Senior Veterinary Surgeon - Emergency Out-Of-Hours

inspiring vet care; Herne Bay; On-site; GBP 81,000 - 99,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Private medical insurance

Enhanced maternity policy including 6 

Family-friendly policies including pat

7 weeks pro rata annual leave

Birthday paid day off

Paid volunteering days

CPD allowance and paid study leave

Job summary

Vets Now Herne Bay is seeking a Senior Veterinary Surgeon to lead and drive emergency and critical care excellence. You will guide a high‑performing team and shape the future ECC service, while delivering top‑tier patient care and client service.

The role outlines leadership duties, opportunities for professional development, and a supportive environment with a comprehensive benefits package. This is a full‑time OOH position based in Herne Bay, with flexible arrangements where possible.

Qualifications

• Qualified veterinary surgeon with emergency/out-of-hours experience.
• Ability to lead an ECC team and mentor colleagues.
• Willingness to work nights and weekends as part of an OOH service.

Responsibilities

• Drive and uphold clinical standards across the clinic.
• Identify clinical development opportunities and shape team progression.
• Champion innovation and service improvement within the clinic.
• Lead in emergency situations and support development of fellow clinicians.

Skills

Emergency care

Leadership

Mentorship

Team management

Education

BVetMed or equivalent

Job description

Vets Now Herne Bay are welcoming out-of-hours (OOH) Senior Veterinary Surgeon applications, from Vets with a passion for Emergency and Critical Care, to join their team. Vets Now is the UK’s leading provider of Emergency Veterinary Care, with a nationwide network of out-of-hours clinics and 24/7 emergency hospitals. As part of Inspiring Vet Care, our teams make a difference to pets and their owners when they need us most.

In this role, you will lead from the front— inspiring clinical excellence and guiding a high‑performing and collaborative team. At Vets Now, we believe that when your passion is to make a difference, you deserve a team that shares this purpose.

Lead with clinical excellence

As Senior Vet, you’ll lead by example by blending clinical expertise with mentorship and collaboration. You’ll set the tone for quality care, lead in emergency situations, and support the development of your fellow clinicians. You'll have responsibility for:

• Driving and upholding clinical standards across the clinic
• Identifying clinical development opportunities and shaping team progression
• Championing innovation and service improvement within the clinic
• This is more than a job. This is a vital leadership role with real impact where your guidance helps shape the future of ECC, while making a difference to patients, clients, and colleagues every day.

Work-life balance that works for you

This full‑time role averages 40 hours per week (average of 3 shifts per week), including:

• Weekday nights
• 1:2 weekends (mix of nights and days)
• Shared bank holidays
• No more than three consecutive nights
• Protected time for leadership duties and meetings
• We understand that life outside of work matters too. That’s why we offer flexibility and can explore part‑time arrangements, depending on clinic requirements, because your balance is our priority.

We look after you so you can look after them

At Vets Now we recognise that our people are what makes us. That’s why we are continuing to invest in first class reward and recognition benefits and initiatives.

• Private medical insurance
• Membership of employee wellbeing programme
• Enhanced sick pay
• Enhanced maternity policy including 6 months full pay
• Family‑friendly policies including paternity and adoption pay schemes
• 7 weeks pro rata annual leave
• Your birthday as a paid day off
• Paid volunteering days
• £1875 CPD allowance plus 35 paid hours pro rata
• ECC certificate support - financial and paid study leave
• RCVS fees
• VECCS membership
• VDS cover
• Vets Now For You - reward gateway giving discounts and cashback with 100’s of retailers
• UK Standard Pension contributions - 5% Employee/3% Employer
• Up to 50% discounted staff pet care
• Death in service of two times annual salary

Give yourself the AdvantEdge

At Vets Now, we are passionate about training and the ongoing development of our employees. If this vacancy is of interest and you feel you would benefit from an enhanced induction into our business, then the below option may be perfect for you:

AdvantEdge— A programme for talented Vets that will fast track them into a successful emergency role. This programme includes 1 week of hands‑on practical training and 20 hours of flexible case‑based e‑learning completed at your own pace. This blended approach is designed to help you start your career at Vets Now with confidence.

Collaborative spirit— support that sets you up for success

You’re never alone at Vets Now. On‑shift you’ll often work alongside a registered Vet Nurse, an Animal Care Assistant and a Receptionist. You can also contact any of our clinics across the UK, if needing to discuss a particular case or share ideas.

You’ll also be supported by our Support Office in Dunfermline, where our teams work behind the scenes to help you thrive. Our Call Handlers and Customer Care Advisors ensure you can focus on what matters most—your patients.

We welcome applications from candidates of all backgrounds, including those from diverse and minority groups. As a Disability Confident Employer, we encourage candidates with disabilities and health conditions to apply and are committed to providing reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment process.

Up to £90,000 DOE pro rata