jobfacts

Veterinary nurse

Veterinary nurses — SOC 2020 3240

Veterinary nurses assist veterinarians in the treatment and care of sick or injured animals.

Also calledAnimal nurseEquine veterinary nurseCanine nurse
Typical full-time pay£28,9002025 Provisional
People in the job27,000across the UK
Demand for workersCritical
New adverts a month655↓ 14%on last year · 237th of 412

Pay

ONS · ASHE 2025
What full-time veterinary nurses earn, 2025
£28,900 typical£24,800lowest 20%n/ptop 10%
n/p: top 10% not published by ONS
Show as table
Lowest 10% earn less thanNot published
Lowest 20% earn less than£24,800
25%£25,200
Median£28,900
75%Not published
Top 20% earn more thanNot published
Top 10% earn more thanNot published
Typical pay by regionUK median £28,900
Scotland!£36,400
West Midlands!£29,900
South East!£29,500
East of England!£29,200
South West!£26,300
London!£25,300
North West!£23,800
North EastNot published by ONS–
Yorkshire and The HumberNot published by ONS–
East MidlandsNot published by ONS–
WalesNot published by ONS–
!Small sample: treat with caution
Show as table
UK median, £28,900
Scotland£36,400 (small sample)
West Midlands£29,900 (small sample)
South East£29,500 (small sample)
East of England£29,200 (small sample)
South West£26,300 (small sample)
London£25,300 (small sample)
North West£23,800 (small sample)
North EastNot published by ONS
Yorkshire and The HumberNot published by ONS
East MidlandsNot published by ONS
WalesNot published by ONS
Typical pay over 3 years
  • 2023 £24,000
  • 2024 £25,900
  • 2025 Provisional£28,900
↑ 20% since 2023Provisional figures are revised when ONS publishes the next year’s survey.

Jobs and demand

ONS · Textkernel adverts · DfE

About 655 jobs for veterinary nurses are advertised each month. The Department for Education rates demand for workers as critical.

New job adverts a month, Jan 2017 to Aug 2026
New advertsMonth not published by ONS (1 in all)
Show as table
Aug 20261,207
Jul 2026552
Jun 2026489
May 2026852
Apr 2026495
Mar 2026Not published
Feb 2026457
Jan 2026558
Dec 2025312
Nov 2025532
Oct 2025891
Sept 2025863
Aug 2025640
Jul 2025662
Jun 2025753
May 2025816
Apr 2025576
Mar 2025862
Feb 2025876
Jan 20251,099
Dec 2024547
Nov 2024658
Oct 20241,014
Sept 2024764
Aug 2024783
Jul 2024635
Jun 2024879
May 20241,437
Apr 20241,112
Mar 20241,301
Feb 20241,135
Jan 20241,239
Dec 20231,015
Nov 2023773
Oct 2023953
Sept 2023742
Aug 20231,060
Jul 2023830
Jun 20231,601
May 20231,342
Apr 20231,053
Mar 20231,592
Feb 20231,366
Jan 20232,175
Dec 20222,181
Nov 20222,679
Oct 20222,579
Sept 20221,427
Aug 20221,416
Jul 20221,271
Jun 2022997
May 20221,317
Apr 2022897
Mar 20221,281
Feb 20221,260
Jan 20221,412
Dec 20211,281
Nov 20211,317
Oct 20211,404
Sept 20211,092
Aug 20211,058
Jul 20211,180
Jun 20211,021
May 20211,145
Apr 2021949
Mar 20211,121
Feb 2021570
Jan 2021515
Dec 2020413
Nov 2020327
Oct 2020457
Sept 2020348
Aug 2020319
Jul 2020300
Jun 2020223
May 2020148
Apr 2020220
Mar 2020292
Feb 2020981
Jan 2020419
Dec 2019311
Nov 2019322
Oct 2019315
Sept 2019291
Aug 2019241
Jul 2019231
Jun 2019205
May 2019222
Apr 2019165
Mar 2019189
Feb 2019216
Jan 2019244
Dec 2018206
Nov 2018253
Oct 2018301
Sept 2018224
Aug 2018144
Jul 2018159
Jun 2018257
May 2018186
Apr 2018230
Mar 2018263
Feb 2018205
Jan 2018171
Dec 2017114
Nov 2017146
Oct 2017181
Sept 2017185
Aug 2017253
Jul 2017256
Jun 2017351
May 2017209
Apr 2017426
Mar 2017211
Feb 2017194
Jan 2017221
Is there a shortage of veterinary nurses?
Critical

The Department for Education rates demand as not high, elevated or critical, using five indicators. This is its 2025 assessment.

  • Visas grantedAbove usual
  • Online job advertsWell above usual
  • Wage growthWell above usual
  • Pay against similar jobsUsual
  • Hours workedUsual
Note: uncertainty in change in hourly wage.
Vacancies hard to fill because of skills
52%against 27% for all jobs
Broader groupFigure for health and social care associate professionals, which includes veterinary nurses. DfE Employer Skills Survey 2024.
Where the most jobs are advertisedadverts a quarter
London263
Buckinghamshire31
Liverpool26
Somerset22
Cheshire West and Chester19
Guildford19
Bristol, City of18
Leeds18
Birmingham17
Oxford17
London is published as one area. Averages leave out quarters ONS withheld.
Where veterinary nurses are most concentratedShare of local job adverts, compared with the UK.

