Look for the new logo to find accredited veterinary practices

The logo by which animal owners can identify veterinary practices accredited by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) has been updated – but both the new and the old logos remain valid.

The RCVS is the statutory regulator of veterinary surgeons, and also runs a voluntary accreditation scheme – the Practice Standards Scheme (PSS) – to encourage high standards within veterinary practices. To become accredited a practice must meet specific standards, and will undergo inspection at least every four years by the RCVS.  RCVS-accredited practices can also be spot-checked. 

“Animal owners want peace of mind when taking their animals to a veterinary practice and knowing that a practice meets certain standards and is inspected can be reassuring,” says Peter Jinman, PSS Chairman. “Over half of the UK’s veterinary practice premises are now RCVS-accredited – which is good news for animals and their owners.”

Accredited practices can use the RCVS-accredited practice logo, for example, on their signage or website, to show animal owners that the practice has met the standards. The RCVS has recently updated this logo, as part of its wider rebranding exercise, so animal owners may see either an updated or original logo until practices change their signage. The updated logo has been designed to provide continuity and run alongside the original, so that veterinary practices do not have to change all their materials at once – reducing costs.

There are four types of accreditation that practices can achieve and which may be indicated on the logo: core standards, general practice, emergency service clinic or veterinary hospital. General practices and veterinary hospitals may be accredited as small animal, equine, or both, and practices can also be accredited as farm animal general practices.

For more information about types of practice accreditation, or to find an accredited practice in the RCVS’s online database of veterinary practices, owners can visit www.findavet.org.uk. Searches are free and can be made by postcode, town, or animal species, and may be limited to accredited-practices only.