Lead Veterinary Surgeon

Linnaeus Veterinary Limited; Playden; On-site; GBP 75,000 - 80,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

5 weeks holiday + bank holidays

RCVS and VDS fees paid

External CPD funded

Life Assurance

Employer contribution pension scheme

Job summary

Cinque Ports Vets, part of Linnaeus, is seeking a Lead Veterinary Surgeon to join our Kent and East Sussex group. You’ll split time between our RCVS-accredited hospital in Kingsnorth and branch practices in Kingsnorth, Rye, Tenterden and Hawkhurst, delivering a mix of hospital, consulting and surgery with continuity of care.

This senior role values clinical leadership, mentoring and developing others while maintaining hands-on clinical work; we offer generous leave, fees paid, funded CPD, and a

Qualifications

• Veterinary surgeon with at least 5 years' UK small animal practice experience.
• Interest or certificate in surgery is preferred.
• Confident first-opinion clinician with variety in consulting, medicine and surgery.
• Willingness to take ownership of an area such as medicine or training.
• Ability to work across multiple sites with leadership responsibilities.

Responsibilities

• Lead clinical teams across four practices and hospital.
• Balance hospital work, consulting and surgery.
• Provide continuity of care and build client relationships.
• Mentor colleagues and lead clinical development.
• Maintain high clinical standards across sites.

Skills

Surgical experience

Clinical leadership

Mentoring

Independent practice

Education

Certificate in surgery

Tools

Laparoscope

Endoscopy

Bronchoscopy

Job description

Lead Veterinary Surgeon

Location: Kingsnorth, Rye, Tenterden & Hawkhurst (Kent & East Sussex)

Hours: Full time – 40 hours per week, 4 x 10 or 5 x 8. No OOH. 1:5 Saturdays.

Practice: Cinque Ports Vets

Salary: £75,000 – £80,000 DOE

What if your next leadership role didn't mean stepping away from the clinical work you enjoy? At Cinque Ports Vets, we're looking for an experienced veterinary surgeon to become our new Lead Veterinary Surgeon, working across our four practices in Kingsnorth, Rye, Tenterden and Hawkhurst. This is a role built around clinical variety without sacrificing continuity. You'll be predominantly based at our RCVS-accredited veterinary hospital in Kingsnorth, with a regular day at one of our branch practices. So rather than constantly moving around to fill gaps, you'll have the opportunity to become a familiar face to a particular team, build relationships with clients and patients, and provide genuine continuity of care. Your week could look something like one day of hospital work, two days consulting and one day surgery, giving you a really satisfying mix of clinical work. If surgery is your passion, there's plenty here to get your teeth into, with laparoscopic equipment, endoscopy and bronchoscopy available across the group. Alongside the clinical work, there's room to make the role your own. We're keen to support someone who wants to develop medicine, clinical training, mentoring or other areas of clinical leadership across the group. Then there is the lifestyle piece: 40 hours, either four 10-hour days or five 8-hour days, 1 in 5 Saturdays, no out-of-hours and Fridays off. It's a senior role, but it doesn't have to mean giving up the parts of being a vet that you actually enjoy.

Why join us?

Clinical variety without the chaos – a planned mix of hospital, consulting and surgery rather than being pulled from branch to branch

Continuity matters – you'll have a regular branch and regular day, so you can genuinely become part of that team and follow your patients' care

A hospital base with real clinical depth – Kingsnorth is an RCVS-accredited veterinary hospital with access to more advanced diagnostics and surgical facilities

Room to build your own niche – there is scope to take ownership of medicine, training, mentoring or another area that interests you

A team that values experience – you'll have plenty of opportunity to share what you know, while learning from colleagues with different clinical interests and expertise

Leadership without losing your clinical identity – this is about influencing and developing the clinical team while remaining firmly part of it

A genuinely attractive working pattern – choose between 4 x 10-hour or 5 x 8-hour days, with Fridays off, 1 in 5 Saturdays and no OOH

Four practices, four personalities – from the hospital environment at Kingsnorth to the character of Rye, the Weald of Kent around Tenterden and the Kent/East Sussex border around Hawkhurst

A group that takes clinical standards seriously – all four practices are RCVS accredited, with Kingsnorth holding hospital status

A strong feline focus – Kingsnorth is a Gold Cat Friendly Clinic, while Rye, Tenterden and Hawkhurst are Silver Cat Friendly Clinics

The wider support, development opportunities and clinical network that come with being part of Linnaeus and Mars Veterinary Health