Recruitment from abroad. Fewer than 10 sponsored work visas were granted for this job from July 2025 to June 2026. Home Office

Who does it

ONS · Annual Population Survey · April 2025 to March 2026
Age of veterinary nurses
n/p
48%!
28%!
n/p
n/p
!Small sample: treat with cautionn/p: too few in the survey to publish
Show as table
16–24Not published
25–3448% (small sample)
35–4428% (small sample)
45–54Not published
55–64Not published
Highest qualification
Degree or equivalent58%
Higher education below degree!16%
A levels or equivalent!18%
GCSEs or equivalent!11%
!Small sample: treat with caution
Show as table
Degree or equivalent58%
Higher education below degree16% (small sample)
A levels or equivalent18% (small sample)
GCSEs or equivalent11% (small sample)

Main employers: veterinary activities (97%).

How to get in

Hold a degree
58%
as their highest qualification
Apprenticeships
1
from level 3
Apprenticeships take
2½ years
typically
T Levels
1
college courses for 16 to 19 year olds

Routes in

You can get into this job through:

University

You can do a foundation degree or degree in veterinary nursing. The Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons has a list of accredited courses.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • at least 1 A level, or equivalent, for a foundation degree
  • 2 or 3 A levels, or equivalent, including biology for a degree

College

You can study for a Level 3 Diploma in Veterinary Nursing at college.

You'll spend some time in the classroom and periods of training on placement in a veterinary practice.

The Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons has a list of approved training organisations offering the course.

Entry requirements

You'll need:

  • 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, including English, maths and science

Apprenticeship

You can begin your career by doing a Veterinary Nurse Level 3 Advanced Apprenticeship.

The training takes up to 3 years to complete.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, including English, maths and science

Volunteering

You could get some work experience with a vet, local kennels or animal welfare centre before you start training. You could also try animal charities like the PDSA or RSPCA.

What you’ll need

  • pass enhanced background checks

Registration and professional bodies

Registration
  • you'll need to register with the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons
Professional and industry bodies

You can join the British Veterinary Nursing Association for training opportunities and to make industry contacts.

Further information

You can learn more about how to become a veterinary nurse from the British Veterinary Nursing Association.

Routes in are from the National Careers Service job profile for veterinary nurse. Contains public sector information from the National Careers Service licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Apprenticeships

1 for this job

© Skills England 2025. This information is licensed under the Open Government Licence https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/

Other qualifications

QualificationTypeLevel
Animal care and managementT Level3

The work

ONS · ESCO · O*NET

Typical tasks

  • assists the veterinary surgeon during surgical and medical treatments of animals
  • prepares operating theatre, sterilises equipment and assists in theatre as required
  • dispenses and administers medication and applies dressings to animals under direction from the veterinarian
  • handles animals during treatment
  • collects and analyses blood, urine and other samples
  • cares for animals in hospital accommodation and keeps accurate records
  • maintains the biosecurity of the veterinary premises
  • advises clients on preventative medicine to maintain appropriate animal health and welfare

Skills

  • apply safe work practices in a veterinary setting
  • control animal movement
  • deal with challenging people
  • handle veterinary emergencies
  • manage animal biosecurity
  • manage personal professional development
  • monitor the welfare of animals
  • treat animals ethically
  • assess animal behaviour
  • collaborate with animal related professionals
  • cope with challenging circumstances in the veterinary sector
  • maintain veterinary clinical records
  • make decisions regarding the animal's welfare
  • provide support to veterinary clients

Knowledge

  • anatomy of animals
  • animal behaviour
  • animal welfare
  • animal welfare legislation
  • biosecurity related to animals
  • environmental enrichment for animals
  • physiology of animals
  • safe work practices in a veterinary setting

Suits people who like

  • Practical, hands-on work
  • Working with ideas and solving problems

Outlook

DfE · Skills Imperative 2035
Broader groupThese projections are for health and social care associate professionals, a group of 13 jobs that includes veterinary nurses.
Change in jobs, 2020 to 2035↑ 12%about 82,000 more jobs
Workers needed by 2035492,000including people replacing those who retire or leave

Sources

Pay
ONS, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, 2025 provisional
People in the job, who does it
ONS, Annual Population Survey, April 2025 to March 2026
Job adverts
ONS, online job adverts (Textkernel), to Aug 2026
Demand, skill shortages
Department for Education and Skills England, Occupations in demand and the Employer Skills Survey
Outlook
The Skills Imperative 2035 (2024), NFER/Nuffield/DfE/IER/CE
Routes in
National Careers Service job profiles
Apprenticeships, qualifications
Skills England occupational maps
Skills, interests
ESCO classification of the European Commission; O*NET data, U.S. Department of Labor (CC BY 4.0, modified)
Visas
Home Office, immigration system statistics

Figures as of 10 October 2026.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Occupations in demand and the Employer Skills Survey: Department for Education and Skills England. Immigration system statistics: Home Office. Contains public sector information from the National Careers Service licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

© Skills England 2025. This information is licensed under the Open Government Licence https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/

Source: The Skills Imperative 2035 (2024), NFER/Nuffield/DfE/IER/CE.

This service uses the ESCO classification of the European Commission.

This service includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. This service has modified all or some of this information. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. CC BY 4.0 licence.

jobfacts is independent. It is not part of, affiliated with or endorsed by the Office for National Statistics, the Department for Education, Skills England, the National Careers Service, the Home Office, the European Commission or the U.S. Department of Labor.