Exceptional veterinary professionals showcased at the BVA Awards 2025
Dr Leah Hunter MRCVS has been named the British Veterinary Association’s (BVA) Young Vet of the Year for 2025. The prestigious award was presented at the annual BVA Awards, held on Thursday 16 October at BVA HQ in London.
Now in its second year, the BVA Awards celebrate the professionalism, dedication and achievements of vets and vet teams across the UK and was followed by a reception, sponsored by Lloyd & Whyte.
The awards presented on the day were:
· BVA Wellbeing Awards 2025, supported by ManyPets
· BVA Outstanding Service Award (Chiron Award)
· BVA Advancement of Veterinary Science Award (Dalrymple-Champneys Cup and Medal)
· BVA Animal Health and Welfare Overseas Award (J.Trevor Blackburn Award)
British Veterinary Association President Dr Rob Williams said: “It’s been a difficult time for the veterinary profession, and vets have been feeling the pressure from all sides. Whether working in a small animal practice, as a farm or mixed vet, in a non-clinical role or as a government vet, vets are highly skilled professions who play an invaluable role in society. The BVA Awards is a chance to shine a light on those exceptional vets who really go the extra mile to care for their patients, support the wellbeing of colleagues or make a lasting contribution to the veterinary community. A big congratulations to all of our winners for 2025, you should be incredibly proud of all your achievements.”
BVA’s Young Vet of the Year 2025 – supported by Zoetis
Dr Leah Hunter MRCVS
BVA’s Young Vet of the Year award celebrates inspirational vets in the first stages of their professional career. Mixed practice vet Dr Leah Hunter is this year’s winner, with small animal vet Dr. Jade Urquhart-Gilmore and Farm vet Dr Rosemary Charnley are named finalists.
Dr. Leah Hunter has been awarded the 2025 BVA Young Vet of the Year Award for her extraordinary dedication; compassion; unwavering devotion to her patients; and professionalism in all aspects of her work, both in practice and outside it. After graduating from the University of Edinburgh in 2021, Leah began working as a mixed practice vet at Flett and Carmichael Veterinary Surgeons in Orkney, where she always goes the extra mile for her patients, whether within her practice or out and about in the Orkney countryside and coastline. She has developed a particular interest in small animal dentistry, regenerative farming and sustainability in practice and is passionate about nature and conservation.
She is involved with multiple charities outside of work, becoming an Orkney Nature Festival trustee, a British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) medic and Scottish Marine Animal Stranding Scheme volunteer. Her involvement is not confined to daylight hours or predictable situations as she frequently responds to emergency call-outs for seals, porpoise or dolphins at all hours, often in challenging conditions. It is not uncommon for her to be found on windswept beaches in the dead of night, providing expert care to stranded or injured marine mammals. She has also been involved in providing first aid to stranded whales and dolphins and assisting in their re-floatation or euthanasia when the animals can’t be refloated due to illness and also assisted with 37 pilot whale postmortems on Sanday, Orkney, in 2024 after the most significant mass stranding event in the UK in the last 100 years.
On being named the winner, Dr Leah Hunter said: “I am incredibly honoured to receive this award; this is an amazing way to mark my first four years in the veterinary profession. I am very humbled to even be nominated, let alone win this award, especially when I know how many amazing and talented young vets there are in the UK. I truly do love the work that I do, island vetting really is unique and I’m grateful to have the opportunity to help make a difference. I wish a huge congratulations to my fellow finalists too, they are inspiring veterinary professionals, and I wish them all the best with their careers.”
The award judging panel – BVA Senior Vice President Dr Elizabeth Mullineaux, last year’s Young Vet of the Year David Charles, Diagnostics National Veterinary Manager Sophie Duguid from Zoetis and RCVS President Tim Parkin – were impressed by all three of the entrants and their hard work, achievements in their careers so far and their dedication and compassion.
BVA President Dr Rob Williams MRCVS said: “A huge congratulations to Leah for winning this prestigious award. Her dedication to pets, farm animals and wildlife is exceptional – not content with giving the highest possible care during working hours, her work outside the walls of her practice is also outstanding. Her empathy for others – whether people or animals – shines through as does her drive to always work her hardest to achieve the best possible outcome in difficult cases. She is a worthy winner of the Young Vet of the Year title.
“Our other finalists, Jade and Rosemary, should also be applauded for their fantastic achievements. They are also outstanding members of the veterinary profession, and we know they have a bright future ahead of them. Congratulations to you both.”
BVA Wellbeing Awards 2025 – supported by ManyPets
The BVA Wellbeing Awards recognise veterinary workplaces that go above and beyond to support staff wellbeing, based on BVA’s Good Veterinary Workplaces Voluntary Code.
This year’s BVA Wellbeing Award winners are:
Small/Medium Practice (Up to 25 employees) winners – Pet People Vets, London
Pet People Vets impressed the judges with their whole team approach to wellbeing, from instigating regular meetings across the whole practice to encouraging social activities and team yoga. The reception team are able to shadow clinical staff, meaning they are integrated into clinical care, helping the whole team to work cohesively. The practice also holds monthly mortality/morbidity meetings to give team members the opportunity to share their experiences and encourage learning, not blame, out of difficult situations.
