All nurses must now adhere to the Code of Professional Conduct, completing a minimum of 45 hours of CPD in any three-year period.

Nurses moved over to the register as list ceases to exist

The new Royal Charter has been collected, making the RCVS the official regulator of the veterinary nursing profession.

As a result, the list of veterinary nurses will cease to exist and listed nurses will receive a letter informing them that they have been automatically moved onto the register.

Under the new charter, all registered nurses must adhere to the RCVS Code of Professional Conduct, which includes completing a minimum of 45 hours of CPD in any three-year period. Nurses will also be subject to RCVS disciplinary proceedings.

However, the RCVS has responsibilities to consider too, as it becomes the official regulator for veterinary nurses as well as veterinary surgeons.

All regulators are encouraged to follow the Regulator's Code, which came into effect in April last year, under the Legislative and Regulatory Reform Act 2006. It offers a framework for regulators on how to engage with those they regulate.

While the RCVS is not among those regulators who have a statutory obligation to adhere to the code, the Better Regulation Delivery Office urges all regulators to use it as a tool for self-assessment, to determine their efficacy.

Under this code, the college and other regulators should, among other things:
* Carry out activities in a way that supports those they regulate
* Avoid unnecessary regulatory burdens
* Provide simple ways to engage with and hear the views of those they regulate
* Provide clear complaints procedures allowing those they regulate to easily make a complaint about the conduct of their regulator
* Ensure the availability of clear information and advice to help those they regulate to comply
* Make sure their approach to regulatory activities is transparent

In the 2012 Autumn Statement, the government announced its intention to bring in a set of measures to improve the way regulation is delivered. This forms part of the government's commitment to reducing regulatory burdens and encouraging open, constructive relationships between regulators and those they regulate.

When the new Royal Charter was approved by the privy council in November last year, around 1,000 nurses remained on the list of veterinary nurses, but it is not known for certain why these nurses chose to remain there, rather than joining the register.

A consultation on the subject last year received a limited response - with just 37 individuals and 11 organisations submitting their views to the document.

To read the Regulator's Code in full visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/300126/14-705-regulators-code.pdf

To view the Code of Professional Conduct for veterinary nurses, visit: http://www.rcvs.org.uk/advice-and-guidance/code-of-professional-conduct-for-veterinary-nurses/#animals

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