22 May 2023
Veterinary professionals are being asked to encourage animal owners and keepers to put themselves forward for the new body, which is being set up in an initial 12-month pilot scheme.
Allister Webb
Job Title
RCVS council member Louise Allum will chair the Public Advisory Group.
Veterinary professionals are being asked to help recruit members of a new Public Advisory Group (PAG), which is being set up by the RCVS.
The move, which was originally outlined last autumn, is intended to help improve communications with veterinary service users and ensure the college is working in the broader public interest.
Around 30 people are being sought to join the group, which will initially serve for a 12-month pilot period.
Officials say its membership will include the owners and keepers of companion, equine and production animals, but will not be limited to those groups.
Veterinary professionals are being encouraged to share details of the initiative with people who they feel would be suitable for the role before the application deadline next month.
RCVS chief executive Lizzie Lockett said: “Through the PAG, we hope to gain greater insight into the experiences and opinions of animal owners and keepers to determine how we can work together to achieve what is, essentially, a joint goal.”
Group chairperson Louise Allum, who is also an RCVS council member, said: “The UK veterinary and veterinary nursing professions are small, but mighty. There is a lot of responsibility resting on our shoulders to ensure we uphold animal health and welfare and public health effectively, but we cannot do this alone.”
Dr Allum added: “Animal owners and keepers play an essential role in supporting animal welfare, and it is therefore not only right, but necessary that we actively seek to inform the public of our activities and take their opinion into account when making wide-reaching decisions.
“We also hope that, by involving animal owners and keepers in our work, we can improve the ways in which we communicate our messages to veterinary service users. It is vital that everyone has a chance to be a part of the conversation.”
Applications close on 7 June. Further information, including terms of reference and how to apply, are available here or by emailing [email protected]
