Director of Practice - Thistle Equine

An exciting new collaboration between MBM Equine, The Equine Vet Clinic, and Avondale Equine—under the stewardship of IVC Evidensia—has led to the creation of Thistle Equine Vets, a dedicated first opinion equine veterinary service based on Scotland’s west coast.

Over recent years, these three practices have worked closely together, successfully launching a shared out-of-hours service and an RCVS Specialist-led referral centre. With this new partnership comes an exciting leadership opportunity: we're now looking for a Director of Practice to join our team.

About Thistle Equine

Thistle Equine offers a wide-ranging and highly experienced service for horse owners, including:

Ambulatory care

A fully integrated out-of-hours service

A specialist-led surgical referral service

A team of advanced equine practitioners and qualified equine veterinary nurses

This collaborative model allows us to deliver exceptional clinical care while supporting a cohesive and forward-thinking team.

Could You Be Our New Director of Practice?

We’re looking for a strategic, people-focused leader with a passion for equine veterinary care. You’ll need to bring experience in operational management—ideally within the equine or veterinary sector—and be driven to lead high-performing clinical and support teams across multiple sites.

Key Responsibilities

As Director of Practice, you will work alongside the Clinical Directors and play a central role in the leadership and management of the practice. You’ll be responsible for:

1. Business Growth & Strategic Leadership

• Developing and delivering the annual business plan
• Driving continuous improvement and change initiatives
• Monitoring business performance and engaging the team in shared goals
• Sharing best practices across the wider IVC Evidensia network

2. Clinical Excellence

• Supporting high clinical standards and governance compliance
• Promoting a culture of learning, development, and performance improvement

3. Client Experience

• Championing excellence in client care
• Supporting client engagement and retention strategies

4. People & Culture

• Creating an engaging, supportive, and high-performance culture
• Ensuring appropriate resource planning and team development
• Maintaining a safe, compliant, and positive working environment

5. Financial Responsibility

• Managing the full P&L of the practice
• Meeting budgetary goals and driving sustainable business growth

What We’re Looking For

Qualifications & Experience:

• Degree-level education
• Proven leadership and operational management experience (equine or veterinary sector preferred)
• A strong understanding of business operations and financial management
• Experience managing across multiple locations is an advantage

Skills & Attributes:

• High emotional intelligence (self-awareness, empathy, motivation, self-regulation)
• Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills
• Confident problem-solver with sound decision-making abilities
• Strong organisational skills and time management

This is a unique opportunity to step into a key leadership role within a thriving, collaborative veterinary environment.

Working Hours

This full-time role requires 40 hours per week, Monday to Friday, with on-site presence.

Why Join Us?

We offer a supportive, growth-focused work environment, where you’ll have a significant impact on our operations and client experience. In addition to a competitive salary up to £50,000 per annum, you will benefit from:

Work Life Balance

• 6.8 weeks annual leave
• Additional time off for your birthday

Wellbeing

• Private medical insurance
• Enhanced family-friendly policies, including maternity/ paternity/ adoption/ shared parental and surrogacy pay
• Cycle to work scheme
• Initiatives focused on employee wellbeing
• Non-accidental injury support

Development

• CPD Allowance
• Learning and development opportunities via the IVC Evidensia Academy
• Access to Vetlexicon - our encyclopaedia provider
• Infection prevention and control programme
• Quality Improvement Programme

Professional Memberships

• VDS Cover
• RCVS Fees

Additional

• Pawsome Benefits - reward gateway giving discounts and cashback with 100's of retailers
• Pension scheme
• Discounted staff pet care