About the Register of Veterinary Nurses

We (the RCVS) are required by law to maintain a Register of Veterinary Nurses eligible to practise in the United Kingdom. This Register is in the form of a database.

The Register contains the following information:

• The veterinary nurse’s full name and any change of name since registration.
• Their Register address. This might be their place of work or home address.
• Information about their registrable qualification, including the name of the college or university at which the qualification was obtained.
• The date of their first admission to the Register.
• Their membership or registration number.

The information on this list can be shared with the public and other members of the profession upon request. A limited number of hard copies of the Register are also available to buy. Please get in touch with our Registration Team for more information. 

Any other data held in our membership database will not be shared without the permission of the member.

Changes to a Register entry

If you’re a veterinary nurse on our Register, you must notify us within 28 days of any changes to your Register entry. The quickest and easiest way to do this is via My Account.

If you know that a member is no longer at their Register address, please ask them to contact us as soon as possible.

About the Register of Veterinary Nurses - a history

On 17 February 2015 a new supplemental Royal Charter came into effect. This was an historic event, changing the way the veterinary nursing profession was regulated. The previous Charter was granted in 1967.

The 2015 Charter clarified the role and objectives of the RCVS. It confirmed the College as the regulator of veterinary nurses, representing a huge step forward for the profession. Before the new Charter, we kept a Register of Veterinary Nurses and a separate List of Veterinary Nurses. Now we keep a single Register of Veterinary Nurses. 

The Register originally opened in 2007, marking a significant step towards statutory regulation for veterinary nurses. Nurses that had joined the RCVS since 1 January 2003 either transferred automatically from the List to the Register in 2007 or transferred voluntarily. By 17 February 2015, all veterinary nurses were transferred to the Register.

Professional requirements

Professional recognition, as in other professions, brings with it obligations. Registered veterinary nurses are accountable for their conduct and subject to the standards set by the Veterinary Nurses Council.

These standards are laid out in the Code of Professional Conduct for Veterinary Nurses and include:

• being required to do at least 15 hours of Continuing Professional Development (CPD) per calendar year
• making relevant disclosures to the RCVS.

In line with the Code, should there ever be an issue of serious professional misconduct, veterinary nurses undergo a disciplinary process, similar to that for veterinary surgeons. This was introduced on 1 April 2011.

A full explanation of the terms and conditions of joining the Register can be found in the Veterinary Nurse Registration Rules 2017.

If you have questions, please contact the Veterinary Nursing Team at [email protected] or on 020 7202 0788.