Practice & Team

Cinque Ports Vets is a well-established group serving pets and their owners across Kent and East Sussex. Each practice in the group has its own character and local client base, but they work closely together and share access to the wider group's clinical expertise and facilities. Your main base will be Kingsnorth, home to our RCVS-accredited veterinary hospital. This is the clinical hub of the group, with a larger veterinary and nursing team and facilities supporting routine first-opinion work alongside more complex medical, surgical and diagnostic cases. There is also a 24-hour emergency service based at the hospital and provided by Vets Now, meaning our day team has access to a dedicated OOH service rather than carrying an OOH rota themselves. Clinically, there is plenty to get excited about. Across the practices you'll have access to digital radiography, dental radiography and in-house laboratory facilities, while Kingsnorth has endoscopy and bronchoscopy, as well as laparoscopic surgery equipment. Rye also has laparoscopic equipment, giving a surgery-focused vet the opportunity to make good use of their skills and continue developing them. The practices are also accredited by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, reflecting their commitment to professional standards and quality of care. Kingsnorth is an RCVS-accredited veterinary hospital, while Rye, Tenterden and Hawkhurst are RCVS-accredited veterinary practices. There is a particularly strong focus on feline-friendly care. Kingsnorth is a Gold Cat Friendly Clinic, while Rye, Tenterden and Hawkhurst are Silver Cat Friendly Clinics. These accreditations recognise the team's investment in feline-specific facilities, equipment, handling and patient care. Each branch has a Clinical Nursing Manager, giving the veterinary team strong nursing leadership and support. Kingsnorth has the largest clinical team, while the smaller branches offer something different: closer-knit teams, strong client relationships and the opportunity to become a familiar and trusted clinician within the local community. The team is bubbly, friendly and down to earth, with a no-nonsense approach to getting things done. There's plenty of experience to learn from, but this isn't a culture where hierarchy gets in the way. We want someone who will get stuck in, share their knowledge, ask questions, support colleagues and bring their own ideas to the table. Cinque Ports is being revamped. Could you help lead it?!

Role Structure

The role is deliberately varied. Your working week is likely to be broadly split between hospital work, consulting and surgery, with around one day based at Kingsnorth for hospital work, two days consulting and one day dedicated to surgery. At the branch practices, consultations generally sit at the beginning and end of the day, with surgery and medical cases in the middle. Your regular branch day means you'll get to know the patients coming through your door and can follow cases through rather than simply providing one-off cover. There will be some sole-charge work, but it won't dominate the role. You'll have the support of the wider group and the opportunity to work alongside experienced vets and nurses. The leadership element is equally important. We're particularly interested in someone who wants to use their experience to develop people as well as patients. There is scope to take a lead in medicine, support clinical training, mentor colleagues or develop another area that plays to your strengths. In other words, we're not looking for someone to simply keep the wheels turning... We want someone who will help us make the group even better.

Locations

The four locations give you plenty of variety outside the consulting room too. Kingsnorth sits just outside Ashford and is well connected to the surrounding Kent countryside. Tenterden is surrounded by the beautiful Weald of Kent, with its historic high street and villages. Hawkhurst sits on the Kent/East Sussex border, close to the High Weald, while Rye offers the character of a historic East Sussex town with the coast and countryside on its doorstep. All practices are well connected via High Speed rail and sit within close proximity to Gatwick airport.

What we're looking for

• A veterinary surgeon with at least 5 years' UK small animal practice experience
• Ideally a certificate holder in surgery, or an experienced clinician with a strong surgical interest and substantial surgical caseload
• A confident first-opinion clinician who enjoys the variety of consulting, medicine and surgery
• Someone who is comfortable working independently and undertaking rare but occasional sole-charge work
• A vet who enjoys being hands-on clinically and doesn't want a leadership role that takes them away from the patients
• Someone who enjoys sharing knowledge, mentoring and developing other vets
• A clinician who is interested in taking ownership of an area such as medicine, training or clinical development
• Someone approachable, pragmatic and straightforward in the way they communicate

What we offer

• 5 weeks holiday plus bank holidays and Birthday Leave
• RCVS and VDS fees paid
• External CPD funded
• Extensive free online Linnaeus CPD program
• Career progression opportunities
• Staff discount schemes
• Life Assurance
• Enhanced sickness pay
• Enhanced equal family leave
• E-car salary sacrifice scheme
• Employer contribution pension scheme
• Recruitment referral reward scheme
• Wellness program including:
• Employee assistance program
• Eyecare voucher scheme
• Free annual Flu jab
• Cycle to work scheme

About the company

Cinque Ports Vets is part of Linnaeus and Mars Veterinary Health, the largest family-owned veterinary company in the world. Being privately owned, we can truly be driven by our purpose, to create a better world, and think long-term as opposed to being focused solely on short-term profits. At Linnaeus, A BETTER WORLD FOR PETS starts with a better world for our people. Our Associates are over 6000 strong and empowered to speak up, step up and deliver quality services. You’ll have access to a huge network of specialists, worldwide development opportunities and an easily accessible, comprehensive wellbeing package that prioritises your physical and mental health, allowing you to focus on what you do best – care for pets. We are committed to fostering a culture that is inclusive and diverse, we care about you and want you to be authentic, with everything you need to perform at your best. We are all individual but two important things bring us together: a commitment to excellence and our passion to achieve our purpose.