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Posted: 27th December 2024

SPVS announces 2024 Business Excellence Awards winners
An overall winner will be announced at SPVS Congress 2025.
Independent practices took the accolades across three categories.

The Society for Practising Veterinary Surgeons (SPVS) has recognised the achievements of three independent practices in this year’s Veterinary Business Excellence Awards.

Accolades were given across three award categories, each representing areas which SPVS works to support. An overall winner will be announced at SPVS Congress on Thursday, 30 January.

The winner in the Team & Self-development category is Pennard Vets Maidstone, part of the independent veterinary group Pennard Vets.

A member of the Federation of Independent Veterinary Practices (FIVP), Pennard Vets has made headlines for its innovations.

In 2021, Pennard Vets became the largest practice in the world to transfer into employee ownership within an employee ownership trust. This year, it opened the largest veterinary practice in the South-East and welcomed Serina Filler to its team as its first group clinical director.

The winner in the Leadership & Management category is Stellar Vets in Littlehampton, which was opened by David Hodges in January 2021.

Dr Hodges originally owned a large practice called Pet Doctors, before selling the business to a corporate group in 2010. When the business became more bureaucratic and profit-oriented, Dr Hodges launched Stellar Vets to provide more personal care for his clients.

The practice has been nominated for Petplan Vet of the Year on several occasions, becoming a finalist in 2022.

The winner in the Veterinary Start Ups category is Manchester Cat Clinic, owned by Ellie and Daniel Lee.

Founded in May 2023, Manchester Cat Clinic is a family-run, feline-only veterinary practice. It was the winner in the Management Category of last year’s SPVS Veterinary Business Excellence Awards and also won in several categories for the BestUKVets Awards 2024.

The practice is specifically tailored for the care of cats, meeting the specifications of International Cat Care’s Cat Friendly Clinic programme and providing an environment where cats will not encounter dogs.

As well as awarding accolades in these unique categories, SPVS will also name an overall winner at its forthcoming congress. The awards ceremony will follow an address from SPVS president Silvia Janská on Thursday 30 January.

SPVS Congress 2025 will be taking place at Hilton Birmingham Metropole from 30 January-1 February.

Image © Shutterstock



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