VDS hands Vetlife £50K funding boost

Vetlife has been handed a £50,000 funding boost by the Veterinary Defence Society (VDS) following a year in which demand for the helpline’s services hit record levels.

Vetlife Helpline saw its busiest year on record after the coronavirus pandemic hit, with 3,921 contacts made in 2020 while 932 helpline contacts were made within the first three months of 2021.

The VDS has allocated precisely £51,566.45 to the service, taken from mutual bonuses and member donations to keep the service going after the first three months of 2021 alone saw 932 contacts made.

Financial support

Vetlife president Graham Dick said: “This extra financial support will be especially welcome in helping us to meet the costs of provision of services for all those in the UK veterinary family who may have need of our assistance.

“Charities of every type have undoubtedly faced their ‘rainy day’ for which reserves had been painstakingly gathered over many years.

“For Vetlife, those reserves have now been called upon to meet the substantial growth in calls for help and support of colleagues throughout the veterinary family.”

‘Tough year’

Vetlife honorary treasurer Paul Horwood said: “It has been a tough year for everyone and the demand for the charity’s service has never been higher.

“Together with the difficulties with being able to fund-raise, as all the events and challenges have been put on hold, this additional extremely generous support from the VDS will really help to bridge that funding gap. A huge thank you again to the VDS and all its members for their continued support.”

‘Difficult challenges’

Jo Stonehewer, director of membership at the VDS, said: “The whole country has faced difficult challenges during these unprecedented times and the veterinary profession is no different.

“The VDS has seen a huge expansion in calls to our advice line, increased numbers of claims made against practices, and increased demand for our training webinars and resources as the profession has tried to adapt to the continually changing environment.

“As a mutual organisation, the VDS exists entirely for our members and we are pleased to extend our support of the profession by financially assisting Vetlife in its crucial work.

“We’re also grateful to our members who chose to personally donate to Vetlife during their VDS policy renewal. “