Large Practice (Over 25 employees) winners – 387 Vets, Great Wyrley, Walsall
This year’s winners of the Large Practice category, 387 Vets, believe communication is key in their practice: team members have undergone profiling to help them understand how they can best communicate with each other and they have an “accountability toolkit”, created by all team members. They share respectful strategies for overcoming communication barriers and monthly “continuous improvement meetings” are kept management free to encourage team members to share their views. The practice also has a wellbeing action plan in place.
Non-Clinical Workplace winners – Brooke Action for Working Horses and Donkeys, London
Judges were pleased by how a wellbeing culture is clearly recognised and respected at Brooke Action for Working Horses and Donkeys: a health coach is available, wellbeing activities are organised and encouraged in the office and regular staff consultations and a “pulse survey” are carried out to help raise and address concerns. Colleagues from less hands-on roles get invited to the countries where action happens so they get to see the impact of the team, helping to give a sense of purpose and show how they are collectively making a difference.
BVA President Dr Rob Williams said about this year’s award winners: “Work is such a huge part of our lives that it is vital to feel at ease, comfortable and happy to be there. Being a vet comes with long hours, high emotions and difficult cases and knowing that you have the support of your managers and team is so important – it’s how workplaces thrive. We’re proud to highlight this year’s Wellbeing Award winners and the wonderful and effective ways they support their teams and we hope they inspire other veterinary workplaces to take positive action.”
BVA Outstanding Service Award (Chiron Award)
Dr Rachel Dean BVMS PhD MSc(EBHC) DSAM(fel) SFHEA FRCVS –
The BVA Outstanding Service Award (Chiron Award) is given for contributions to veterinary science or for services to the profession, judged as being of a calibre commanding international or interprofessional recognition. This year, the award is being presented to Dr Rachel Dean to recognise the extensive contributions she has made to clinical practice and veterinary education. Having graduated from the University of Glasgow, Dr Dean has worked in mixed, dairy and small animal general practice in the private, charity and academic sectors. She is passionate about veterinary healthcare and is a recognised international leader of evidence-based veterinary medicine and encourages authentic collective clinical leadership and progressing care through developing professional connections, research, innovation, quality improvement and professional development.
BVA President Dr Rob Williams said: “This award recognises the extensive contributions Dr Dean has made – and continues to make – to clinical practice and veterinary education. Her work on evidence-based veterinary medicine (EBVM), including founding the Centre for Evidence-based Veterinary Medicine at University of Nottingham’s School of Veterinary Medicine, has been truly pioneering and she is an impressive educator, having delivered education and mentoring in the fields of feline and shelter medicine. Her warm, engaging and person-centred approach to leadership deserves to be highlighted and she is certainly a most worthy recipient of this award.”
BVA Advancement of Veterinary Science Award (Dalrymple-Champneys Cup and Medal)
Professor Andrew Cunningham BVMS PhD FRCVS
This year the BVA Advancement of Veterinary Science Award (Dalrymple-Champneys Cup and Medal) is awarded to Professor Andrew Cunningham in recognition of his exceptional contributions to the advancement of veterinary medicine and the field of wildlife veterinary science.
Graduating in 1987 from Glasgow Veterinary School, Professor Cunningham is currently Deputy Director of Science at ZSL, where he has worked in various roles since 1988. He has led several national and international, multi-disciplinary wildlife disease research projects investigating the emergence, spread, impact and mitigation of disease threats to wildlife conservation, understanding the role of anthropogenic environmental change on wildlife disease emergence. His large body of original, high-quality research has had major impacts across conservation biology, veterinary science and public health, informing and influencing the policies of governments, intergovernmental organisations and NGOs.
BVA President Dr Rob Williams said: “Professor Cunningham’s outstanding quality and volume of publications and extensive work has made a significant impact on veterinary medicine, in the UK and globally. The Selection Committee were particularly impressed by his strong global influence and contributions to One Health research, noting that he has played a significant role in disease detection and conservation beyond zoos, influencing wildlife protection globally. As a leading scientist in his field, this is a much-deserved award, congratulations.”
BVA Animal Health and Welfare Overseas Award (J.Trevor Blackburn Award)
Dr Polly Compston BSc (Hons), BVM&S, MSc, PhD, MRCVS
This year the BVA Animal Health and WelfareOverseas Award (J.Trevor Blackburn Award) is awarded to Dr Polly Compston for her outstanding contribution to animal health and welfare on a global scale. The Award, which will take the form of a certificate, serves to perpetuate Trevor’s memory and recognise the contributions by members of our profession to animal health and welfare overseas.
After graduating from Edinburgh Vet School, Polly worked in mixed and small animal practice before completing a residency in clinical research at Rossdales Equine Hospital alongside an MSc in Veterinary Epidemiology and Public Health. She went on to work in research for an NGO, developing an evidence base for animal welfare interventions across Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Latin America, and later completed a PhD on the economic and social drivers of foot-and-mouth disease control in Kenya. She currently has two roles, one as Veterinary Head of Outbreak Central Services at the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA), leading licencing, tracing and surveillance teams in the UK’s response to notifiable disease outbreaks, and also as a Technical Lead at EuFMD supporting international efforts for improved transboundary livestock disease control.
BVA President Dr Rob Williams said: “Dr Compston has driven meaningful change in global One Heath and her dedication in this field is inspiring. Her collaborative approach with people from many different ethnicities and backgrounds strengthens animal healthcare systems wherever she works, with her work with global charities to improve the health and welfare of horses and donkeys, her research on FMD vaccination in Kenya, and her work to help control this disease in endemic regions being of particular note. Congratulations!”
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