Registered Veterinary Nurse – Emergency and Critical Care Backshift

The University of Edinburgh; Easter Howgate; On-site; GBP 35,000 - 40,000; Part time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary

Flexible work options

Staff benefits

Job summary

The University of Edinburgh is seeking an enthusiastic ECC Backshift RVN to join our 24/7 Emergency and Critical Care Service at the Hospital for Small Animals. You will stabilise and care for emergency and critically ill patients, working across wards, ICU, and surgical suites with advanced nursing skills and colleagues from multiple specialist services.

Part-time backshift pattern (11am-10pm, 4 on/8 off) on a 14-month maternity cover contract; pro rata benefits and paid overtime beyond

Qualifications

• We welcome applications from all RCVS qualified Registered Veterinary Nurse (RVN) candidates.

Responsibilities

• Stabilise and care for emergency and critically ill patients.
• Work across wards, ICU, intermediate care ward and surgical suites.
• Utilise advanced nursing skills in the Intensive Care Unit and with state-of-the-art facilities.

Skills

Emergency care

Critical care

Intensive care

Anesthesia

Education

RCVS registered RVN

Job description

Grade UE06: £34,610 to £39,906 pro rata per annum (based 35 hours work week)

Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies / Hospital for Small Animals

Part time: Averaging 23.3 hours per week

(Working 11am-10pm on a rolling 4 on and 8 off pattern)

Fixed term: for 14 months (maternity cover contract)

As part of this role, you will be expected to cover an equal share of the annual leave in your pod of ECC Backshift RVNs, accruing paid overtime for all additional hours worked.

Be part of something bigger, there’s a career for everyone at the University of Edinburgh.

Our technical staff are essential to supporting teaching, research, and the smooth operation of our facilities. Whether you’re maintaining cutting-edge lab equipment, facilitating ground-breaking research, developing new techniques, or enhancing student and staff experience with top-notch facilities, your work will have a lasting impact that stretches far beyond our academic community.

The Opportunity:

We are looking for an enthusiastic ECC Backshift RVN to join our dedicated emergency and critical care team at the Hospital for Small Animals. As part of our 24/7 Emergency and Critical Care Service, you will play a vital role in stabilising and caring for emergency and critically ill patients, working alongside our team of Critical Care Specialists in a fast-paced referral environment. This role will see you working in our wards, ICU, intermediate care ward and in our surgical suites as required.

You’ll have the opportunity to utilise advanced nursing skills, supporting patients in our dedicated Intensive Care Unit and working with state-of-the-art facilities and working closely with colleagues across multiple specialist services, you will help deliver exceptional patient care and outcomes around the clock.

Our Specialist Services at HfSA include:

• Anaesthesia
• Cardiology Service
• Dermatology
• Diagnostic Imaging
• Dick Vet Rabbit and Exotic Practice
• Emergency & Critical Care
• The Feline Clinic
• The Internal Medicine Service
• Neurology and Neurosurgery
• Ophthalmology Service
• Orthopaedic Surgery
• Soft Tissue Surgery
• REPAIR Centre
• The Riddell-Swan Veterinary Cancer Centre
• The Behaviour Clinic

Our hospital is equipped with:

• Three canine wards
• Four exotics wards
• One feline ward
• Purpose-built isolation units
• A fully equipped emergency room
• Dedicated Intermediate Care and Intensive Care Wards
• Four theatre suites
• MRI and CT imaging
• Vital Beam linear accelerator

Training & Support

We will provide appropriate induction, orientation and role specific training. Any hours worked beyond your contracted weekly hours during training will be paid as overtime according to university guidelines.

View the full job description (opens in a new browser tab)

We welcome applications from all RCVS qualified Registered Veterinary Nurse (RVN) candidates. ContactSenior ECC Nurse, Toni Pettitt [e-mail] for more details.

As a valued member of our team, you can expect:

• A competitive salary.
• An exciting, positive, creative, challenging and rewarding place to work.
• To be part of a diverse and vibrant international community.
• Comprehensive Staff Benefits, including generous annual leave entitlement, a defined benefits pension scheme, a wide range of staff discounts, family-friendly initiatives, and flexible work options. Check out the full list on our staff benefits page (opens in a new tab) and use our reward calculator to discover the value of your pay and benefits.

Championing equality, diversity, and inclusion

The University of Edinburgh holds a Silver Athena SWAN award in recognition of our commitment to advance gender equality in higher education. We are members of the Race Equality Charter, and we are also a Stonewall Proud Employer, actively promoting LGBTQ+ equality.

Prior to any employment commencing with the University, you will be required to evidence your right to work in the UK. Further information is available on our right to work webpages (opens new browser tab)

On this occasion the University will not consider applicants requiring sponsorship for this role. International workers will therefore only be able to take up this role if they can demonstrate an alternative right to work in the UK.

Key dates to note

The closing date for applications is 2 October 2026.

Unless stated otherwise the closing time for applications is 11:59pm UK time. If you are applying outside the UK the closing time on our adverts automatically adjusts to your browsers local time zone.

Interview dates to be confirmed.