Head Vet Job Twickenham area,England UK,Outdoor/Nature/Animal Care

Locations

Twickenham

Temple Fortune

Veterinary Surgeon

Head Vet

Job Description About Veteris

Veteris is an independent, emergency-only veterinary group providing 24/7 care across London.

Our service combines four emergency hospitals, a mobile emergency team and an RVN-led remote triage centre. We are continuing to grow and are now recruiting a Head Veterinary Surgeon for each of our London hospitals.

This is an opportunity for an experienced veterinary surgeon to remain clinically involved while taking genuine ownership of the development, support and day-to-day leadership of a hospital team.

The Role

As Head Vet, you will be the local veterinary lead for your hospital.

You will work closely with the Directors, Clinical Directors, Head Nurse, Operations and HR teams to support your colleagues, maintain high clinical and operational standards, and help your hospital continue to develop.

This is not a full clinical rota with management responsibilities added on top.

The role has been designed to provide a meaningful balance between hands-on emergency work and protected leadership time. Across the rota cycle, the position will be approximately 50% clinical and 50% leadership, management and hospital development.

Responsibilities

Key Responsibilities Your Responsibilities Will Include

Providing day-to-day leadership and support to the veterinary team
Holding regular one-to-ones and supporting probation, performance, wellbeing and professional development
Participating in the recruitment, onboarding and retention of veterinary surgeons
Contributing to nursing recruitment and hospital workforce planning alongside the Head Nurse and Operations team
Helping to plan veterinary rotas and ensuring appropriate clinical coverage
Identifying training and mentoring needs within the team
Supporting the implementation of Veteris clinical standards, protocols and ways of working
Following up on local clinical and operational improvements
Participating in veterinary, nursing and whole-hospital team meetings
Maintaining clear communication between the hospital team and the wider Veteris leadership structure
Supporting effective patient flow and the hospital’s ability to respond to periods of high emergency activity
Providing first-line leadership support during allocated on-call periods, with senior Clinical Director escalation available

The Head Vet will work in partnership with the Head Nurse. The Head Nurse will retain responsibility for nursing line management, while both roles will work closely together on hospital standards, recruitment, training and team development

Clinical Commitment

We want our Head Vets to remain visible, clinically credible members of their teams.

The anticipated clinical commitment is an average of approximately two clinical shifts per non-on-call week, with a minimum of 18 planned clinical shifts over a 12-week rota cycle (18 shifts in 84 days minimum).

Clinical Work May Include

Emergency peak shifts
Weekend shifts
Day-shift cover
Working alongside less experienced colleagues
Clinical mentoring and practical training
Additional support during periods of increased hospital activity

Additional clinical work may be available for candidates who would like to work beyond their core commitment.

Protected Leadership Time

Leadership and management time will be planned and protected within the rota.

This Time Will Be Used For

One-to-ones and team follow-up
Recruitment and interviews
Rota planning
Training and mentoring
Meetings
Probation and performance management
Hospital projects and service improvements
Review of local standards, processes and team needs

You will not be expected to complete these responsibilities in your personal time…