Volunteering at all levels

1 February 2024

Sophie Oliver has recently taken on the volunteer role of Student Liaison Officer for BSAVA, having been the Senior Student Representative at University of Nottingham before she graduated. In this role Sophie will use her experience of being a student rep to liaise and support the network of BSAVA Student Representatives who are in place at Universities in the UK and Eire. These reps are in place to encourage student membership of the Association and to make sure that all students are aware of the benefits of student membership, both whilst studying and beyond. In her own time as a rep, Sophie designed and delivered an online BSAVA Student Congress, as a hybrid event with support from the Nottingham student representatives.

Job sharing is an effective way to fill a role when the task needs skills that may be better delivered by two people with different but complementary skills and knowledge. The Association has taken this established workplace practice and introduced it into the volunteer opportunities and filled one of its key volunteer roles with two people who will effectively share the role of Chair of Council. Freda Scott-Park and Ian Ramsey are both Past Presidents of the Association, who between them have probably sat on every committee or working group BSAVA has had and have contributed enormously, and continue to do so.

What links these volunteers together, apart from their generosity of time is a desire to be involved with BSAVA and interestingly another known fact, students. Freda is a portfolio assessor at Glasgow University Veterinary School and her family farm is a teaching farm for Glasgow University Vet School (GUVS). Students come to the farm with their tutors throughout the year to practice routine fertility work as well as looking at cases that require special attention. Whilst Ian is a Professor of small animal medicine with a demonstrated history of working in a clinical environment within higher education, he is skilled in many aspects of small animal medicine, clinical research and lecturing.

The involvement of Sophie, Freda and Ian demonstrates that our volunteer community welcomes all, if you want to find out how you can get involved please contact us on volunteer@bsava.com for an informal chat.