reported, representing 21% of the average 41.4 FTE posts.
The association said the figures showed demand for veterinary professionals remains strong, although concerns were raised at the recent BSAVA Congress in Manchester that current adverts volumes suggested there aren’t enough clinicians available.
But RCVS president Linda Belton encouraged delegates there to contribute to the conversation about the current nature of veterinary workplaces, while also urging caution over the idea of a continuing workforce crisis.
She said: “We need to lose narratives when they become out of date. That doesn’t mean they were wrong.”
The 22 March session was told that while college data indicated 5.8% of vets aged below 30 leave the register within four years of joining, that didn’t mean they were exiting the profession altogether.
The new guide is available here.
