Registered Veterinary Nurse - North Somerset

Are you an experienced RVN looking for your next role within an expanding team of amazing nurses, in an independent practice who are Real Living Wage employers? Then read on…!

About Us

We are a well-equipped, modern, forward-thinking Practice as seen on Morning Live (BBC1) and The Pets Factor (CBBC), which has the aim of being the Vets of choice for clients, pets and colleagues. We are also home to the winner of 2019 Petplan Vet Nurse of the Year. Our team has grown massively over recent years and we now have 13 Vets, 20 members of our Nursing and clinical support team plus 19 Admin Staff who work across our three North Somerset Practices situated in Portishead, Nailsea and Yatton.

We have also just started building a new extension at Portishead, to not only house our new 32 slice CT scanner, but to accommodate a third theatre with more space for using laparoscopy tower, exotics ward, additional consult rooms and office space. Our culture is one of gold standards in all we do, forward-thinking development of the Practice and unleashing the potential of our whole team. We have big ambitions about what we do, where we are going and who is going to get us there! Do you want to join us for the journey too?

What do our team think about working at Watkins & Tasker?

“I've had a really good experience with starting to work here. It's especially great seeing how close knit the team are and watching everyone work together so well. I have been made to feel really welcome and been involved right from my first day.” RVN Talia

“The Management Team care about making sure we don't overwork ourselves. From my experience, things like being able to leave on time, and getting time back in lieu when that's not possible, are pretty unheard of elsewhere!” Vet Louise

“I love having time to research, prepare and work up my own cases. I would say it’s one of the major things I’ve found since being here. It is great having time to follow through on everything and not drag it over from day to day!” Vet Hannah

“It is a fun place to work, with people who are 100% committed to working hard to produce a great service for the customers and their colleagues alike. I find everyone to be very helpful and I do feel cared for and appreciated.” Insurance Administrator Jude

“Everyone at Watkins & Tasker is so friendly and welcoming, everyone is always willing to help and there is no such thing as a ‘stupid question.’ One of the main things I noticed when I started was how keen and willing the management team are to continue your development.” PA Gina

“I love working at Watkins & Tasker Vets because the team feels like one big family, and we always look out for each other! I also absolutely love speaking to our clients and of course all the fluffy and scaly cuddles!” Receptionist Bex

“I love being part of a team that strives for excellence in all that they do and where all patients are treated with care, kindness and respect.” Vet Katy D

About You

We are looking for a full time, experienced RVN to be able to join the team to undertake a role including inpatient care, undertake a range of nurse clinics and become the procedures nurse. The role is for a 39-hour week, with shifts across all three of our sites in Yatton, Nailsea and Portishead (all 20-30 minutes from Bristol), with a very fair share of the OOH rota and the occasional weekend morning. You will be supported by amazing vet and nurse colleagues whose certificate level knowledge oozes from every corner of the practice.

We are incredibly proud of the team we work with. They are all dedicated, hard-working and have fun when they can but when things get serious, they pull together to get things done.

We are looking for a Registered Veterinary Nurse who:

• Enjoys being part of a caring team inside and outside of work – Yes, we really do love each other! We are a really sociable bunch outside work and enjoy big Practice parties, but also lots of smaller informal nights out, dog walking get -togethers and we even have a Strava running group! We really do look after each other and have been known to send hampers or a ‘hug in a box’ if someone is going through a tough time. We continuingly strive to create a better workplace and our efforts were recognised by being awarded ‘highly commended’ in the last VMG/SPVS Wellness Practice Awards.
• Will hit the ground raring to go – we love learning so bring your best ideas and share them with us!
• Loves a busy and varied small animal case load perhaps with an area of interest which is crying out to be nurtured and developed
• Places a high emphasis on client and patient care which is why we have invested in equipment such as digital x-ray, ultrasound, dental x-ray, tonometry, piped gases, multi-parameter monitoring, gas sterilization, Class IV laser, full laparoscopy tower which integrates with our scopes, and much more.
• Has competent or advanced skills in inpatient care
• Is comfortable with monitoring anaesthetics for routine, orthopaedic or dental surgeries 
• Sees doing our own out of hours service as an amazing opportunity for personal development, enjoyment of case continuity and giving the client/patient the numerous benefits of in-house emergency care 
• Can communicate with clarity and compassion - Communication is one of our buzz words!
• Has evidenced competence in undertaking a full range of Nurse Clinics and loves the challenge these present.
• Has an outstanding pet-side manner means that we know the pet couldn’t be in safer hands
• Has good knowledge and understanding of our feline friends and bunny buddies (we have ISFM Gold Standard Cat Friendly Clinic and Silver RWAF Awards)
• Thrives in a conscientious yet flexible and friendly working environment
• Wants proactive, supported career progression to develop those skills even more
• Sees there is more to a job advert than a boring list of obvious stuff (yes, of course we do also have all this stuff sorted out, so we have listed some of them below)
• Wants to work for an independent Practice whose owners are committed, enthusiastic and 100% involved in all areas of the business and who are Real Living wage Employers. We actually pay over the governments national wage recommendations!

The Benefits

We know it isn’t all about working with cute puppies and kittens… Well maybe it is a little but don’t take our word for it –

We are really flexible with our team and if you have commitments that you need to stick to, we will work with these as much as we can. We really make everyone feel like a human being, not just a payroll number! Our salary range is £24,000 - £31,000 depending on experience. Plus …..

• Generous staff discount
• Enhanced sick leave
• Unlimited CPD budget - if it is right course for you and works for the Practice – win/win!
• Holiday entitlement which increases with length of service
• Your Birthday day off – leaving you to enjoy yourself however you want 
• Bonus pay rate per hour for overtime, holiday or sickness cover
• Monday off after weekend on call plus protocol to allow time off after weekday on call
• Perkbox - access to over 350+ perks, a Birthday Box, free treats and much more
• Online GP and Employee Assistance Programme
• Wellbeing Hub - free online meditation, sleep advice and wellbeing support
• Scottish Widows Pension 
• RCVS fees, VDS cover and professional membership fees
• Modern, clean and exciting working environment 

If this sounds the like the next exciting step for your career, then please apply now or get in touch for an informal chat.